Facilitating rigorous qualitative research in rehabilitation psychology

Qualitative research methods have much to contribute to theoretical and applied knowledge in rehabilitation psychology. However, as a discipline, rehabilitation psychology has been behind the curve in employing qualitative methods. Objectives: This article is a summary of the state of qualitative research in rehabilitation and an introduction to various methodological dimensions to consider in implementing qualitative rehabilitation psychology research. Types and examples of qualitative rehabilitation research are presented. Criteria for evaluating qualitative research are discussed. Finally, the majority of this article is devoted to presenting the various methodological dimensions on which researchers must make decisions in designing and implementing rigorous qualitative research (e.g., paradigms, methods, data collection strategies, data analysis procedures, reliability/validity). Conclusions: Rehabilitation psychology has much to gain through qualitative research, and success in incorporating qualitative evidence will be ensured by rehabilitation psychologists learning and rigorously implementing qualitative methods.