Developing a Structured Approach to Document Reviews: Lessons From a qualitative study in The Bahamas

This methods case study is an introduction to using document reviews as part of qualitative research. It outlines the advantages and challenges of conducting document reviews and suggests ways to mitigate those challenges. The case details four phases of conducting a document review: (a) finding documents, (b) selecting documents, (c) appraising documents and their content, and (d) synthesizing and analyzing data from documents. Within each phase, practical evidence is provided to support using document reviews in a structured way as a qualitative research method. Readers will learn how to develop and apply a framework for data extraction from documents to answer their own research questions.