STRENGTHS & WEAKNESSES

WHAT ARE STRENGTHS & WEAKNESSES OF NARRATIVE RESEARCH?

STRENGTHS

Researchers often choose a particular method of research because the strengths of that method best meet the "nature of the research phenomenon being studied," (Bhattacherjee, 2012, p. 41). If the strengths of a research method are not well understood, the researcher may find that the information gained during their study was not what they were hoping to achieve. Some of the key strengths of the narrative research method are as follows:

From a very young age, human beings learn the art and practice of storytelling. This tends to give the narrative research method a large sample base from which to gather information (Moen, 2006).
Narratives are naturally present in cultures, and play a central role in their functioning. Because of this, humans share, understand and relate to stories well. This makes this method of research very effective for both gathering information, and affecting change based on conclusions (Phillips, 1994).
People unconsciously embed their values, beliefs and motives into stories, allowing researchers to gather unstated or implied information regarding values and meaning (Phillips, 1994).
Stories have many applications: education, sharing knowledge, teaching of morals, inspiring action, promotion of national unity, etc…, and thus are powerful, influential and valuable ways to interact with and study a culture (Phillips, 1994).
Narrative research gives excellent insight into the social structure, interactions and values within a culture or community (Moen, 2006).
Narrative research tends to allow for creativity and expression of thoughts and ideas (Phillips, 1994), and can be used for theory building (Moen, 2006).
Narrative research can narrow the gap between practice and research (Phillips, 1994).

WEAKNESSES

Researchers must also be aware of the weaknesses of a particular method of research in order to take steps to mitigate the pitfalls where able. While some weaknesses are unavoidable, others can and should be taken into account when designing the methodology of the research project in order to make the results as accurate and unbiased as possible. Below are some common weaknesses of narrative research, along with ideas for lessening their impact:

There tends to be little to no emphasis on the reliability of a narrative, or the necessity of verifying the “facts” of a story (Phillips, 1994). If action is taken on the basis of incorrect narratives, there can be negative, far-reaching consequences. For example, if skewed or false narratives are used to inform policies, the whole community is affected by ineffective or even harmful directives (Phillips, 1994).

To mitigate this, one might consider using a large sample size, fact-checking narratives, or gaining the perspective of multiple witnesses

Different meaning can be assigned to the same story, told from a different perspective, or interpreted by a different researcher. Drawing conclusions can be complicated and conflicting (Moen, 2006).

Consider having several researchers independently review the narrative and compare results

As cultures change, narratives will change, resulting in outdated research, and necessitating repeat or long-term studies to verify if the conclusions are still applicable (Moen, 2006).

Plan ahead or make recommendations for future studies, consider building this into the design of the study (longitudinal)

Narrative research applications tend to be limited to the culture or community in which the study was conducted (Moen, 2006).

Be careful when making applications outside of the culture that was studied, consider inviting other communities to conduct similar research projects, allowing results to be compared and evaluated for similarities and differences and broadening overall understanding of the topic

What steps might YOU take to mitigate these weaknesses?

REFERENCES

Bhattacherjee, A. (2012). Social science research: Principles, methods, and practices (2nd ed.). Textbooks Collection. Book 3. Retrieved from http://scholarcommons.usf.edu/oa_textbooks/3

Moen, T. (2006). Reflections on the narrative research approach. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 5(4), 56–69. https://doi.org/10.1177/160940690600500405

Phillips, D. (1994). Telling it straight: Issues in assessing narrative research. Educational Psychologist, 29(1), 13–21. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15326985ep2901_2

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