Table of Contents

Foreword.- Preface.- Acknowledgements.- 1. Towards Understanding Research.- 2. The Qualitative (R)Evolution?.- 3. The Autobiographical Context.- 4. The Historical Context.- 5. The Political Context.- 6. The Postmodern Context.- 7. The Philosophical Context.- 8. The Art and Practice of Research in the Postmodern Era.- Appendices.- Index.

Reviews

This may be a set of volumes for which the field has been waiting. Gathered in one two-volume set are the voices and words of many of the giants in the field of qualitative research and/or critical perspectives.... If there is such a text anywhere else-with commentary, summary, author autobiographies, interviewee bibliographies, and accompanying video clips, I am unaware of it.... Equally useful, for students, researchers and teachers alike, are the editor/authors' "five contexts" for grasping this complex and dynamic history.... These five contexts represent a major contribution to ways of thinking about research methods and their more overarching paradigms. We are incredibly fortunate to be the recipients of this work, simply because it provides us with a fresh set of intellectual and mental constructs with which we can teach and do research.

Yvonna S. Lincoln

While this unique and timely overview of the key foundational thinkers is sufficient reason for any qualitative researcher, new or experienced, to read this book, the questions and activities at the end of each chapter make it an indispensible text for instructors who teach qualitative research methods courses to use with their students.... The art of making the complex accessible takes great skill, and this book has the potential to truly engage and challenge graduate students without confusing them by overusing jargon.... Graduate instructors who take seriously the task of mentoring the next generation of qualitative researchers will definitely want to use this book to provoke their students into thinking multidimensionally about the research that they read and conduct.... The video clips will speak to millennial generation students in a way that typical qualitative research methods textbooks could never hope to do. I think that this will be a very popular textbook in many universities.

Jim Greenlaw

The project was an ambitious undertaking to complete. The sheer energy that has gone into capturing, on video-tape, the top international researchers is commendable. The ability to harness "The Five Contexts" from the works and reflections of these scholars as a "conceptual framework for conducting, understanding and interpreting qualitative research in a variety of disciplines in this postmodern era" is both timely and original.... I think this would be an excellent research text for graduate students in the Social Sciences and Humanities. I expect most scholars would like to have copy due to the archival nature of the material.... I wish I had this book and access to these research scholars when I was doing post graduate work....

The smooth development of this book leads you on a journey through the history and reality of qualitative research. The video-clips add a dimension of hospitality, in that I feel as though I have sat down with each researcher to enjoy a cup of coffee as I learn from their experiences. As a graduate student, I am grateful for the discussions and discoveries that were sparked by these writings. Cooper and White have created a volume of important foundations and precious insights for the beginning researcher.

Lynnette Babin Rankin