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Qualitative psychology

Qualitative psychology uses methods for understanding psychological life through people's lived experience, expression, practice and social conduct. The sources opened document its recent organization within the American Psychological Association.

Also called: qualitative inquiry in psychology, qualitative research methods in psychology

Methodological traditionFoundations

Type of entry: Methodological traditionA way of doing research that runs across several fields. Types are editorial labels, not an official classification.
Cluster: Foundations and methodsHow psychology measures, models and reflects on itself.
Sources opened: 3 of 30 read as a full page, 3 as selected text or an abstract, 0 not verified.
Independent review: Admitted after correctionsClaude Code reviewer agent, separate from the writer, 2026-10-21. 8 claims checked against 3 sources opened by the reviewer.

What it studies

Qualitative psychology uses methods for acquiring knowledge of psychological life, which the Society for Qualitative Inquiry in Psychology understands broadly to include lived experience, expression, practice and social conduct. The society says it aims to develop and disseminate qualitative methods suited to that purpose.

History and people

The sources opened document one United States institutional path. By a co-founder's account, the Society for Qualitative Inquiry in Psychology (SQIP) was conceived in 2004 and sought a separate APA division, but APA Council rejected the petition in March 2008, a few votes short of two thirds. SQIP became a section of APA Division 5 in 2011. In 2014 that division was renamed Quantitative and Qualitative Methods, and the APA journal Qualitative Psychology published its first issue.

People and documented roles

Ruthellen Josselson. Co-founder of SQIP by her own account; first editor of Qualitative Psychology; co-author of the 2018 reporting standards
- With Ken Gergen, conceived the society that became SQIP and sought a separate APA division. [1]
- Became editor of the journal Qualitative Psychology at its first issue. [1]
Ken Gergen. Named by Josselson as co-originator of SQIP
- Shared in conceiving SQIP in 2004, according to Josselson's account. [1]
Fred Wertz. SQIP representative to the Division 5 Executive Committee
- Brought the question of renaming Division 5 to a vote in 2014. [1][2]
Heidi M. Levitt. First author of the 2018 reporting standards task force report
- First author of the American Psychologist report presenting reporting standards for qualitative research. [3]

The sources opened document people involved in the American Psychological Association path of qualitative psychology only, mostly through one participant's recollection. They do not document earlier or international qualitative traditions, so this list is not a history of the area.

Dated milestones

March 2008Event. Month and year.APA Council vote on a petition for a separate division for qualitative inquiry fell short of two thirds, according to Josselson's account. A US association decision. [1]
2011Society or organization formed. Year.SQIP became a section of APA Division 5. A US association milestone. [1][2]
2014Name adopted. Year.Division 5 renamed Quantitative and Qualitative Methods. [1][2]
Spring 2014Publication. Year.First issue of the APA journal Qualitative Psychology. [1]
January 2018Publication. Month and year.APA task force report on reporting standards for qualitative research published in American Psychologist. [3]

Methods

The sources opened do not list individual qualitative methods. The Journal Article Reporting Standards for qualitative research, published in American Psychologist in 2018, cover qualitative primary studies, qualitative meta-analysis and mixed methods research. The authors say the standards honor a range of qualitative traditions, methods and reporting styles, and that they were the first inclusion of qualitative research in APA Style.

Training and applications

SQIP lists an annual conference, participation in the APA annual convention, Division 5 awards for dissertations, teaching and mentorship, and task forces that have addressed publishing qualitative research, ethics and qualitative training at graduate and undergraduate levels. The sources opened do not describe professional titles or licensing for qualitative work.

Boundaries and limits

The origin account is a participant's recollection published by the society, and the sources opened concern the United States and APA. They do not describe qualitative traditions elsewhere, or how qualitative methods relate to areas such as cultural, feminist or critical psychology. The standards article also discusses reporting, not how often qualitative methods are used.

