Janesick, Valerie J. (1998). "Stretching" Exercises for Qualitative Researchers. Reviewed by Stacey L. Edmonson

Janesick, Valerie J. (1998). "Stretching" Exercises for Qualitative Researchers. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications Pp. xv + 135. $45 (Cloth)     $19.95 (Paper)           ISBN 0-7619-0255-4 Reviewed by Stacey L. Edmonson Texas A & M University-Commerce July 22, 1999           Is qualitative research like a dance? According to Valerie Janesick's book, "Stretching" Exercises for Qualitative Researchers, qualitative research is indeed analogous to dancing in many ways. Just as dancers go through numerous preparatory exercises before they actually perform, Janesick believes that qualitative researchers should likewise engage in a set of systematic exercises in order to prepare themselves for the task at hand. The metaphor of qualitative research as a dance continues throughout this useful handbook for persons who are new to the practice of qualitative research.           In many ways this publication could best serve as a textbook for a qualitative research class. The exercises lined out for practice are in-depth yet feasible for persons in almost any social setting. From basic observation techniques to interviewing guidelines to self- analysis, Janesick gives explicit instructions for each exercise. Each exercise, of which there are 19 throughout the book, starts with a description of its purpose. This purpose is then followed by a more specific problem statement as well as a time frame for completing the exercise. Time frames can range from as little as five minutes up to several weeks; these guidelines can be modified for some exercises as needed. A full and thorough description of the actual activity then follows, which includes directions on how to document the activity as it is taking place. At the conclusion of each exercise, Janesick includes questions for discussion, a rationale for the exercise, and an evaluation that can be done introspectively or with other participants. The evaluation portion is designed so that the researcher is evaluating the exercise itself, as well as his/her performance or learning experience while completing the exercise. Janesick recommends that readers complete every exercise and keep an ongoing portfolio of their evaluations throughout the process. This portfolio will serve as both a current learning tool and later as a reference guide of sorts to the novice qualitative researcher. Janesick's book is self-explanatory enough for young and/or inexperienced researchers to understand and utilize, yet it is also practical enough for more experienced researchers to also benefit from its suggestions. If each task is to be completed in its entirety according to the timelines suggested in the text, the book could well be used to guide a class of students through a full semester of qualitative research techniques.           The first two-thirds of the book are devoted to explanations, definitions, and exercises to be performed. Precise definitions are provided for qualitative techniques such as participant observation and nonparticipant observation. Thorough explanations for the many types of interviews (phone, focus group, personal, etc.) are given as well. The book changes quite a bit in format in its last fifty pages. This final portion of the book, a set of 16 appendices, gives full samples of the techniques described in the text. For example, samples of field notes, journal entries, and self-evaluations are all provided. A detailed syllabus for teaching a course on qualitative research is also given, complete with a calendar, reading list, assignments, and class handouts. In addition, a sample dissertation proposal for qualitative research is provided for readers to learn from and utilize in their studies.           Janesick writes this book in an informal, easygoing manner, almost as if she is having a face-to-face conversation with the reader. She explains that, just as every step of a dance is carefully choreographed and described in detail, so does effective qualitative research involve full and complete description. In fact, Janesick likens the choreography of a dance to the theoretical basis necessary for qualitative research. Without choreography, there in essence is no dance; without theory, there in essence is no qualitative research. Janesick emphasizes the division of qualitative research into four component parts: observation, interview, role of the researcher, and analysis. Her chapters and exercises clearly follow these divisions. For example, she proposes exercises for observation that require describing animals, persons, and environmental settings. Interviewing exercises include conversations with both friends and strangers, plus extensive work with focus groups. Likewise, exercises emphasizing the role of the researcher involve photography, collage building, and journal writing. The final division of qualitative study, analysis, provides instruction on honing his/her intuitive and interpretative skills. Through these exercises, Janesick justifies the importance of qualitative research as opposed to quantitative studies; qualitative techniques allow for the gray areas of research, the areas that are not strict, scientific, or final. In other words, what this book has to say is of importance to the reader because it demonstrates how qualitative research allows one to learn from not only the answer, but from the question as well (Bruss & Macedo, 1985). The basis for writing the book in this particular style, Janesick says, is because qualitative researchers are "disciplined inquirers" (Dewey, 1967). As such, qualitative researchers must learn the more elementary and basic techniques (such as observation and interviewing) before they can effectively progress to the more advanced aspects of research. Again this idea of a disciplined inquiry lends itself to Janesick's dance metaphor, for dancers must learn the basic dance steps first and continue to practice these moves until more difficult techniques can be attempted and/or mastered.           