What We Didn’t Learn Because of Who Would Not Talk to Us

Abstract

Qualitative researchers relish the knowledge derived from multiple perspectives. They pride themselves on capturing the complexity of their informants’ experiences, they savor their ways of describing them, and they build models grounded in their narratives. Seldom do qualitative researchers ponder how their models might be different if those who refused to participate had talked to them. This article discusses sampling problems the authors encountered in a study of African American elders’ long-term care choices and preferences. They conducted 60 qualitative interviews with elders and caregivers of elders receiving one of three types of care: kin care, formal services, or nursing home care. Gatekeeper bias, refusals to participate, sampling frame, pragmatic constraints, and institutional barriers were major sources of sampling bias.

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