UGA Qualitative Research Program

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UGA Qualitative Research Program

The Qualitative Research Program at the University of Georgia advances interdisciplinary qualitative research and evaluation.

We foster diverse perspectives and prepare researchers to design, critique, and conduct high-quality qualitative studies. The Qualitative Research Program at the University of Georgia advances interdisciplinary scholarship in social science research and evaluation theories and methodologies. We are committed to cultural, intellectual, and methodological diversity and to preparing the next generation of qualitative research and evaluation methodologists. Through research, teaching, and collaboration, we support scholars in designing, critiquing, and implementing high-quality qualitative research and evaluation studies. Follow our page for program news, research, events, opportunities, and conversations in qualitative inquiry and evaluation at UGA and beyond.

10/09/2026

Interviewing kids doesn't always go according to plan — and that's the point. 🎙️
Dr. Stephanie Anne Shelton (Ph.D. '16) talks about navigating child interviews with flexibility — why some research populations require you to go off script, and how to adapt in the moment and in your IRB proposal without losing the integrity of your study. Part of the UGA QUAL Lab Speaker Series, "Queer(ing) (Dis)Comfort and Vulnerability in Qualitative Research."
🎥 Full talk on our YouTube — link in bio

10/07/2026

Today, we are highlighting a recent graduate of our Interdiciplinary Studies Qualitative Certificate Program, Dr. Solmaz Eshaghloogalougahi. Dr. Eshaghloo's dissertation, titled "From Bustling Bazaar to Cozy Living Room: The Cross-Cultural Paths and Reinterpretations of the Oriental Carpets in the United States, 1880s-2020s" was defended in Spring 2026 and she graduated from the Department of Textiles and Merchandising. Her committee members included Drs. Giovanni Dazzo (chair), Katalin Medvedev, Kim Rich Meister, and Jeyeon Jo. She is now the Mellon Post-Doctoral Fellow in the John B. Hurford '60 Center for the Arts and Humanities and Visiting Assistant Professor at Haverford University.

This dissertation shifts the focus from the technical aspects of Oriental carpets, which have long dominated the literature, to their intimate and sensory roles in people's lives. From this perspective, rather than solely focusing on carpets' trade history, design classification, economic value, and production techniques, it examines their use patterns in people's everyday lives. This study seeks to trace Oriental carpets' journey from the Middle East to the United States, spanning
the colonial era to the 21st century. This dissertation uses a qualitative research method grounded in sensory ethnography, employing in-depth semi-structured interviews, field observations, historical analysis, and visual analysis. In this regard, the study moves carpets from the background of domestic spaces to the foreground of everyday lives. It conceptualizes them as biographical objects and examines how they anchor individuals' lives, especially during disruptions such as major life changes.

By integrating qualitative inquiry with historical analysis and personal narratives, this dissertation contributes to material culture studies, textile scholarship, interior design, and cultural theory. It highlights how a single everyday object can raise broader questions of power, memory, authenticity, resilience, and belonging in a transnational world

Find Dr. Eshaghloo on google scholar! [Meta no longer lets us link to external sites, so we hope you will search her out!]

10/06/2026

Students from Dr. Maureen Flint's QUAL 8035: Visual Inquiry class last week explored quilting methodologies in class. Pictured are some of the students with the quilt blocks they made during class.

Drawing inspiration from the quilters of Gee’s Bend and scholarship on quilting, embroidery, making, and artful inquiry we first explored concepts and practices across these works and considered how they might shape qualitative research before creating our own quilt pieces around questions of research ethics, care, and responsibility. We ended by bringing individual pieces into relation through a "class quilt" thinking together about what quilting might teach us about connection, difference, meaning-making, and the ethical relations of research.

Find out more information about our courses and electives on our website, linked in bio!

10/05/2026

Join in a dialogue with graduates Drs. Shannon Perry and Trisha Barefield, in conversation with Faculty Dr. Aliki Nicolaides as they explore the implications for feminist posthuman theory in their teaching, inquiry, and other scholarly practices. Their article titled "Collaboratively reimagining higher education: enacting posthuman feminist practices" is published in Gender and Education.

Helping people to better understand and respond to the complexities and multiplicities of twenty-first century realities requires higher education systems to break free from persistent hierarchical binaries and knowledge silos. Rosi Braidotti’s posthuman feminist vision, rooted in radically relational ways of being, offers a generative lens for reimagining higher education. As scholar-educators working in academic spaces, we have responded to Braidotti’s call to engage in creative experimentations for disrupting Humanism’s individualistic, competitive, and cogni-centric framings of learning and teaching. In this dialogue, we co-authors share stories about how ruptures in our experiences as educators led to rethinking theories from our field of adult learning through posthuman feminist concepts. We discuss how the theoretical resonances we found inspired us to reimagine our own research and teaching practices in ways that present possibilities for how posthuman feminist lenses can help us collaboratively reimagine higher education.

https://doi.org/10.1080/09540253.2024.2389106

10/02/2026

What is the actual goal of research? 🤔
For Dr. Lorien S. Jordan, that question opens up a deeper interrogation of what motivates researchers—and whether our work is truly oriented toward creating change or simply producing publications and adding lines to our CVs.
In this clip from the UGA Qual Lab Speaker Series, Jordan explores the dynamic dissonance that emerges when we confront the purposes, possibilities, and tensions of qualitative research. Watch the full video of Dr. Jordan's talk from April 2024 on our youtube page
Dr. Lorien S. Jordan is Assistant Professor of Educational Measurement and Research (Qualitative Inquiry) at the University of South Florida and Director of the Certificate in Qualitative Research.

