Qualitative Remote Data Collection (QRDC)

QRDC: Qualitative Remote Data Collection

What is QRDC Guidance?

In 2020, the sudden onset of the COVID-19 pandemic forced qualitative health and social care researchers to rapidly convert to remote methods of data collection (i.e. methods of collecting research data when the researcher and participant are not together in the same space). In a post-COVID research landscape, use of remote qualitative methods is now a choice not a necessity. This guidance has been created to help researchers make informed decisions about whether to use remote methods, how this may change their data, and what to consider to maximise data quality and research inclusivity.

The guidance was developed by a team of qualitative researchers through three key processes and all stages of the guidance development were informed by a diverse group of public contributors. Read about our methods in detail here.

How to use this guidance

The QRDC guidance is organised into sections that map across the research process. You can look at these sections by clicking on the titles below. You can view and download the whole document as a pdf here.

Section 1: What is the QRDC guidance, and how was it developed?Section 2: Designing Remote Qualitative Studies: Participant Populations Section 3: Designing Remote Qualitative Studies: Methods and Technologies Section 4: Preparing for data collection

Section 5: Collecting Qualitative Data Remotely Section 6: Ethics of Remote Qualitative Data Collection Section 7: Ending Remote Qualitative Data Collection Section 8: Discussion: Remote Qualitative Methods in the Wider Research Context

How to cite the guidance

Boardman, F., Roberts, J., Clark, C., Onuegbu, C., Harris, B., Seers, K., Staniszewska, S., Aktas, P., Griffiths, F. 2024. Qualitative Remote Data Collection Guidance. Coventry: University of Warwick Press. https://doi.org/10.31273/9781911675174