Nollaig Frost

Pluralism in qualitative research: the impact of different researchers and qualitative approaches on the analysis of qualitative data

Qualitative approaches to research in psychology and the social sciences are increasingly used. The variety of approaches incorporates different epistemologies, theoretical traditions and practices with associated analysis techniques spanning a range of theoretical and empirical frameworks. Despite the increase in mixed method approaches it is unusual for qualitative methods to be used in combination with each other. The Pluralism in Qualitative Research project (PQR) was developed in order to investigate the benefits and creative tensions of integrating diverse qualitative approaches. Among other objectives it seeks to interrogate the contributions and impact of researchers and methods on data analysis. The article presents our pluralistic analysis of a single semi-structured interview transcript. Analyses were carried out by different researchers using grounded theory, Foucauldian discourse analysis, interpretative phenomenological analysis and narrative analysis. We discuss the variation and agreement in the analysis of the data. The implications of the findings on the conduct, writing and presentation of qualitative research are discussed.

`Do you know what I mean?': the use of a pluralistic narrative analysis approach in the interpretation of an interview

This article demonstrates a within-method pluralistic approach to narrative analysis. It uses an interview held with a mother expecting her second child, in which she talks about her expectations of second-time motherhood, to show how application of more than one narrative analysis to the data leads to a multi-dimensional interpretation. This approach draws on the strengths offered by each model it employs to privilege the narrators words. By taking guidance from the interview text itself in each phase of analysis, layers of understanding of the account are built up. The article illustrates how eaxch interpretation is made. It demonstrates that the initial understanding of the story is gradually enriched by systematic exploration of the text until a new story emerges. The article concludes by presenting the new story and considering the strengths and limitations of the approach.

Collective Findings, Individual Interpretations: An Illustration of a Pluralistic Approach to Qualitative Data Analysis

The establishment of qualitative approaches in the mainstream of psychology research facilitates innovation in their use, both singly and in combination. In this article, we describe a pluralistic qualitative analysis of the transcript of a semi-structured interview on the topic of second-time motherhood using Grounded Theory, Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis, Narrative Analysis, and Foucauldian Discourse Analysis. Each approach encapsulates different epistemological assumptions and is employed by a different analyst. We present key collective findings and the different interpretations of these findings by each analyst. We discuss how a pluralistic qualitative approach to data analysis can aid the quest to “know more” about a phenomenon by providing a more holistic, multilayered understanding of data that works across epistemologies.

Commentary: New Pluralistic Strategies for Research in Clinical Practice

This commentary reviews the Warner and Spandler article in relation to its use of pluralistic approaches to research to inform evidence-based practice in the field of clinical psychology. It highlights the ways in which the FIND (Frequency, Intensity, Number, Duration) model proposed in the paper aims to retain and enhance the credibility of research whilst confronting the challenges posed by promoting the inclusion of individual intent and meaning in seeking further understanding of the behaviour of those who self-harm. The commentary draws comparisons between the FIND models focus on contextualisation and pluralistic data analysis strategies that can tap into multiple dimensions of lived identities. It considers challenges to traditional understandings of the purpose of triangulation as one that only illuminates convergence in research outcomes. It highlights the potential for gaining richer insight by drawing on multiple methods and/or data sources, even if these offer divergence or contradiction. The FIND model advocates the use of behavioural, cognitive and emotional data in order to bring nuance to behavioural data and illustrates how this allows for a refocusing of research process and aims away from outcome alone. The commentary highlights that, in common with arguments for the use of pluralistic data analysis strategies, this approach can bring new insight to phenomena not possible from one perspective. Both the FIND model and pluralistic data analysis strategies comprise multi-layered approaches in order to extend the applicability of the outcomes to different audiences by enabling a variety of meanings to emerge. The commentary considers how pluralistic approaches to gathering and exploring data can be particularly useful when exploring phenomena with little, no, or variable ontological consensus. The commentary seeks to show how such approaches provide flexibility and transparency in the pursuit of understanding of human behaviour but also charges the researcher to retain such flexibility in their curiosity.

Mother, researcher, feminist, woman:reflections on ‘maternal status’ as a researcher identity

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to discuss the ways in which a researchers maternal status as “mother” or “non-mother/child-free” is implicated in the research process. Design/methodology/approach – This paper draws on the experiences as two feminist researchers who each independently researched experiences of motherhood: one as a “mother” and one as a “non-mother/child-free”. The paper draws on extracts from the original interview data and research diaries to reflect on how research topic, methodology and interview practice are shaped by a researchers maternal status. Findings – The paper found that the own maternal identities shaped the research process in a number of ways: it directed the research topic and access to research participants; it drove the method of data collection and analysis and it shaped how the authors interacted with the participants in the interview setting, notably through the performance of maternal identity. The paper concludes by examining how pervasive discourses of “g...

Pleasure, Pain, and Procrastination: Reflections on the Experience of Doing Memory-Work Research

The focus of this article is the process of doing memory-work research. We tell the story of our experience of what it was like to use this approach. We were enthused to work collectively on a “discovery” project to explore a method with which we were unfamiliar. We hoped to build working relationships based on mutual respect and the desire to focus on methodology and its place in our psychological understanding. The empirical activities highlighted methodological and experiential challenges, which tested our adherence to the social constructionist premise of Haugs original description of memory work. Combined with practical difficulties of living across Europe, writing and analyzing the memories became contentious. We found ourselves having to address a number of tensions emanating from the work and our approach to it. We discuss some of these tensions alongside examples that illustrate the research process and the ways we negotiated the collective nature of the memory-work approach.