What is a common method for collecting qualitative data?

In-depth interviews are a common and effective method for collecting qualitative data because they allow researchers to gather rich, detailed information from participants. This method encourages open-ended responses, facilitating a deeper understanding of the individual experiences, thoughts, feelings, and perspectives of the participants. By engaging in a conversational format, the interviewer can explore complex issues, probe for further detail, and adapt questions based on the participant's responses, capturing nuances that structured methods might miss. This depth of information is particularly valuable in qualitative research, which aims to provide insights into social phenomena rather than quantifiable statistics.

Surveys with closed-ended questions, controlled experiments, and meta-analysis are typically associated with quantitative research, focusing on numerical data and predetermined variables, which do not align with the aims and methods of qualitative research.