Grounded Neural Networking: Modeling Complex Quantitative Data

The latest advances in artificial intelligence software (neural networking) have finally made it possible for qualitative researchers to apply the grounded theory method to the study of complex quantitative databases in a manner consistent with the postpositivistic, neopragmatic assumptions of most symbolic interactionists. The strength of neural networking for the study of quantitative data is twofold: it blurs the boundaries between qualitative and quantitative analysis, and it allows grounded theorists to embrace the complexity of quantitative data. The specific technique most useful to grounded theory is the Self‐Organizing Map (SOM). To demonstrate the utility of the SOM we (1) provide a brief review of grounded theory, focusing on how it was originally intended as a comparative method applicable to both quantitative and qualitative data; (2) examine how the SOM is compatible with the traditional techniques of grounded theory; and (3) demonstrate how the SOM assists grounded theory by applying it to an example based on our research.     

Critical realism in empirical research: employing techniques from grounded theory methodology

Whilst critical realism (CR) is becoming recognised as a significant meta-theory for the social sciences, there is little guidance on how to produce research which is consistent with its ontological and epistemological assumptions. This article contributes to an emerging discussion about how CR can be applied, drawing on an example of a qualitative study that has sought to understand and explain the causes of unmet need amongst a group of rural labourers in Tunisia . Using this study as an illustration, I show how techniques from grounded theory methodology can be usefully harnessed in the data collection, coding and analysis stages of a research project that adopts a CR philosophical and methodological framework. I illustrate how an ‘abductive’ variant of grounded theory allowed drawing on pre-existing theoretical knowledge throughout the research stages; whilst open and axial coding techniques could be harnessed for identifying and postulating CR causal mechanisms. This article should be of interest to students and researchers involved with grounded theory and applied critical realism.     

Using QSR‐NVivo to facilitate the development of a grounded theory project: an account of a worked example

This paper demonstrates how the software package QSR‐NVivo can be used to faciitate a grounded theory approach. Recent research evidence has questioned the methodological quality of many studies that claim to utilise grounded theory. This paper argues that qualitative data analysis software can be used to encourage good quality grounded theory research by facilitating many of the key processes and characteristics associated with this approach. To achieve this, the paper identifies a number of grounded theory characteristics, common to all revisions of the methodology. It then describes the development of a recent study, which examined how people successfully maintain long‐term physical activity behaviour change. The purpose of this is to demonstrate how different functions of QSR‐NVivo may be used in conjunction with the key grounded theory characteristics. In summary, QSR‐NVivo is a powerful tool that, if used appropriately, can facilitate many aspects of the grounded theory process from the design and early sampling procedures, through to the analysis of data, theoretical development and presentation of findings.     

Working with the Experts: collaborative research with people with an intellectual disability

This paper reports on part of a wider study concerned with the collaborative efforts of an inquirer and six people with an intellectual disability, to develop a grounded theory explaining the processes by which these informants manage the relationships within their personal communities. The study was conducted through a series of in-depth interviews with each informant; a process characterised by information sharing, tentative theory development and elaboration, and informants' checking the accuracy of the emerging theory. This inductive approach allowed not only an insight into the lives of each informant, but recognised the informants' expertise in matters concerning their own lives and thus facilitated the emergence of theoretical elements of relevance to the informants themselves. The focus of the paper is on the collaborative or partnership approach adopted. The outcomes of the research partnership are detailed and implications drawn for the role of research in the lifestyles of people with an intellectual disability.     

Perspectives of LGBTQ emerging adults on the depiction and impact of LGBTQ media representation

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) young people have been increasingly represented in traditional (offline) media over the past two decades. However, research had not adequately focused on the content of contemporary representations, how such depictions impact LGBTQ young people, or how young people’s experiences are affected by the present context characterized by the rapidly increasing prevalence of new (online) media. Utilizing grounded theory with a sample (n?=?19) of emerging adults (age 18–22), this study investigates: (1) messages about sexual orientation and/or gender identity LGBTQ emerging adults receive from LGBTQ representations in traditional media; (2) potential differences in the experiences of LGBTQ emerging adults with traditional media compared to new media; and (3) how consumption of these media messages impact LGBTQ emerging adults. Results indicate that while traditional media (particularly television) creates a common dialogue and validates identity, it continues to represent LGBTQ people as one-dimensional and stereotypical, ignores many LGBTQ sub-groups, limits LGBTQ young people’s perceptions of their future trajectories, and offers no opportunities for critique. In contrast, emerging new media offers new, important, and valued spaces for discussion and creativity.     

What does being an adult mean? Comparing young people’s and adults’ representations of adulthood

This article aims at exploring the representations young people and adults attribute to the concept of adulthood in order to analyse the effects these ideas have on their reciprocal perception and recognition. In so doing, it draws upon data collected through a grounded theory study, which has been conducted in Italy involving young people and adults in semi-structured qualitative interviews. Data show that an outdated traditional model is still used by both the samples to determine who is an adult and when the adult status is acquired without discussing its validity in front of a changed social scenario. An evaluative function is added to traditional transitional markers of adulthood, which are used by both young people and adults to accuse each other of being ‘not mature enough’. A discrepancy between the shared ideal representations of adulthood and the actual possibility the two generations have to meet those social expectations in their lives emerge. The implications of these results for youth transitions to adulthood are discussed in the light of the high level of intergenerational inequality characterising the Italian context.     

