Qualitative research is grounded in an epistemological framework that views knowledge as contextual, interpretative, and socially constructed, distancing itself from positivist paradigms that emphasize objectivity and statistical generalization; as detailed in Bases de la investigación cualitativa, this approach privileges the subjective experience of participants, the researcher's reflexivity, and the social context as integral to the meaning-making process; it is marked by inductive reasoning, methodological flexibility, and the use of open-ended methods such as in-depth interviews, participant observation, and discourse or narrative analysis, all aimed at uncovering the richness of human experience; rather than seeking to quantify phenomena, qualitative research strives to understand how individuals construct and interpret their realities, embracing complexity and diversity over predictability; central to this perspective is the notion that truth is co-constructed through interaction and interpretation, making the research process a dialogic encounter rather than a neutral inquiry; this paradigm also supports grounded theory development, fostering the creation of context-sensitive frameworks that emerge from the data rather than being imposed a priori; thus, qualitative research acts not only as a scientific method but also as a critical and emancipatory tool, enabling the interrogation of power relations, cultural assumptions, and normative frameworks that shape knowledge production in various fields.
