Collection and analysis of qualitative empirical data

– an introduction

Basic information:

Supervisor: Prof. Dr. Dr. h. c. mult. Horst Wildemann

Format: This seminar is a 3-day intensive seminar. For TUM doctoral

students, this seminar meets the minimum requirement of 22.5
full-time attendance hours. The seminar provides an introduction
to qualitative methods of empirical research. For this purpose,
the collection and analysis of qualitative empirical data using dif-
ferent methods and tools is discussed on the basis of current pa-
pers and the advantages and disadvantages are worked out. The
focus of the seminar is the development of a procedure to collect
and subsequently analyze qualitative data. This is done in the
context of group work. The aim of the seminar is to enable the
participants to use qualitative methods of empirical social re-
search in their research environment in order to conduct empiri-
cal surveys.

Participants: The seminar is aimed at doctoral students at the TUM School of

Management who show a particular interest in the research area
of empirical social research. The number of participants for this
seminar is limited to 20 in order to maintain high quality discus-
sions.

Preparation: No special preparation is necessary prior to the seminar. Rele-

vant literature will be made available to the participants in ad-
vance to familiarize them with the topic.

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Registration: All interested doctoral students must register by e-mail (e-mail:
wisekretariate@wi.tum.de) at least one week before the start of
the event.

Location: Detailed information on the venue will be communicated to the

participants in good time before the start of the event.

Grade: There is no grading in this seminar. Passing/failing of the semi-

nar will be evidenced by the doctoral students' attendance.

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Aims of the seminar:

The aim of the 3-day seminar is to give doctoral students an introduction to the col-
lection of qualitative empirical data in a scientific environment. In doing so, the dif-
ference to the quantitative method is explained first and explained in more detail
with the help of advantages and disadvantages.
The focus of the seminar is on the collection and analysis of qualitative empirical
data. For the collection of qualitative data, expert interviews as well as the Delphi
method will be examined in more detail. In addition, the doctoral students will be
introduced to the functioning of the methods and how these methods can be used
for the aggregation of ideas, prediction of facts, determination of expert views and
for finding consensus. For the analysis of qualitative data, the focus is placed on
the coding and evaluation of the collected data as well as the visualization. For both
steps, methods and tools are presented that enable doctoral students in the scien-
tific environment to easily handle a large amount of data.
The application areas in which the methods can be useful, and the advantages and
disadvantages of these methods are taught. All questions are solved in group work.

Learned knowledge/skills:
Doctoral students will receive an introduction to collecting and analyzing qualitative
empirical data in a scientific environment. Participants will be trained in the follow-
ing aspects:

• Systematic demarcation of qualitative and quantitative empirical research

• Systematic application of different types of expert interviews in the scien-
tific environment
• Systematic application of the Delphi method in the scientific environment
• Advantages and specific fields of application of the Delphi method
• Approach to the creation, functionality, and interrelations of Delphi surveys
• Possibilities of using the Delphi method and expert interviews for empirical
surveys in the context of the PhD project
• Functionality and context of coding, analysis, and visualization of qualita-
tive data as well as their advantages and disadvantages and specific
fields of application
• Extending the scientific way of working through independent application of
new methods and tools (e.g. MAXQDA, Tableau)
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• Exchange of experience between doctoral students on the application of
specific tools and methods in the area of collection and analysis of qualita-
tive empirical data

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Seminar schedule:

Day 1
Until 01:30 pm Arrival of the PhD students
02:00 pm – 06:00 pm Presentation and general introduction to qualitative empirical
research in the scientific environment
• Distinction between qualitative and quantitative research
• Advantages and disadvantages of qualitative and quanti-
tative research
• Possible application fields of qualitative research
• Presentation of application examples in journals
06:00 pm – 07:00 pm Dinner together and discussions in the group
07:00 pm – 10:00 pm Collection of qualitative data using expert interviews
• Presentation of the different types of expert interviews
• Advantages and disadvantages of the different types of
expert interviews
• Discussion of concrete application examples per type

Day 2
08:00 am – 10:30 am Collection of qualitative data using Delphi method
• Structure, content and functioning of the Delphi survey
• Advantages and disadvantages of the Delphi survey
• Discussion of concrete application examples
• Advanced methods such as Fuzzy-Delphi
10:30 am – 12:00 pm Group work: Setting up a Delphi survey based on examples
from research projects and publications
12:00 pm – 01:00 pm Lunch together and discussions in the group

