This chapter concentrates on the potential roles of qualitative research in the conduct of injury research investigations. It presents an overview of methodologic issues in qualitative research with reference to three major qualitative research traditions: ethnography (and ethnographic interviewing), participant observation, and focus groups. Participant observation is commonly used by anthropologists to study a culture in depth. Ethnographic interviews can be nested in participant observation activities but are always conducted in the subject's community setting. Focus groups provide a relatively efficient method to elicit beliefs and attitude from multiple individuals simultaneously. The chapter discusses sampling, data collection, and measures to ensure reliability and validity of qualitative studies. The validity of findings can also be enhanced when the researcher shares the interpretation of data with subjects from the study. Qualitative research methods can be effectively combined with quantitative methods to both derive and test hypotheses regarding human aspects of injury control.