Qualitative Research: An Introduction to Methods and Designs

Theoretical Sampling and Saturation

Coding gives ideas for memo writing, which then leads to theoretical sampling. Glaser and Strauss (1967) define theoretical sampling as “the process of data collection for generating theory whereby the analyst jointly collects, codes, and analyzes his data and decides what data to collect next and where to find them” (p. 45). It is about “seeking and collecting pertinent data to elaborate and refine categories in your emerging theory” (Charmaz, 2006, p. 96). The iterative process of grounded theory moves to theoretical sampling when researchers have a theoretical category that they need to develop. Grounded theorists constantly analyze the data they have gathered, a process that evokes ideas, hunches, perspectives, ...