TY - JOUR
T1 - New approaches to qualitative interviewing
T2 - Development of a card sort technique to understand subjective patterns of symptoms and responses
AU - Mammen, Jennifer R.
AU - Norton, Sally A.
AU - Rhee, Hyekyun
AU - Butz, Arlene M.
N1 - Funding Information:
In conclusion, this paper provides a description of a new interview technique used in a single study, and as such is not intended to be broadly generalizable ( Morse, 1999 ). Furthermore, there are likely limitations to this type of methodology. First, use of the card sort technique during interviews could inadvertently constrain participants’ responses and thereby limit the type of data collected. However, the risk of constraining interviews is likely to be mitigated by using the participants’ own words. Second, this method may be difficult to incorporate into larger studies, as the technique is time-consuming, entailing both a preliminary and follow-up interview. A modified version (e.g. a “focused” approach) using only a single brief interview to first derive and then sort symptoms and responses may be similarly effective. Applications of this sort may be suitable to brief clinical interviews or larger scale studies with a more quantitative intent. Further modifications such as use of picture cards (for younger ages), or card banks (exhaustive lists of items from which participants could select those best representing their experience) may also be plausible. Such modifications may produce similar results while diminishing the time investments required. Further research would need to be conducted to determine the feasibility and efficacy of these approaches. Conflict of interests: None. Funding: Research reported in this publication was supported by the National Institute of Nursing Research of the National Institutes of Health under Award Number F31NR014952. This research was also partially supported by Sigma Theta Tau Epsilon Xi. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health or Sigma Theta Tau international. The authors also extend their thanks to the teens and parents who participated in this study. Ethical approval: Ethical approval was granted by the University of Rochester Research Subjects Review Board RSRB00051425.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2016 Elsevier Ltd.
PY - 2016/6/1
Y1 - 2016/6/1
N2 - Background: Ability to elicit individuals' perceptions of complex behavioral processes can be challenging, as it hinges not only upon the skill of the researcher, but also upon assumptions of a shared language and individuals' ability to recall, analyze, and effectively communicate events. In a case-based qualitative-descriptive study about teens' experiences of asthma self-management, we found that variations in terminology and descriptions of events, symptoms, and responses made it difficult to understand teens' experiences of asthma. In particular, teens' conceptualization of their asthma symptoms and self-management responses differed from situation to situation, from other teens in the study, from the interviewer, and from prior reports in the literature. These differences across many levels made it difficult to identify patterns in individual processes of self-management, and among teens in general.. Objectives: To address these challenges, we developed a card sorting activity to facilitate in-depth exploration of teens' experiences of asthma. Design: Case-based qualitative description. Setting: Teen-parent dyads (N=28) were recruited from the community, Emergency Department, Pediatric Pulmonary Department, and prior study subjects of a major medical center. Methods: Teens first identified and then sequenced their own unique sets of asthma symptoms and self-management responses. Teens then developed contextually grounded narratives using the card sort they had created as a visual aid. Results: This technique not only allowed us to bridge teen-interviewer communication barriers and develop shared terminology, but also resulted in a visible sequence of asthma symptoms and self-management responses. Conclusions: The card sort technique facilitated researcher-teen discussion and enabled comparison of self-management patterns across teens in our study. This technique is potentially useful for other areas of research exploring behavioral processes with complex and individual-specific experiences, in particular those involving sequences of events and self-management responses. This paper delineates the development, utility, and potential applications of the symptom-response card sorting technique for research and clinical practice.
AB - Background: Ability to elicit individuals' perceptions of complex behavioral processes can be challenging, as it hinges not only upon the skill of the researcher, but also upon assumptions of a shared language and individuals' ability to recall, analyze, and effectively communicate events. In a case-based qualitative-descriptive study about teens' experiences of asthma self-management, we found that variations in terminology and descriptions of events, symptoms, and responses made it difficult to understand teens' experiences of asthma. In particular, teens' conceptualization of their asthma symptoms and self-management responses differed from situation to situation, from other teens in the study, from the interviewer, and from prior reports in the literature. These differences across many levels made it difficult to identify patterns in individual processes of self-management, and among teens in general.. Objectives: To address these challenges, we developed a card sorting activity to facilitate in-depth exploration of teens' experiences of asthma. Design: Case-based qualitative description. Setting: Teen-parent dyads (N=28) were recruited from the community, Emergency Department, Pediatric Pulmonary Department, and prior study subjects of a major medical center. Methods: Teens first identified and then sequenced their own unique sets of asthma symptoms and self-management responses. Teens then developed contextually grounded narratives using the card sort they had created as a visual aid. Results: This technique not only allowed us to bridge teen-interviewer communication barriers and develop shared terminology, but also resulted in a visible sequence of asthma symptoms and self-management responses. Conclusions: The card sort technique facilitated researcher-teen discussion and enabled comparison of self-management patterns across teens in our study. This technique is potentially useful for other areas of research exploring behavioral processes with complex and individual-specific experiences, in particular those involving sequences of events and self-management responses. This paper delineates the development, utility, and potential applications of the symptom-response card sorting technique for research and clinical practice.
KW - Adolescent
KW - Asthma
KW - Card sort
KW - Methodological
KW - Qualitative
KW - Self-management
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UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=84958559193&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.ijnurstu.2015.12.011
DO - 10.1016/j.ijnurstu.2015.12.011
M3 - Comment/debate
C2 - 26897540
AN - SCOPUS:84958559193
SN - 0020-7489
VL - 58
SP - 90
EP - 96
JO - International Journal of Nursing Studies
JF - International Journal of Nursing Studies
ER -