Chapter 3 METHODS
3.5 PHASE 2: qualitative data collection
3.5.4 Interview analysis
Interview recordings were transcribed verbatim by a professional transcription service and entered into the QSR International’s NVivo 10 Software package for analysis (NVivo, 2012).
Content analysis of the interviews followed an inductive category development approach as described by Hsieh and Shannon (2005). The researcher checked the transcripts against the recording for accuracy. Using NVivo10, each transcription was read to gain a sense of the whole before deriving codes. Open coding occurred by grouping similar codes into sub-themes and labelling them. Finally, the sub-themes were congregated to create the main themes.
A summative approach was then used by counting the frequency of themes and quotations used to create each theme and sub-theme from the interview transcriptions. According to Plano Clark et al. (2015), a longitudinal, sequential explanatory, mixed methods study uses qualitative data collected at the final data collection point to examine participants’ recollections of what was measured quantitatively. Thus, the number of students reporting each theme indicated the strength of each theme (these results are reported in Table 1 of Paper 4).
To ensure the rigour of qualitative methods and the content analysis of the interview transcriptions our study used the trustworthiness criteria: dependability, credibility, transferability, and confirmability (Guba & Lincoln, 1982; Shenton, 2004).
Credibility asks the researcher the question, “How congruent are the findings with reality?” (Shenton, 2004, p.64). Shenton (2004) describes an array of criteria that researchers can use to build credibility. Of these criteria, our study utilised the following: use of research methods that are well established in qualitative
investigation, familiarity with the culture of participating organisations, tactics to help ensure honesty in informants, triangulation, and member checking. The use of semi- structured interviews is a proven technique in qualitative methods (Kvale &
Brinkmann, 2009). The lead researcher who conducted all 24 interviews had 12 years’ experience as the Director of Fieldwork with occupational therapy students and thus had extensive experience of the context of clinical placements for students. As such, the lead researcher might hold some pre-conceived ideas about how placements might influence EI skills. To minimise this potential bias, triangulation was a critical inclusion when undertaking the content analysis. Triangulation firstly used an
occupational therapist (Kiah Evans), who is an experienced researcher and has many years of experience supervising therapy students, to review the tentative
categorisations. Ms Evans was randomly assigned 25% of the interview transcriptions. Ms Evans and the researcher met on three occasions to fine-tune the categorisations. Member checking followed whereby six (25%) of the original interviewees were asked to review the categorisations. Two questions were posed: “Do you recognise the categorisations from your clinical placements?” and; “Do you find the descriptions illustrative of the categorisations?” All interviewees accepted the categorisations with no changes.
Transferability “…is concerned with the extent to which the findings of one study can be applied to other situations” (Shenton, 2004, p. 69). The 24 interviewees discussed their experiences from their multiple clinical placements that took place in many different healthcare settings over a similar period. The peak accreditation bodies in Australia for three therapy professions set criteria about the types and lengths of clinical placements that the university programs must adhere. All 24 interviewees undertook full-time placements that were five weeks or longer. Their placements had occurred in an array of sites including hospitals, private practice, schools, not for profit organisations, as well as in metropolitan, rural, and international locations. All students were allocated a supervisor (or supervisors) who facilitated the placement and
provided role modelling, feedback, and assessed their overall performance. Students worked with patients and in healthcare teams where they needed to show
competence in an array of practical, interpersonal, and clinical reasoning skills. A more detailed description of the placements of the interviewees is provided in the journal article titled ‘Strategies for interprofessional facilitators and clinical supervisors that may enhance the emotional intelligence of therapy students’ published in Journal of Interprofessional Care (Gribble, Ladyshewsky, & Parsons, 2017c). Thus, the placements that the 24 interviewees completed were relatively similar to the placements that all speech pathology, occupational therapy, and physiotherapy students complete across Australia meaning that the content analysis of the interviews is transferable to other therapy students who have completed placements in Australia.
Dependability “…employs techniques to show that, if the work were repeated, in the same context, with the same methods and with the same participants, similar results would be obtained” (Shenton, 2004, p. 71). This chapter provides comprehensive, step-by-step procedures of how the interviewees were selected, the semi-structured interviews, and the content analysis which should be able to guide future researchers who might want to replicate the methods.
Confirmability asks the researcher to take steps to “…ensure as far as possible that the work’s findings are the result of the experiences and ideas of the informants, rather than the characteristics and preferences of the researcher” (Shenton, 2004, p. 72). The lead interviewer’s extensive experience working with students undertaking clinical placements was advantageous to understanding the context and assisted in asking delving questions. However, the same experience could also bias the findings of the content analysis because of preconceived idea on how placements influence and impact students. As such, the triangulation and member checking discussed above were essential steps to minimise this potential bias. Miles and Huberman (1994) propose that a key to confirmability is the extent to which the researcher is open about their personal predispositions. Thus, being honest about the subjectivity that a researcher brings to qualitative research is essential. The following presents the lead researcher’s predispositions (presented in the first person).
At the time of the interviews, I was the Director of Fieldwork in the School of Occupational Therapy at Curtin University – where some of the occupational therapy participants were recruited. I had taught coursework courses and organised the clinical placements for some of the occupational therapy interviewees. As such, the recruitment of interviewees was deliberately
designed to occur after the students had completed their university studies and had their final results confirming their program completion. Thus, I was not in a position of power at the time of the interviews. It was hoped that the change in the relationship and the 10 to 16 weeks that had passed after finishing their university studies, allowed the students to answer the interview questions honestly and genuinely. With the students I knew, I ensured they were clear that I was in the role as researcher and I remained neutral and objective. I also needed to be aware that interviewees may have an acquiescence bias where an interviewee may tend to agree or be positive about whatever the interviewer asks (Gomm, 2009). To diminish these potential biases, when interviewing the students I followed the semi-structured interview and prompts closely. As suggested by Kvale and Brinkmann (2009), before and during the interviews, I needed to be cognizant and reflective of the differences between my lifeworld and those of the interviewees. I have worked as an occupational therapist and educator of occupational therapy students for 20 years, while the interviewees were at the beginning of their career as a therapist. For many interviewees, their recently completed placements might have been the first time they had worked full-time, worked in a healthcare team, or had to deal with people in emotionally vulnerable situations. I needed to realise that I might have a confirmation bias where a researcher forms a belief and uses interviewees’ words to confirm that belief. Confirmation bias can also influence analysis, with researchers tending to remember quotes and ideas that support their
interpretation (Gomm, 2009). I needed to be aware that I had been the Director of Fieldwork for the occupational therapy fieldwork program for 12 years and had spent much time on site with supervisors and students. I needed to be aware that in creating and developing the methods used in this study, I had read a large quantity of literature and previous research that may have
the significant influence that the supervisory environment can have on a student’s clinical performance. Thus, I presumed that a supervisor might have an impact on a student’s EI skills. I was also aware that reflection is a critical component of a student developing their clinical reasoning and practical skills. Thus, I had presumed that it was feasible that reflection on EI skills may also influence a student’s EI skills. As such, I needed to put this information aside during the interviews and data analysis.