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01:00 pm – 04:00 pm Coding and analysis of qualitative data with different software
solutions
• Structure, content, and functionality of the coding based
on case studies
• Presentation of different software solutions for coding
and analyzing qualitative data (MAXQDA, Aquad, Hyper
Research)
• Introduction to the software MAXQDA
04:00 pm – 07:00 pm Visualization of qualitative data using Tableau
• Basics of communication requirements, design principles
and visual presentation forms
• Value representation with different diagram types each
for different scenarios – advantages and disadvantages
of the different diagram types
• Introduction to the software Tableau
from 07.30 pm Dinner together and discussions in the group

Day 3
08:00 am – 11:00 am Group work: Coding, analysis and visualization of qualitative
data based on examples from research projects and publica-
tions
11:00 am – 12:30 pm Presentation and discussion of the implementation methods
developed, and the results of the group works
12:30 pm – 01:30 pm Lessons learned and general recession of the seminar results
and possible applications of the presented methods and tools
for the collection, analysis and visualization of qualitative data in
the context of the PhD project
01:30 pm – 02:00 pm Lunch together and discussions in the group
02:00 pm End of the event and journey home

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Voluntary seminar literature:

The participants are free to read the relevant literature before the seminar.

The following literature is recommended for preparation of the seminar:

• Aengenheyster, S.; Cuhls, K.; Gerhold, L.; Heiskanen-Schütter, M.; Huck, J.;
Muszynska, M. (2017): Real-Time Delphi in practice — A comparative analy-
sis of existing software-based tools. Technological Forecasting and Social
Change, J. 118, Mai 2017, S. 15-27.
• Atteslander, P. (2010): Methoden der empirischen Sozialforschung. Erich
Schmidt Verlag. Berlin.
• Chang, P.-T.; Huang, L.-C.; Lin, H.-J. (2000): The fuzzy Delphi method via
fuzzy statistics and membership function fitting and an application to the hu-
man resources. Fuzzy Sets and Systems J. 112 (2000) S. 511-520.
• Chorherr, O. (1994): Verführung zum qualitativen Forschen. Eine Methoden-
auswahl. WUV-Univ.-Verl., Wien.
• Cuhls, K. (2019): Die Delphi-Methode – eine Einführung. In: Niederberger, M.
und Renn, O. (Hrsg.), Delphi-Verfahren in den Sozial- und Gesundheitswis-
senschaften. Springer, Wiesbaden.
• Diekmann, A. (2018): Empirische Sozialforschung. Grundlagen, Methoden,
Anwendungen. Rowohlt Taschenbuch Verlag. Reinbek bei Hamburg.
• Flick, U. (2005): Qualitative Sozialforschung. Eine Einführung. Rowohlt Ta-
schenbuch Verlag. Reinbek bei Hamburg.
• Friedrichs, J. (1990): Methoden empirischer Sozialforschung. VS Verlag für
Sozialwissenschaften. Wiesbaden.
• Hallowell, M. R.; Gambatese, J. A. (2009): Qualitative Research: Application
of the Delphi Method to CEM Research. In: Journal of Construction Engi-
neering and Management, J. 136 (1) January 2010, S. 99-107.
• Heistinger, A. (2006): Qualitative Interviews. Ein Leitfaden zu Vorbereitung
und Durchführung inklusive einiger theoretischer Anmerkungen. Wien.
• Linstone, H. A.; Turoff, M. (1975): The Delphi Method. Techniques and Appli-
cations. Addison-Wesley, Reading, Mass.
• Okoli, Ch.; Pawlowski, S. D. (2004): The Delphi Method as a Research Tool:
An Example, Design Considerations and Applications. Information & Man-
agement, J. 42, (1) Dezember 2004, S. 15–29.
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• Patton, M. Q. (2015): Qualitative research & evaluation methods. Integrating
theory and practice. Sage. Los Angeles.
• Rädiker, S.; Kuckartz, U. (2019): Analyse qualitativer Daten mit MAXQDA.
Springer. Wiesbaden.
• Rayens, M. K.; Hahn, E. J. (2000): Building Consensus Using the Policy Del-
phi Method. In: Policy, Politics, & Nursing Practice, Vol. 1 No. 4, November
2000, 308-315.
• Skumolski, G. J.; Hartman, F. T.; Krahn, J. (2007): The Delphi Method for
Graduate Research. In; Journal of Information Technology Education, J. 6,
2007.
• Steurer, J. (2011). The Delphi method: an efficient procedure to generate
knowledge. Skeletal Radiology, J. 40 (8) S. 959-961.
• Wang, X.; Gao, Z.; Guo, H. (2012): Delphi Method for Estimating Uncertainty
Distributions. Inform. An Int. Interdiscip. J. 15, 2012.