Evaluating the suitability of qualitative methods in Wakaf-Zakat housing provision research

Abstract

Research on wakaf-zakat housing provision is a cross-disciplinary. It involves an area of study under religion and the built environment by wakaf-zakat and housing, respectively., A combination of these two areas of study, requires a well-defined research methodology that the paper evaluates the suitability of qualitative methods to achieve the stipulated research objectives. Consequently, attainment of each research objective through specified methods is explained either by way of interview, case-study, observation and focus-group-discussion. Insequent, after an extensive literature review was conducted, the instrument for data collection was instituted. It was piloted through a focus-group-discussion (FGD), and the amendments to the instrument was made accordingly. Then, the data collection was done through case-studies and observations of wakaf-zakat housing projects as well as interviews. Experts in religious studies and the built environment were selected for the above FGD and interviews. The data collected was critically analysed by way of content analysis. The outcome of the analysis was presented to the experts again for validation. For FGD and interviews, the purposive sampling with a high degree of respondent selection criteria is adopted. Overall, the study found that those qualitative methods are suitable to achieve the stipulated objectives for wakaf-zakat housing provision research.