'The Velvet Revolution' in Czech Social Sciences

Drawing on biographical interviews with the protagonists of qualitative social science research in the Czech Republic, this article retraces the evolution of the qualitative approach before & after 1989 & presents in greater detail six major research projects conducted in the post-communist era. It takes a special interest in how the actors view their own work & offers a comparison of these investigations with "western scientific method." It examines the various levels of ties that exist between qualitative research & the field studied, underscores the interrelation between the researchers' stance & the agenda of research topics as well as the form of loyalty that takes shape toward the field over the course of research, & then the choices that are made as the findings it produces are interpreted. Adapted from the source document.