Practical Step towards Sampling in Qualitative Research; Focused on Grounded Theory

Today, there is a growing trend towards qualitative research in different areas of academic investigations. However, students face difficulties in deciding on qualitative methods of research, because most of the literature on qualitative research focuses on the philosophical and theoretical aspects, and they hardly offer any practical guidelines. This problem is rooted in the essence of qualitative research, which makes the details of the research process unachievable at the beginning. As a result, the features of the sampling plan—like the accurate size and form of the sampling—remain uncertain until after the data has been gathered, and this makes the jury doubtful about the approval of the research proposal. Hence, framing an appropriate and assayable plan for sampling can be of great help in the approval and execution of qualitative research plans. From this perspective, the present article aims to design a framework for a sampling plan in qualitative researches using theoretical sources of the grounded theory method and researchers’ suggestions based on practical involvement, as well as the recent experience of the authors in grounded theory research. By studying these sources, and considering the feedback for and practical involvement in the grounded theory method, a two-stage plan of sampling is proposed. The initial stage aims to ensure adequate diversity for the appropriate distribution of the samples, and the second, as a theoretical sampling stage, guarantees the theoretical attribute of sampling in qualitative research.