The Mindful Qualitative Researcher Qualitative Research Methods

This book explores the ways in which mindfulness can enhance the role of the researcher in qualitative inquiry. Many qualitative method texts discuss honing self-reflexivity, developing awareness, or bracketing pre-existing knowledge. However, few texts provide a tool to learn how to exercise reflexivity, cultivate awareness, or identify biases. This book uses a tangible practice, mindfulness meditation, as a means to train and prepare researchers across disciplines to enter into the field. It is written with the novice researcher in mind, specifically those navigating a graduate program and being introduced to qualitative methods for the first time. Each chapter presents a qualitative method along with a mindfulness practice that stems from the Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) philosophy and training. The reader is encouraged to complete a writing component, Mindful Memos, alongside the practice.