10/01/2026

Mark your calendars for our second UGA QUAL Lab of the semester!“See Me!”: Amplifying LGBTQ+ Latine Voices Through A Critical Qualitative Book, presented by Dr. Luis R. Alvarez-Hernandez on Friday, October 23rd from 12PM - 1PM Eastern Time. Register at: https://bit.ly/UGAQL16

Abstract: How do you put a community in a book? It requires genuine connections, interdisciplinary collaborations, and strong critical qualitative methods. The testimoniadores (storytellers for social change) in our book tell their life stories as gay and trans men living in South Texas. They also show their faces through black-and-white photographs as their authentic selves, determined to connect with all of us. Our goal was for the book to be accessible to everyone in our communities. We envisioned our madres (mothers) and tías (aunts) reading it. In this presentation, I will discuss my process of writing a qualitative community-based book — its complexities, messiness, and joy. I will share how I approached: (1) Connecting with the community, (2) Collaborating with an interdisciplinary team, and (3) Centering Chicana and Latina feminist values and qualitative methods to amplify the voices of community leaders.

09/30/2026

Today we're highlighting recent University of Georgia Qualitative Studies Certificate Student Dr. Laetitia Adelson, who completed her PhD in College Student Affairs Administration in Spring 2026. Her dissertation, "'How Did We Get Here; Cause Nobody Suppose to Be Here': An Exploration of the Experiences of Black Women in Leadership Roles in Their NCAA Member Institutions" supported by committee members Dr. Ginny Boss (chair), Dr. Giovanni Dazzo, and Dr. Dallin Young.

Black women are the backbone of their athletic departments. This dissertation study was grounded in Black feminist thought and role congruity, employing a critical podcast methodology to explore the lived experiences of Black women coaches and administrators at their NCAA institutions. The findings were contextualized into podcast episodes and highlighted the narratives of 14 Black women coaches and administrators. The podcast series highlighted their journeys, their “aha” moments, the ways they are perceived, and how their environments
influenced their well-being. INDEX WORDS: Critical podcasting methodology, athletic leadership, Black women, Black feminist thought, role congruity

Follow the inimitable Dr. Adelson on Instagram: .laetitiaadelson
as well as on her ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7053-6853

09/29/2026

Hey on-campus folks! We hope you will join us later this month for a Qual-ity Crafternoon! This will be a casual community gathering for IQS students, affiliate faculty, and anyone curious about qualitative research.

Take a break from the usual research routine, connect with others in the qualitative community, and make a bookmark while you're at it. No crafting experience is needed, and all materials will be provided.

When: October 28, 2026, 2:00–3:00 PM
Where: 136 Rivers Crossing
Format: Drop in anytime

Whether you’re an affiliate faculty member, an Interdisciplinary Qualitative Studies Certificate Student, a student in a Qualitative Research course, or simply curious about qualitative research, come hang out with us for some QUAL-ity time.

09/28/2026

What if inquiry could promote peace, justice, and healing? This is the focus of a paper by Faculty Dr. Giovanni Dazzo, published in The Qualitative Report titled :On Restorative Validity: Reorienting Inquiry Toward Peace, Justice, and Healing"

This work begins with a simple premise: (re)imagining a healing and restorative space for inquiry. Drawing on the work of John H. Stanfield II (2006), who first suggested the restorative functions of qualitative inquiry, this manuscript forms the basis for an axiologically-actuated conceptual model, restorative validity, which asks what it would take to (re)humanize researcher and researched alike. Beginning with the knowledge of co-researchers in our collective, the formulation of this framework was organized to understand the importance of orienting our research and ourselves toward relationships, justice, and liberation. After this review, I discuss a series of reflexive questions, rooted in the trans-disciplinarity of restorative justice, which researchers and practitioners can use to consider the potential and real harms in/from inquiry. By unsettling expertise and examining the implicit intersection of validity and ethics, I question: What would it take to be part of a research project that leaves those involved feeling greater than how we have all been defined? What happens when we do not question what our research does for/ to us and our participants, especially when it spurs intellectual debate with little benefit in the way of peace, justice, or healing of past traumas and loss?

https://doi.org/10.46743/2160-3715/2024.5690.

09/25/2026

The UGA QUAL Lab is now on YouTube! 🎥

We’re excited to launch our new channel, where we’ll share conversations, talks, and resources on qualitative research from the UGA QUAL Lab.

We’re kicking things off with Dr. Stephanie Anne Shelton of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and her talk, originally given as part of the QUAL Lab Lecture series in 2023 titled “Queer(ing) (Dis)Comfort and Vulnerability in Qualitative Research.”

In this clip, Dr. Shelton considers how qualitative researchers navigate vulnerability, ethics, and IRB processes when engaging difficult topics.

🎥 Watch the full talk on our new YouTube channel or find the link in our bio.

Address

850 College Station Road
Athens, GA
30602

Website

https://coe.uga.edu/academics/concentrations/qualitative-research, https://coe.uga.edu/research/labs/qual-lab/

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