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Qualitative methods are increasingly seen as key to addressing critical public health problems. How should instructors introduce qualitative methods to public health students and prepare them to conduct and critically engage in a meaningful way? Teaching public health students about qualitative research is more than just training students to run a focus group or explaining how to know how many in-depth interviews are "enough". It starts with helping students understand the power of qualitative methods and why they can be useful in population health.
Designed as a resource for instructors teaching qualitative methods courses and classes for public health audiences,
Teaching Qualitative Research in Public Health offers practical, creative ideas for designing both introductory and advanced courses and addressing the diverse learning goals of public health students inside and outside of the formal classroom. Written by experienced educators and qualitative researchers, this book discusses ways in which faculty can assist students in exploring different qualitative methods, how they should be undertaken, and how findings from qualitative studies can be analyzed and disseminated to inform public health programs and policies.
This teaching companion offers numerous adaptable strategies, classroom-tested activities, and expert guidance to help instructors tailor their courses to diverse learning objectives and educational environments. With a focus on experiential learning, it equips educators to prepare the next generation of public health professionals with a strong foundation in qualitative research. Whether you're teaching a semester-long course, leading short-term training, or mentoring students in applied research, this book provides the tools needed to foster deep engagement and critical thinking in qualitative public health research.
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About the author
Katherine Clegg Smith is a Professor in the Department of Health, Behavior, and Society, and directs the Center for Qualitative Studies in Health and Medicine at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Her research is focused on the collection and analysis of qualitative and mixed methods data with the goal of understanding and addressing important public health and health systems questions. Her expertise centers on the contribution of social factors to critical health outcomes. Her research is not focused on a single health issue but rather on institutional and individual factors that shape health risks, and the adequacy of the institutional responses to health-related experiences.
Jill Owczarzak is an Associate Professor in the Department of Health, Behavior, and Society at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Her research focuses on HIV, substance use, and gender and developing interventions to improve HIV care continuum outcomes for people living with
HIV. She works primarily in Ukraine, South Africa, and the United States. Trained as a medical anthropologist and a qualitative researcher, she also developed and teaches several qualitative courses, including on data analysis and ethnography.
Caitlin Kennedy is a Professor and Associate Chair of the Department of International Health at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, where she directs the Social and Behavioral Interventions program and co-directs the Center for Qualitative Studies in Health and Medicine. Kennedy is a social and behavioral scientist whose research focuses on HIV and sexual and reproductive health in resource-limited settings. She has collaborated with the Rakai Health Sciences Program in Uganda for more than a decade and has also been extensively involved in systematic reviews and guideline development processes for the World Health Organization.
Shannon Frattaroli is a Professor of Health Policy and Management at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg
School of Public Health where she serves as Director of the Center for Injury Research and Policy, a Co-Director for the Center for Qualitative Studies in Health and Medicine, and a core faculty member with the Center for Gun Violence Solutions. Her research and teaching focus on policy strategies for preventing injury and violence, with an emphasis on policy implementation.
