Table 1.
Challenges and recommendations for qualitative research during COVID-19
| Challenge type | Challenges | Recommendations |
|---|---|---|
| Physical | Limited access to geographically isolated or disadvantaged populations (Irani 2019; Moyle et al. 2020; Zhou et al. 2020; Marhefka et al. 2020) | Leverage or develop community partnerships (Tseng and Yeh 2013; Bonevski et al. 2014) |
| Building trust and rapport with communities virtually (O’Connor and Madge 2003; Seitz 2016; Lo Iacono et al. 2016) | Incorporate non-virtual, remote (Berbés-Blázquez 2012) or virtual participant-engagement platforms when appropriate (Sturges and Hanrahan 2004; James and Busher 2006; Opdenakker 2006; Braun and Clarke 2013; Janghorban et al. 2014; Marhefka et al. 2020) | |
| Protecting confidentiality and privacy of individuals virtually (Marhefka et al. 2020) | Plan for privacy and time constraints for participants (Marhefka et al. 2020) | |
| Psychological | Secondary trauma from emotionally-laden interactions with participants (Gregory et al. 1997; Whitt-Woosley and Sprang 2018; van der Merwe and Hunt 2019) | Utilize self-protective coping strategies, including peer support networks (Dickson-Swift et al. 2009; DeLuca and Maddox 2016; Vincett 2018; Whitt-Woosley and Sprang 2018) |
| Baseline traumatic stress and psychological strain related to sustainability topics (Fraser et al. 2013) | ||
| Lack of institutional guidelines for qualitative researchers on psychological health (World Health Organization 2011; Nikischer 2019) | Improve guidelines and resources at the institutional-level for researchers involved in emotionally-laden work (Dane 2000; Rager 2005) | |
| Ethical | High opportunity cost for participants due to competing responsibilities, insecurity, unpredictability, and trauma (Wood 2006; Barron Ausbrooks et al. 2009) | Identify an appropriate participant compensation method and amount with local partners (Barron Ausbrooks et al. 2009) |
| Unemployment may lead to increased interest in studies with compensation | ||
| COVID-19 impacts vulnerable populations at the community-level (Ferrante and Fearnside 2020; Yancy 2020; Laurencin and McClinton 2020) | Inform participants of available mental health resources (Mezinska et al. 2016) | |
| Implement a robust oral informed consent process (Wood 2006; Mezinska et al. 2016) |