When researchers do phenomenological research, they investigate the ways in which people experience and respond to a phenomenon -- something specific or unusual that has happened to them. Some examples of phenomenology include interviewing amputees about how the loss of their limbs has impacted their lives, asking teachers who have recently been fired about their experience saying goodbye to their students and talking to A-list celebrities about what it is like being recognized everywhere they go.
Ethnographic research is research into a specific culture. A culture is defined as the beliefs, values, behavior, norms, standards and language shared by a particular group of people. Examples of ethnographic research include comparing the Jewish and Korean attitudes towards education, examining linguistic trends in bilingual Latino teenagers and studying voting trends among Catholics. Ethnography applies to smaller cultures as well; studying the common attitudes of students at a particular school is small-scale ethnographic research.
Case study research looks at the specifics of individual cases. Doctors use case study research when dealing with new diseases: they have no precedent and only one or a few examples of the disease, so they study those few examples in depth. Another example of case study research is examining the experience of a new standardized test prep course used by a single group of students -- they are the only group using this method so they are the only case to study.
Grounded theory involves collecting data on a subject and then forming theories based on that data. Data is usually collected through interviews and observation. This research method starts with the specific and then broadens to the general; the researcher interviews a sample of people as his examples and then draws conclusions about a broader topic. For example, the researcher might interview a particular group of people who have given up careers in the arts, compare their comments and then compose a theory about what causes people in general to abandon artistic careers.
When a researcher investigates things that happened in the past, it is called historical research. This includes gathering information from various sources, synthesizing that information into theories about overall trends and then seeking further examples and evidence that supports those theories. Historical researchers must take the origins of their sources into consideration. For example, if a researcher is using a letter written by a child as a source, he must consider if the child knew what he was talking about, if he was lying or if he is otherwise unreliable.