Abstract
The question arises: do problems of concept-formation in such research differ from those in quantitative social research? It has often been maintained that this is so. While in quantitative social research concepts tend to be pre-formed and fixed (it is argued), in qualitative research they tend to be fluid and emergent. Herbert Blumer’s classic paper, ‘What is wrong with social theory?’ (1954), in which he distinguished between definitive and sensitising concepts provides a clear statement of this view.
Reprinted from The Sociological Review, vol. 27 (4), November 1979, pp. 653–77.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Copyright information
© 1984 Palgrave Macmillan, a division of Macmillan Publishers Limited
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Bulmer, M. (1984). Concepts in the Analysis of Qualitative Data. In: Bulmer, M. (eds) Sociological Research Methods. Palgrave, London. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-17619-9_16
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-17619-9_16
Publisher Name: Palgrave, London
Print ISBN: 978-0-333-37346-0
Online ISBN: 978-1-349-17619-9
eBook Packages: Palgrave Social & Cultural Studies CollectionSocial Sciences (R0)