Personal Responses to Traumatic Brain Injury: A Qualitative Study

This paper reports the findings of a qualitative study of ten persons with traumatic brain injury (TBI) based upon a series of in-depth interviews conducted over a period of 12 months. Data was analysed with procedures similar to those utilised by grounded theory and ethnographic researchers, and resulted in a typology that reflected different experiences of living with TBI as well as different meanings it had for persons with TBI. A thematic analysis of the data yielded information about self, disability and handicap, and involvement in social networks; and, reflected the participants' sense of personal well-being. This analysis provided an alternative to the data yielded by traditional quantitative research designs.     

Resiliency in older Hong Kong Chinese: Using the grounded theory approach to reveal social and spiritual conditions

Resiliency refers to the personal disposition favoring resilience, which is a state of adjustment in the face of adversity. As the nature and origin of resiliency are unclear, especially in older Hong Kong Chinese, the present study adopts a qualitative, grounded theory approach to elucidate resiliency. Findings from the study are notable because they contrast with existing knowledge. The study conducted personal interviews with 15 older Hong Kong Chinese identified by elderly service workers as resilient to recent adversities. Consequently, the study identifies a grounded, social–spiritual dialectic theory that relates resiliency to its contributors in early living conditions, family socialization, and religious faith. According to qualitative data, resiliency, which is characterized by self-reliance, openness, and relaxation, turns out to be a result of isolation in living conditions and family socialization. Isolation can also lead to religious faith, which is another contributor to resiliency. These findings are different from existing knowledge that social support is a basis for resiliency. They imply the possibility of converting negative experiences into impetus for generating resiliency.     

Toward a grounded theory of lesbians' recovery from addiction

This article presents the results of a qualitative study on lesbians' recovery from addiction. The study involved semi-structured interviews with 20 lesbians in recovery from addiction and was analyzed using grounded theory method. The central theme that emerged was self-acceptance, both as a lesbian and as a recovering alcoholic/addict, with considerable interaction between the two. Categories that contributed to this theme were learning to recover, relationships with other people, and relationship with something bigger than self. The discussion addresses how this information can be used to assist lesbians trying to recover from addiction.     

Experience of Career‐Related Discrimination for Female‐to‐Male Transgender Persons: A Qualitative Study

In this qualitative study, the authors examined the experience of discrimination and its relationship to the career development trajectory of 9 female‐to‐male transgender persons. Participants were between 21 and 48 years old and had a variety of vocational experiences. Individual semistructured interviews were conducted via telephone and analyzed using grounded theory methodology. The emergent model consisted of forms of discrimination and impact of discrimination. These components intersected with the career development trajectory. Participants provided their own suggestions for improving the workplace environment. Counseling, advocacy, and future research implications are discussed.     

Relearning to Live Life Without Substances: A Grounded Theory of the Impact of Group Physical Exercise on Sobriety

Research has found significant benefits in using exercise as an adjunct treatment for substance use. This study used a qualitative grounded theory approach to explore the role of group exercise on maintaining sobriety. Sixteen persons (13 White men and 3 White women, age M = 31.81, SD = 8.23), recruited from a substance use recovery group that meets at a gym in an urban area in the Southeast part of the United States, were individually interviewed. Data were analyzed using Charmaz’s (2006) constructivist grounded theory strategies. Central themes revealed a parallel process between the steps taken to seek sobriety and those taken to maintain sobriety. The driving forces of sobriety success in both was 12 steps and group exercise programming that included elements of mentorship, structure, accountability, and fellowship or community. This study supported the use of physical group exercise as an adjunct treatment option for substance use treatment.     

Exploring Partner Intimacy Among Couples Raising Children on the Autism Spectrum: A Grounded Theory Investigation

In this study, we explored how couples raising children with autism spectrum disorder negotiate intimacy, including what contextual and temporal factors influence these processes. We conducted conjoint interviews with 12 couples, employing grounded theory methodology to collect and analyze the data. Our results indicated that fostering intimacy in these couples' relationships involves partners working together to make key cognitive and relational shifts. Couples are aided or hindered in making these shifts by the degree to which they experience various contextual and environmental factors as resources or roadblocks. We also found that intimacy is not a fixed point at which couples one day arrive, but is an iterative process taking place over time and requiring work to develop and maintain.     

Using Secondary Data for Grounded Theory Analysis

Abstract

Grounded theory is well utilised in qualitative research for building theoretical understanding of complex social processes. Grounded theory data analysis strategies can be used with different types of data, including secondary data. Despite the potential advantages of secondary data, it is rarely used for grounded theory studies, largely due to a perception that researchers are unable to follow the guidelines of this research design with data that they themselves have not collected. This paper demonstrates the use of secondary data in a study investigating the substantive area of Indigenous empowerment. Potential pitfalls and advantages of using grounded theory methods to analyse secondary data are discussed, as well as factors that facilitated the analytic process in this study. These factors included having a large data set across multiple sites and the use of literature as a source of data. The findings provide a valuable model for combining research and practise.     