Evidence behind the claims

SQIP says it aims to develop and disseminate qualitative methods suitable for acquiring knowledge of psychological life, broadly conceived as including lived experience, expression, practice and social conduct.
What it studiesThe organization's own descriptionSource: [2]Where: Aims section of the About page
According to Ruthellen Josselson's account, SQIP was conceived in 2004 by Josselson and Ken Gergen and began as an effort to create a new APA division.
History and peopleThe organization's own descriptionSource: [1]Where: Opening of the origin account, 2004 and 2005 to 2007 entries
APA Council rejected the petition for a new division in March 2008; in Josselson's words, the petition got a majority but missed the needed two thirds by a few votes.
History and peopleThe organization's own descriptionSource: [1]Where: Entry on March 2008
SQIP became an official section of APA Division 5 in 2011, after a vote held at the 2011 APA Annual Convention.
History and peopleThe organization's own descriptionSources: [1] [2]Where: Origin account entry for 2011; About page statement on Division 5
In 2014 Division 5 members voted to rename the division Quantitative and Qualitative Methods, after Fred Wertz, SQIP's representative to the Division 5 Executive Committee, brought the question to a vote.
History and peopleThe organization's own descriptionSources: [1] [2]Where: Origin account entry for 2014; About page statement on the name change
The APA journal Qualitative Psychology published its first issue in spring 2014, with Ruthellen Josselson as editor after the chosen editor, Bert Cohler, died before taking the post.
History and peopleThe organization's own descriptionSource: [1]Where: Entry on spring 2014
SQIP lists an annual conference, participation in the APA annual convention, Division 5 awards for dissertations, teaching and mentorship, early-career work and distinguished contributions, and task forces historically on publishing qualitative research, ethics and qualitative training at graduate and undergraduate levels.
Training and applicationsThe organization's own descriptionSource: [2]Where: Aims list on the About page
A 2018 American Psychologist task force report by Heidi M. Levitt, Michael Bamberg, John W. Creswell, David M. Frost, Ruthellen Josselson and Carola Suarez-Orozco presents reporting standards for qualitative primary research, qualitative meta-analysis and mixed methods research, and its abstract describes it as the first inclusion of qualitative research in APA Style.
MethodsDocumented in the sourceSource: [3]Where: Abstract and publication details on the repository record

Where it appears

University examples

Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur: Psychology (research area or group)

Examples show documented structures. They are not a ranking, a census, or a statement about admission or licensing.

In the Psy101 course

OpenStax Psychology 2e, section 2.2: Approaches to ResearchChapter 2, Psychological Research. Method reading. Nearest related reading; direct coverage of this field has not been verified.Nearest related reading on approaches to research; not opened.

This is course relevance only. It is not evidence for the historical or practice claims on this page.See the full course map.

Sources and inspection

3 of 3 sources were opened and read at the level shown. A source marked as not verified supports no claim on this page by itself.

[1]
A Brief History (SQIP origin story)Society for Qualitative Inquiry in Psychology, undated. Society history. Supports the history.Selected text readRead Ruthellen Josselson's account (2004 to 2014) through the fetch extraction; it is a participant's recollection.
[2]
About SQIPSociety for Qualitative Inquiry in Psychology, undated. Professional association. Supports the definition of the area.Selected text readRead the aims, activities and Division 5 statements through the fetch extraction.
[3]
Journal article reporting standards for qualitative primary, qualitative meta-analytic, and mixed methods research in psychology: The APA Publications and Communications Board task force reportAmerican Psychologist, 73(1), 26-46, via University of Massachusetts Boston repository, 2018. Original publication. Supports the description of methods.Abstract onlyRead the abstract and publication details on the repository record only; the full article was not opened.

Independent source review: Claude Code reviewer agent, separate from the writer, 2026-10-21. Verdict: Admitted after corrections. Of 8 claims checked, 6 were supported as written, 2 were reworded and 0 were removed.