This text also gives due note to the ever important role of ethics in qualitative research, including ethical exercises just as it includes exercises for other aspects of qualitative studies. Discussion questions are included for the two ethical dilemmas, one involving a supervisor's request to delete information and another involving a subject who claimed to never have made the comments that were recorded on tape. In addition to these exercises, Janesick also provides "rules of thumb" for qualitative researchers who wish to be both ethical as well as effective: 1) try to refrain from studying your own group, 2) always have an outside reader, 3) design your study to understand, 4) time in the field equals time in analysis, 5) develop a model of what occurred in your study, 6) always allow participants access to your data, 7) look for points of conflict, tension, and contradiction, and 8) estimate your time and costs (pp. 67-69).           Janesick explains in her introduction that she bases her exercises on the groundwork previously laid by Eisner (1991): qualitative research depends upon individual persons ("real" people), upon specifics rather than broad generalizations, and upon personal interpretations rather than hard numbers. She writes this book for a multitude of purposes, including "to disrupt" traditional writing, which she finds cold and often boring or difficult to read. She also writes with the intent "to educate and engage" readers and "to inspire" the reader; she hopes that qualitative research will be better understood by her readers and that in turn they will seek to use this type of research in their current or future work. Finally, Janesick wants "to demystify" and "to democratize" research, by which she hopes to open qualitative techniques up to more researchers, including those persons who are intimidated or overwhelmed by quantitative research techniques. Although the simplistic style of this book makes it both easy to read and easy to understand, it also serves to make Janesick's material more of a handbook for qualitative research rather than a very informative text. The exercises are useful, helping readers learn techniques for engaging in qualitative studies, but they offer little or no background for understanding the qualitative research in its entirety. Janesick offers the book as a textbook for qualitative research classes, but using this book in such a way without several supplemental texts would leave students lacking important knowledge. Skills would be in place from using this book, but background knowledge and true substance concerning qualitative research would be notably absent.           With her easy style of writing and practical sets of examples, Janesick accomplishes the goals she sets for herself in "Stretching" Exercises for Qualitative Researchers. The book is indeed quite non-traditional from other texts offering studies of qualitative research; it is easy to read and requires little contextual background to be understood. Likewise, it does educate readers quite effectively in the basic skills of qualitative research. Janesick also wishes to "demystify" this research, and in many ways she does so through offering exercises that range from elementary strategies to complex studies. This book can be quite useful to persons first learning how to engage in qualitative research, plus it offers a realistic set of exercises and examples for these learners to use. In essence, although it is strictly a surface-level view of qualitative research, this book is do-able. Perhaps, then, qualitative research is a dance after all, a dance in which anyone willing to put forth time, effort, and practice can participate. References Bruss, N., & Macedo, D. (1985). Towards a pedagogy of the question: Conversations with Paulo Friere. Journal of Education, 167(2), 7-21. Dewey, J. (1967). The early works. Carbondale, IL: Southern Illinois University Press. Eisner, E. (1991). The enlightened eye. New York: Macmillan. About the Author Valerie J. Janesick is a Professor of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies at Florida International University in Miami and Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. She has taught classes on qualitative research at this and other universities, and her work has been published in Curriculum Inquiry, Anthropology and Education Quarterly, and numerous other educational journals. She also wrote "The Dance of Qualitative Research Design," a chapter in the Handbook of Qualitative Research by Denzin and Lincoln. About the Reviewer Stacey L. Edmonson Texas A & M University-Commerce Areas of interest include special education, motivation, and burnout in teachers and administrators. Doctoral candidate in educational administration.