Brian Scanlan and Qualitative Research

Brian Scanlan reverted to the cartoon to describe his article--Lincoln, Lynham, and Guba's "Paradigmatic Controversies, Contradictions, and Emerging Confluences, Revisited".  This is Chapter 6 in the Sage Handbook of Qualitative Inquiry.

As you will note, Scanlan's sly humor is evident here!  

Introduction to cartoon

Each of us approaches research with a unique set of beliefs and values that we most likely acquired through personal and professional experience, and education. These beliefs and values might influence how we interpret observations and reach conclusions based on these observations. As a result, each of us wears a paradigm or invisible costume during the research process. The following cartoon illustrates how people who wear certain costumes might respond when they receive a piece of candy, which serves as a metaphor for data.