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Developing rigor in qualitative research: problems and opportunities within sport and exercise psychology

Smith, B.; McGannon, K.R.

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Authors

K.R. McGannon



Abstract

Qualitative research has grown within sport and exercise psychology and is now widely conducted. The purpose of this review is to discuss three commonly used ways to demonstrate rigor when conducting or judging qualitative research in sport and exercise psychology. These are the method of member checking, the method of inter-rater reliability, and the notion of universal criteria. Problems with each method are first highlighted. Member checking and inter-rater reliability are shown to be ineffective for verification, trustworthiness, or reliability purposes. Next, universal criteria within the context of Tracy’s, heavily drawn on paper within sport and exercise psychology is problematized. Throughout the discussion of each method and universal criteria more suitable possibilities for conducting rigorous qualitative research are offered. The paper concludes that to support high-quality qualitative research, scholars – including journal editors and reviewers – need to change how rigor is developed and judged, rather than perpetuate the problems with how it has been commonly evaluated in the past. Recommendations for developing rigor when conducting and/or judging qualitative research within sport and exercise psychology are also offered.

Citation

Smith, B., & McGannon, K. (2018). Developing rigor in qualitative research: problems and opportunities within sport and exercise psychology. International Review of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 11(1), 101-121. https://doi.org/10.1080/1750984x.2017.1317357

Journal Article Type Article
Acceptance Date Apr 4, 2017
Online Publication Date May 14, 2017
Publication Date 2018
Deposit Date Sep 6, 2019
Publicly Available Date Mar 29, 2024
Journal International Review of Sport and Exercise Psychology
Print ISSN 1750-984X
Electronic ISSN 1750-9858
Publisher Taylor and Francis Group
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Volume 11
Issue 1
Pages 101-121
DOI https://doi.org/10.1080/1750984x.2017.1317357
Related Public URLs https://research.birmingham.ac.uk/portal/en/publications/developing-rigor-in-qualitative-research(a0841dd5-807a-4b40-a52f-d8c41859f284).html

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