Pairing Q Methodology and Case Studies to Explore Journalists Attitudes Toward New Media Forms

Abstract

Q method's scientific study of subjectivity, combined with the more qualitative interviews and observations of a case study, work well together to enhance the credibility of research findings. The researcher using both methods has a wide variety of measurement items to compare and relate, ranging from what goes on inside respondents' heads, to their modes of personal expression, to the elements of their social environment. This article describes the complementary aspects of the two methods, then applies them both in a look at how American newspaper journalists view the effects of technological changes in the way information is delivered to the public.