The authors contend that qualitative research should be scrutinized for its usefulness in the discovery of substantive theory. They try to present generic elements of the process of generating substantive theory from qualitative data, and consider how the researcher collects and analyzes qualitative data, max imizes the theory's credibility, puts trust in his theory, and conveys the theory to others. Drs. Glaser and Strauss are affiliated with the University of California Medical Center in San Francisco.