1st Edition
Contemplative Qualitative Inquiry Practicing the Zen of Research
Qualitative researchers incorporate the principles of holism, storytelling, ethics, body and mind links, relational focus, and creativity as key features of their practice. So do practitioners of Zen Buddhism. Leading qualitative researcher Valerie J. Janesick describes how qualitative inquiry can be informed and improved through an understanding of Zen principles. She calls for a contemplative qualitative inquiry that draws on the understandings of both East and West. In the book, she-explains how key Zen principles of impermanence, non-self, and nirvana apply to qualitative research projects;-advocates important Zen-based practices of meditation, journaling, and poetic thinking;-presents Zen stories, meditation techniques, and writing exercises to improve research practice.
Biography
Valerie J. Janesick, Ph.D. (Michigan State University), is Professor of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies at the University of South Florida, Tampa, where she teaches courses in Qualitative Methods, Curriculum Theory and Inquiry, and Ethics. Her research and scholarly writing focus on the use of qualitative research methods in the arts and humanities; expanding narrative inquiry through the use of poetry, video, theater, and visual and performing arts; and integrating qualitative inquiry into the understanding of critical pedagogy in the classroom. She has written numerous articles and books about subjects in these areas, including Stretching Exercises for Qualitative Researchers (3rd ed., 2011, Sage Publications) and Oral History Methods for the Qualitative Researcher: Choreographing the Story (2010, Guilford Press). In her spare time Valerie is studying to become a yoga and meditation teacher.
