Conference Agenda

Educational research is increasingly confronted with complex, ambiguous, and value-laden phenomena in which knowing and acting are closely intertwined. In educational contexts, professional judgment, decision-making, and practice are shaped by subjective orientations, beliefs, and interpretations that are deeply connected to professional identity and ongoing professional learning. These dimensions of professional development cannot be adequately captured through standardized survey instruments alone. At the same time, educational research is expected to generate knowledge that is both methodologically robust and practically meaningful for professional learning and development across the career span. This requires methodological approaches that do not consider subjectivity as a source of bias, but as a central epistemic resource and object of inquiry.

This workshop introduces Q, which comprises methodology, method and data collection technique. It is designed to explore the extent of participants’ diverging and converging beliefs, points of view, or feelings on a given topic. Q can uncover even marginalized opinions that might be ignored or even overlooked by traditional survey methods. It is used to systematically study subjectivity within a group of people in order to gain insight into their motivations and behavior by integrating both qualitative and quantitative procedures in data generation, analysis and interpretation (Brown, 1993; Stenner and Stainton Rogers, 2004). Further, the workshop highlights Q's potential as a didactic and reflexive approach that fosters professional development. Thus, Q offers a distinctive way of linking ‘knowing’ (beliefs, points of views) and ‘acting’ (judgment, decision-making, professional practice).

The workshop addresses methodologically interested scholars in educational sciences, especially teacher educators, practitioners, and researchers interested in (approaches to foster) professional development. Given that many participants are likely to encounter Q for the first time, the workshop is explicitly designed as an introductory yet conceptually grounded format that combines methodological theory with experiential learning. Therefore, it is suitable for both early-career researchers as well as experienced academics. Workshop participants are invited to explore Q both as a research methodology and as a didactic approach that enables reflective work with subjective perspectives in different contexts such as teacher education, induction, and professional development (Kling & Buhl, 2025).

The first part of the workshop offers a concise theoretical introduction to Q. It outlines to most important epistemological assumptions, methodological principles, and procedural steps, including the construction of a Q set (statements), selection of a P set (participants), the Q-sorting process, the logic of by-person factor analysis, and interpretation. Particular attention is paid to Q’s understanding of subjectivity and to its relevance for educational research contexts in which professional orientations and beliefs play a central role (Watts & Stenner, 2012; Kling & Lintner, 2022). Q is thus framed not only as a research method, but also as a reflexive approach that deliberately transforms participants from being research objects into subjects who actively participate in the co-construction of meaning within the research process (Kling & Buhl, 2025).

In the second part of the workshop, participants take part in a guided online Q sort using a free web-based tool. By engaging in the sorting process themselves, workshop participants experience the logic of Q from the position of research participants. The collected Q sorts are analyzed immediately during the workshop, and preliminary factor solutions are generated and visualized.

The final part of the workshop focuses on collaborative reflection, interpretation and discussion. In small groups, workshop participants interpret the emerging factor structures and reflect on their own positioning within these shared patterns of viewpoints. The workshop concludes with a discussion of Q’s potential and limitations as a research and didactic approach in the context of professional development, highlighting its role as a bridge between knowing and acting.