The NUDIST qualitative data analysis system

Most computer approaches to qualitative data analysis have concentrated on coding and retrieval of text. This paper describes a research project which set out to support a range of methods for the analysis of unstructured data, with emphasis on the building and testing of grounded theory. It resulted in software whose innovations include: a) No limit to the number of coding categories and sub-categories, and no limit to the number of times a given text passage can be coded; b) The use of separate document and indexing databases, interrelated and of unlimited flexibility; c) Comprehensive hypermedia-like browsing tools for both document and indexing databases; d) Ability to search for words and lexical patterns occurring in text and to combine this with indexing of the text; e) Ability to handle off-line textual and non-textual data as well as on-line data; f) Ability to record textual comments in indexing categories — a memoing facility for emerging ideas and categories; g) Support and exploitation of hierarchical indexing systems; h) Mechanisms for creating new indexing categories out of existing ones, relating them to the data documents, and using them for further analyses. New goals of the project are to provide a number of artificial intelligence based information structuring and reasoning facilities which can be used to aid the organization and retrieval of qualitative data, and to extend the present capabilities of the software to express and test new ideas, concepts, generalizations and hypotheses about the data.     

Perspectives of Young People in Care About their School-to-Work Transition

Abstract

Achieving in education and employment has long-term effects on quality of life. With below-average levels of educational attainment, many young people in care are ill-equipped for the transition from school to further education and work. This paper presents findings from a qualitative study that explored the school to work transition experiences of young people currently or previously in care, and their ideas about future employment. A range of personal and contextual factors that influence study and work goals were identified. Young people spoke about the importance of personal confidence and determination, supportive relationships, someone to believe in them and encourage them, opportunities to pursue their goals, avenues to gain information about how to get desired jobs, positive school experiences, and the need for stability in their lives. The study suggests widening the agenda for case planning, transition from care and after-care support, to include career planning and vocational assistance.     

Resilience in the face of sexual minority stress: “Choices” between authenticity and self-determination

This qualitative study explored the experience of sexual minority stressors and corresponding resilience. Using a grounded theory approach, the core category identified in the analysis was minority stress results from systemic factors that cause lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) people to face competition between their desires for authenticity and self-determination. These findings shed light upon the insidious nature of minority stress, especially within U.S. contexts that lack protective legislation, and the adaptive strategies people use to mitigate their effects. By positioning resilience as a choice between authenticity and self-determination, resilience is understood to lessen but not resolve the deleterious impact of sexual minority stress.     

Families Pass Money and Opportunities Down: Adolescent Constructions of Social Class

Poverty is a prevalent issue addressed by social workers and other helping professionals. When working to engage citizens in anti-poverty efforts, it is necessary to understand how people conceptualize social class. In this qualitative study, the grounded theory method is utilized to understand how adolescents describe and define social class. Adolescents view family of origin socioeconomic status, higher education opportunities, and social mobility as key factors that shape individual socioeconomic status.     

Alice in Wonderland: Exploring the Experiences of Female Service Members With a Pregnancy Resulting From Rape

Currently, no clinical research has ever been conducted to examine what, if any, traumatic effects take place when pregnancy results from a sexual assault during military service. The present study investigated the emotional experience and impact of rape and pregnancy on women serving in the military. A qualitative, grounded theory research methodology analyzed single-session interview data with seven self-selected participants. Five major themes emerged from the data. The authors discuss the implications of pregnancy from a sexual assault in military service and suggest future research regarding how social workers can begin to address the traumatic impact of this silent epidemic of pregnancy resulting from rape.     

Is vicarious trauma the culprit? A study of child welfare professionals

This article reports on a qualitative, multicase study of child welfare professionals who discussed the changes they experienced because of the work they do. It was concluded that vicarious trauma was the cause. This study was grounded in the constructive self-development theory, a developmental and interpersonal theory with a trauma focus that explains the impact of trauma on an individual's psychological development, identity, and adaptation.     

Person-centred communication in dementia care: a qualitative study of the use of the SPECAL® method by care workers in the UK

Abstract

Communication has featured prominently in person-centred dementia care research, but no consensus has been reached on which communication techniques are most helpful in supporting person-centred care. This qualitative study explored communication techniques used by domiciliary and community care workers of people with dementia in the UK. Care workers trained in the SPECAL® method (Specialised Early Care for Alzheimer’s) were invited to semi-structured interviews. The data were analysed using a constructivist grounded theory approach. Themes from the data were discussed as a potential basis for developing a substantive theory. The care workers contributed to client well-being through modifying their communication techniques, expressing a protective, empathetic and reassuring approach, underpinned by reflection. Clients exhibited greater well-being and less anxious behaviour. The care workers’ use of SPECAL® communication methods, supported by supervision, may provide a unique combination of techniques, contributing to the development of caring relationships, to care worker and client well-being, and to the maintenance of client personhood.