The Qualitative Research Paradigm
A qualitative research paradigm will be undertaken for this study. Qualitative researchers seek to “explore and understand individuals or groups ascribed to a social or human problem” (Creswell, 2014, p. 4) and rely on data typically obtained through words and other non-numerical symbols (Bryman, 2012). Based on an epistemological foundation of interpretivism and an ontological orientation of constructionism, the qualitative research paradigm is based on the fundamental belief that reality is a social construct and open to interpretation (Bryman, 2012).
The Phenomenological Research Design
This study will use a phenomenological research design. Phenomenological research describes “the lived experiences of individuals about a phenomenon as described by participants” (Creswell, …show more content…
I have worked in the human services field for over 20 years and for most of my adult life, I worked at the Alzheimer Society. When I worked at the Alzheimer Society, I held various roles related to program coordination. It was through my work at the Alzheimer Society that many of my values were shaped and my understanding was developed related to older adults, inclusion, volunteerism and person-centred care. It was also at the Alzheimer Society where I learned about dialogue education through training that I received in order to facilitate the First Link Learning Series. Through my own experiences using dialogue education andragogy, I was impressed with how impactful this andragogy was at facilitating transformational change in the attitudes of people living with Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias and their partners in