Theoretical sampling is a hallmark of grounded theory methodology, and yet there is little guidance available for researchers on how to implement this process. A review of recently published grounded theory studies in Qualitative Health Research revealed that researchers often indicate that they use theoretical sampling to choose new participants, to modify interview guides, or to add data sources as a study progresses, but few describe how theoretical sampling is implemented in response to emergent findings. In this article, two issues that arose relative to theoretical sampling in an ongoing grounded theory study are discussed. A theoretical sampling guide that was developed by the authors' research team to facilitate systematic decision making and to enhance the audit trail relative to theoretical sampling is described, and an example of how the guide was used to develop a category is presented.
Childhood sexual abuse (CSA) is a prevalent social and healthcare problem. The processes by which individuals heal from CSA are not clearly understood. The purpose of this study was to develop a theoretical model to describe how adults heal from CSA. Community recruitment for an on-going, broader project on sexual violence throughout the lifespan, referred to as the Sexual Violence Study, yielded a subsample of 48 women and 47 men who had experienced CSA. During semi-structured, open-ended interviews, they were asked to describe their experiences with healing from CSA and other victimization throughout their lives. Constructivist grounded theory methods were used with these data to develop constructs and hypotheses about healing. For the Sexual Violence Study, frameworks were developed to describe the participants' life patterns, parenting experiences, disclosures about sexual violence, spirituality, and altruism. Several analytic techniques were used to synthesize the findings of these frameworks to develop an overarching theoretical model that describes healing from CSA. The model includes four stages of healing, five domains of functioning, and six enabling factors that facilitate movement from one stage to the next. The findings indicate that healing is a complex and dynamic trajectory. The model can be used to alert clinicians to a variety of processes and enabling factors that facilitate healing in several domains and to guide discussions on important issues related to healing from CSA.
Within the past decade, over 25 research reports claiming to be based on Heideggerian interpretive phenomenology have been published in the nursing literature. This article reviews this research focusing on two critical issues. First, do the reports reflect a convergence of researcher understanding and participant narratives as called for by the Heideggerian tradition? Second, do Heideggerian ideas inform and enrich the studies' findings? The review reveals wide variations with regard to how these two issues are reflected in published reports. The author recommends that Heideggerian nurse researchers (a) seek to create a new narrative literature that allows for flexible and creative presentation of interpretive findings, while demanding adherence to sound interpretive scholarship, and (b) strengthen their partnerships with philosophers and other scholars so that ideas from Heideggerian interpretive phenomenology and other sources can not only guide their methods, but enrich their findings.
A theoretical framework that explains how survivors of childhood sexual abuse tell others about their abuse experiences is presented. Data are drawn from open-ended interviews conducted with 74 individuals who experienced ongoing childhood sexual abuse by a family member or close acquaintance. Grounded theory methods were used to develop the framework. The psychosocial problem shared by the participants is that childhood sexual abuse both demands and defies explanation. The core psychosocial process used in response to this problem is storying childhood sexual abuse. The framework includes five processes, and the stories associated with each process vary in their nature and function. The processes and associated stories are (a) starting the story: the story-not-yet-told, (b) coming out with the story: the story-first-told, (c) shielding the story: the story-as-secret, (d) revising the story: the story-as-account, and (e) sharing the story: the story-as-message. Clinical applications of the framework are discussed.
The theoretical framework of navigating the system can provide healthcare providers with a way to understand how TIs engage in health care as they move through the subprocesses of moving forward, doing due diligence, finding loopholes, and making it work in order to get their healthcare needs met. With a better understanding of the healthcare journeys of TIs, healthcare providers can provide better care for this population and advocate for change in policies that contribute to the health disparities TIs experience.
Time was of great importance to the parents and adolescents; all the participants structured their stories in relation to the concept of time. The model reflects the dynamic process by which families continuously adapt their relationships in the face of advanced cancer.
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