Methodological Issues of Research with African-American Women: Influences on Long-Term Physical Activity in...

This paper reports the methodological challenges encountered while performing a descriptive, qualitative study examining the perspectives of African-American women who successfully maintained long-term physical activity. The socioecological model was used to expand on the dynamics pertaining to the long-term physical activity of 14 African-American women between 35 and 65 years of age. These women were recruited in 2 Midwestern American states and had been physically active for more than 6 months at the time of the study. Content analysis of themes revealed factors influencing physical activity at the individual, social, environmental, and political levels. Methodological challenges the student researcher encountered were choosing the appropriate framework to guide the study, recruiting participants who met the inclusion criteria, and proficiently transcribing and organizing the responses for data analysis using qualitative analysis software. The reflections described in this paper may provide insight to challenges and possible solutions for new researchers to consider when developing a research project.