This paper is an academic critique of a qualitative research article based on the study, High School Students’ Perceptions of Motivations for Cyberbullying: An Exploratory Study. In this study, researchers aimed to explore firsthand the reasoning or perceptions surrounding the motivations behind cyberbullying and why it occurs in the high school setting. This paper will closely examine and critique major aspects of an exploratory qualitative study, the purpose of my critique is to develop a systematic and analytical discussion based around the degree to which this case study exemplifies the characteristics of qualitative research.
Qualitative Study Critique: High School Students’ Perceptions of Motivations for Cyberbullying: …show more content…
However, it seemed to be the lack of information found on the issue that prompted the study. Despite preliminary efforts to investigate motivations for cyberbullying, there is a dearth of information on this topic, particularly among high school populations (Varjas, Talley, Meyers, Parris, & Cutts, 2010, p. 269-270). When examining whether the research problem fits a qualitative approach, I looked at the central phenomenon, what’s being researched or the question at hand, and the methodology. Since the research is on perceptions, which is based on personal accounts or opinions, and the study itself is exploratory in nature, qualitative research is a good fit. When looking at the methodology, a small group of high school students were used in the study only 20, who were also the target audience for the study as a whole, which is usually the model for a qualitative study. Finally, since there is little information on the issue as it is obtaining first hand accounts on the issue will allow for further research both qualitative and quantitative. The assumptions are vast in the study with regard to what researchers believe are the reasons for cyberbullying behaviors in the high school setting. To further understand the behaviors and perceptions a qualitative research study is consistent because the researchers must …show more content…
The article also goes into depth with regard to the theory used in the research. Grounded theory was used due to the exploratory nature of this study and the limited literature available regarding the motivations for cyberbullying (Varjas, Talley, Meyers, Parris, & Cutts, 2010, p. 270). The theory emerges in the method and data analysis sections. The analysis continues on to discuss the type of coding used, which was inductive-deductive process. Inductive coding involved the identification of codes from the current data set to develop an informed coding manual. Deductive coding used preexisting data, research, or theory to develop codes (Varjas, Talley, Meyers, Parris, & Cutts, 2010, p. 270). The researchers used the coding manual to code interviews and establish inter-rater reliability, which was later verified by a researcher with cyberbullying expertise. The findings brought about multiple layer themes and codes, which included internal and external motivations, and those were later broken down into codes based specific motivations for cyberbullying. The article manages to go in depth and explicitly breaks down each theme and each code, but it also differentiates between internal and external motivations. The themes that emerge from the article seem to be both complete and actually
Qualitative Study Critique: High School Students’ Perceptions of Motivations for Cyberbullying: …show more content…
However, it seemed to be the lack of information found on the issue that prompted the study. Despite preliminary efforts to investigate motivations for cyberbullying, there is a dearth of information on this topic, particularly among high school populations (Varjas, Talley, Meyers, Parris, & Cutts, 2010, p. 269-270). When examining whether the research problem fits a qualitative approach, I looked at the central phenomenon, what’s being researched or the question at hand, and the methodology. Since the research is on perceptions, which is based on personal accounts or opinions, and the study itself is exploratory in nature, qualitative research is a good fit. When looking at the methodology, a small group of high school students were used in the study only 20, who were also the target audience for the study as a whole, which is usually the model for a qualitative study. Finally, since there is little information on the issue as it is obtaining first hand accounts on the issue will allow for further research both qualitative and quantitative. The assumptions are vast in the study with regard to what researchers believe are the reasons for cyberbullying behaviors in the high school setting. To further understand the behaviors and perceptions a qualitative research study is consistent because the researchers must …show more content…
The article also goes into depth with regard to the theory used in the research. Grounded theory was used due to the exploratory nature of this study and the limited literature available regarding the motivations for cyberbullying (Varjas, Talley, Meyers, Parris, & Cutts, 2010, p. 270). The theory emerges in the method and data analysis sections. The analysis continues on to discuss the type of coding used, which was inductive-deductive process. Inductive coding involved the identification of codes from the current data set to develop an informed coding manual. Deductive coding used preexisting data, research, or theory to develop codes (Varjas, Talley, Meyers, Parris, & Cutts, 2010, p. 270). The researchers used the coding manual to code interviews and establish inter-rater reliability, which was later verified by a researcher with cyberbullying expertise. The findings brought about multiple layer themes and codes, which included internal and external motivations, and those were later broken down into codes based specific motivations for cyberbullying. The article manages to go in depth and explicitly breaks down each theme and each code, but it also differentiates between internal and external motivations. The themes that emerge from the article seem to be both complete and actually