The Qualitative Research Forum (QRF) is a monthly meeting series held during university term time, open to anyone conducting or interested in qualitative research. We welcome PhD students, early career researchers, and anyone keen to engage with qualitative methodologies.
Each month, a different speaker leads a session, sharing insights from their own research at any stage—whether in the planning phase, during data collection, while analysing findings, or after completing a study. Occasionally, sessions focus on broader issues and debates within qualitative research.
We also provide a space for researchers to seek feedback or advice, with dedicated “troubleshooting” sessions designed to address specific challenges.
Most meetings take place online, though we are open to in-person sessions if preferred by the speaker. Presentations can be short (15–20 minutes) or longer (up to 30 minutes), with 20–30 minutes set aside for discussion.
Join the QRF mailing list to receive updates on upcoming sessions and speakers: sign up here.
If you’re not on our mailing list but would like to receive a link for an individual session, please fill out this form to request access.
Upcoming Sessions
Lent term sessions
Session 1
What’s meta-ethnography and when and why would you do it?
Date: Tuesday, 25th February
Time: 12:30 pm – 1:30 pm
Format: Online (Zoom link available on demand)
Session details:
Meta-ethnography is a widely used and influential interpretive methodology for synthesizing qualitative studies in health and social care. Originally developed in 1988 by sociologists Noblit and Hare, this systematic, seven-phase methodology has evolved significantly over the past four decades. This session will provide an overview of meta-ethnography, exploring when and why researchers might choose to use it.
Professor Emma France from the University of Stirling will lead the session. She is an international expert in meta-ethnography and led the development of the eMERGe reporting guidance for meta-ethnography. She is also an Associate Editor of the Cochrane-Campbell Handbook for Qualitative Evidence Synthesis and a co-convenor of the Cochrane Qualitative and Implementation Methods Group.
Session 2
How to add perspectives of time and change to your research? A typology for presenting findings in qualitative longitudinal research
Date: Tuesday, 25th March
Time: 12:30 pm – 1:30 pm
Format: Online (Zoom link available on demand)
Session details:
Longitudinal qualitative research (QLR) provides valuable insights into how phenomena evolve over time, yet presenting these findings in a structured way can be challenging. This session will explore a new typology for integrating time and change into QLR findings, offering practical guidance on different approaches.
This session will draw from a method study that analyzed nearly 300 QLR articles. The focus will be on the typology, with insights from the broader study to illustrate how researchers can effectively present longitudinal qualitative data.
Dr Åsa Audulv, Associate Professor at the Department of Nursing, Umeå University, will lead this session. She is a nurse, teacher, and researcher specializing in self-management among people with long-term conditions, as well as the development of self-management measures and support tools.
QRF Convenors
Archana Jayaprakash-Menon
Research Assistant,
The Healthcare Improvement Studies (THIS) Institute,
University of Cambridge
aj719@cam.ac.uk
Francisca Stutzin Donoso
Research Associate, Department of Public Health and Primary Care
Junior Research Fellow, Wolfson College Cambridge
University of Cambridge
fsd26@medschl.cam.ac.uk
Yaping Lian
Postgraduate Researcher,
School of Healthcare, University of Leicester
Visiting Researcher,
University of Cambridge
yaping.lian7@nhs.net