Wellbeing Research in Developing Countries: Reviewing the Role of Qualitative Methods

The authors review the contribution of qualitative methods to exploring concepts and experiences of wellbeing among children and adults living in developing countries. They provide examples illustrating the potential of these methods for gaining a holistic and contextual understanding of people’s perceptions and experiences. Some of these come from Young Lives, an innovative long-term international research project investigating the changing nature of child poverty in India, Ethiopia, Peru and Vietnam (), and others from the Wellbeing in Developing Countries ESRC research group (WeD), an international, inter-disciplinary project exploring the social and cultural construction of wellbeing in Bangladesh, Ethiopia, Peru and Thailand (). The authors show how qualitative methods can be used both alongside and as part of the development of sensitive and relevant quantitative measures, and provide some practical and methodological recommendations. They propose that qualitative approaches are essential in understanding people’s experiences of wellbeing, both now and in the future. However, the authors caution that while these offer many benefits, for example, a less structured and hierarchical engagement between researcher and participant; they require time, energy, and sensitivity. Qualitative methods also work best when used by trained and experienced researchers working in the local language/s in a community where some rapport has already been established. Finally, the paper recommends combining data from qualitative and quantitative approaches (e.g. psychological measures or household surveys) to enhance its explanatory power.

流动儿童城市社会交往的逻辑——指向一种质量互释的混合研究

与其父辈不同,流动儿童的城市社会交往遵循独特的运作逻辑。从其城市生活的社会情境出发,学校类型、家庭教育与社区结构,都会影响到流动儿童与城市社会的接触机会、交往过程．从而产生不同的交往后果。学校在流动儿童城市社会交往中扮演着格外重要的角色,流动儿童的学校类型不同,其城市社会交往的逻辑迥异。在不同的学校空间,流动儿童建构出了不同的交往文化。公办学校的流动儿童获得了更多与城市儿童及其家长接触的机会,他们与城里人的交往频率也更高,因而更有可能冲破身份制度的藩篱,从结构上实现与城市的社会融合。民工学校流动儿童则正在经历从“文化再生产”到“社会再生产”的过程。