A Qualitative Research Methods For Public Service Course

The research topic Foster Care is the topic that has been proclaimed. The research question begins with, “What are some of the challenges facing the placement, and adjustment of Foster Care in the Valley?” This study is important because there are several challenges that are difficult for a Foster child facing being in Foster care. It is important in Social work that the Government with a Social worker must be responsible for taking away the child who is either being physical or sexual abused, neglected, or not being taken care of by their primary caregivers. In this type of situation, the child will be put into Foster care. It is key to understand the big challenges each child entering Foster care might have already experienced in the past

The chosen population of interest for the course project is children who are placed in foster care. Children in foster care are considered vulnerable due to a variety of reasons for which they are taken away from home and placed in the child welfare system. Foster care children are often removed from their home due to physical abuse, drug exposure, or in some cases due to parental inability to fulfill the child basic necessities. Foster care children are at greater risk of mental, health, and behavioral problems (Lovie, Beadnell, & Pecora, 2015). Case management is an essential part of the care plan to improve the outcomes of the population of interest. Foster care children face additional problems when the health care system is inadequate.

To establish rigour in this qualitative study, a field test will be conducted to identify appropriate guiding questions for the method of choice for the school-approved topic by sending the questions to 3 – 5 experts within the field of foster care and qualitative research. Date for this study will be collected during the interviews using a recording device and field notes. After each interview, the recording will be scribed verbatim to ensure accuracy. Participates will be contacted after interviews have been scribed to ensure their experiences have been capture

The topic of research that will be addressed is the privatization of the Florida?s foster care system. Since 1998 when the transition to privatization was implemented, the question arose, has privatization been a help to Florida?s foster care system or has it been a hindrance. The form of research that will be conducted will be non- experimental qualitative research. In the text, Research Methodology (Kumar, 2011) it stated, ?Data in qualitative research is not collected through a set of predetermined questions but by raising issues around different areas of enquiry.? The research to be conducted will reveal that privatization has not been as beneficial to the foster care system in Florida as once believed. The data collection that will be used to prove this assumption will be the following:

During the time when children are in the foster care system it's essential to have all data incorporating the arrangement issues with adolescents. Future research recommend that factual systems are utilized to encourage incorporate position encounters to uncover factors obviously prompting disturbance. Blome, W. W. (n.d.). What Happens to Foster Kids: Educational Experiences of a Random Sample of Foster Care Youth and a Matched Group of Non-Foster Care

The researcher looked at a combination of qualitative and quantitative studies via an electronic database to find research pertaining to the educational success of foster youth and former foster youth. The researcher further refined the search to view data specifically related to college, resiliency, educational achievement (for foster youth), and factors contributing to college success and readiness, barriers to education, academic supports, motivation, legislation and mentoring. The three research questions that guided this review of the literature included: One, what are the experiences that contributed to academic success of former foster care youth? Two, what role did the foster care system play in the academic success of foster foster care youth? Three, in what ways did former foster care youth cover come obstacles to become academically

Case studies are one of the first types of research to be used in the qualitative methodology and repeating the study several times will lead to the increased reliability of the study (Starman, 2013). This methodology is appropriate because it will allow for data collection results to be generalized based on the theoretical propositions and not the population (Harrison et al. 2017).

conduct a qualitative exploratory study comprising of focus groups with key participants who shape the lives of foster youth (the child welfare agency, schools, and caregivers in the home) to discuss and explore higher education attainment of students in foster care. Furthermore, the research of Shea et al adds to the discussion of trauma created by navigating the foster care system and the other influencing systems, and the lack of collaboration between these systems. This research reveals issues faced by these external factors which ultimately negatively affect foster youth’s preparedness for higher education. These issues include systemic issues amongst the child welfare agency in which liaisons identify the agency’s lack of commitment to addressing educational issues, professional staff in education institutions not accurately identifying youths academic and emotional problems or even devoted to advocating for youth, and caregivers not actively pursuing support and services for youth (Shea et al. 2010). The researchers found a consensus between the studied groups which stress “…lack of collaboration and coordination among the home, the school, and the CW agency and the existing deficiencies and obstacles that hinder more positive education outcomes for foster children and youths” (Shea et al., 253). Whereas Colvin et al. in 2010 simply identifies the suggestion that internal and external factors

The author used several research studies to direct and focus the research. According to one study, many foster care youths have a history of instability, neglect and trauma which leads to behavioral issues as well as academic skill deficits Bums et al.,

One of the most significant studies found in the literature was a qualitative study conducted by Schofiell, Beek, Ward, and Biggart on the role of the foster parent (2013). The purpose of the study was to understand the boundaries of the role of the foster parent on the continuum of carer and parent (Schofield, Beek, Ward, & Biggart, 2013). The study was a portion of a larger study on permanency in foster care (Schofield, Beek, Ward, & Biggart, 2013).

In Case Management we talk and put a lot of stress on the “at-risk” population. The term ‘at risk’ in this references to the six most at risk population that case managers as well as social workers have to help in their profession. Refers to populations of people who, because of certain circumstances in their life, will be more likely to experience a problem/challenge related to adjustment and functioning. And these problems will interfere with their ability to reach their full potential. Foster Care children are one of the “at-risk” populations. Many children and young adults have been placed under a foster care system. Foster care is the term used for a system in which a minor has been placed into a ward, group home, or private home of a state certified caregiver known as a “foster parent". The placement of the child is usually arranged through the government or a social service agency. It can happen in many different ways, a social worker could be called about a situation that requires them to investigate a family and the child at risk. If the said child or youth is in school then the person who called the agency could have been the teacher or counselor. Neighbors are also people that call the child social word offices because they see abuse happening right outside their homes and feel that they need to report this. It 's terrifying to think how one day someone could be with their parents having a normal life, then the next day or even moment all of a sudden that

Qualitative research is conducted in a natural setting and attempts to understand a human problem by developing a holistic narrative and reporting detailed views of informants about the culture of a problem. It forms a report with pictures and words. One of the most important distinctions that sets qualitative research apart from more traditional types of research is that qualitative research is holistic in that researchers study phenomena in their entirety rather than narrowing the focus to specific defined variables” (p. 93). Similarly, Cresswell (1984) indicated that qualitative research “is defined as an inquiry process of understanding a social or human problem, based on building a holistic picture, formed with words, reporting detailed views of informants, and conducted in a natural setting” (p. 2). Cresswell’s definition clearly delineates the major characteristics of qualitative research. Pg. 50 (Smith & Davis, 2010).

When utilizing a qualitative approach, the task becomes one of determining the qualitative method to be used. Additionally, Stake (2010) used purpose, research design, and methodical data techniques as a way of classifying types of qualitative research. Similarly, Cresswell & Cresswell (2007) spoke of five practices of qualitative research. These five practices consist of biography, phenomenological study, grounded theory study, ethnography, and case study. This researcher chose a phenomenological study for this research project.

Qualitative and Quantitative study designs both can be beneficial in research design. They both provide valuable options for researchers in the field. These techniques can either be used separately in a research study or they can be combined to achieve maximum information. This paper will define the terms qualitative and quantitative; describe the similarities and differences between each; discuss how qualitative and/or quantitative research designs or techniques could be used in the evaluation of my proposed research; and discuss why linking analysis to study design is important.

Qualitative research methods are utilized to study the social and cultural phenomena. So it includes observation, participant observation (field work), interview sessions, documents and texts and finally the researcher’s imitations and feedback. [Myers, 2009]