Ethical, Methodological, and Practical Reflections When Using Q Methodology in Research with Young Children

Abstract

The objective of this discussion is to raise ethical, methodological, and practical issues concerning research with young children and the use of Q methodology through our experiences with a study of young children's feelings when in situations related to parental divorce. Q methodology was applied with 20 visual statements depicting a range of feelings for five-year-old children from Norwegian daycare centers to sort according to a "How do you generally feel?" condition of instruction. The issues resulting from this work are ethical considerations, methodological reflections, and practical concerns.