One of the key findings from using Nussbaum’s list as a template is that the caregivers’ stories and experiences did not fit neatly into the categories; rather, the
capabilities were interconnected. The analogy that sprang to mind as I undertook the analysis was that the capabilities wove a tangled web as opposed to a linear list, supporting
Venkatapuram’s (2011, p. 162) argument that the “the [Capability for Health] CH, and indeed every capability, is really a cluster of iterative capabilities and functionings”. This highlights the multidimensional nature of capability, exemplified by Nussbaum’s inclusion of sub-categories for each capability on her list. Because capabilities overlap and interact in multiple and complex ways, we need to go further than simply listing those that are valuable in order to understand diverse experiences.
An important feature of Template Analysis (TA; King, 2012) is that “it encourages the analyst to develop themes more extensively where the richest data (in relation to the research question) are found” (Brooks et al., 2014, p.4). The first level of analysis in Study One identified emotions as an integrative theme (King, Carroll, Newton, & Dornan, 2002), in the sense that this aspect of the caregivers’ lives infused the discussion no matter which capability was being discussed. The following manuscript expands upon this by considering the interconnected nature of capabilities and the significance of emotions. Using the
concepts underpinning the CA, the analysis moves beyond a realist, or positivistic, level to a second more interpretive iteration. This illustrates that the CA may be utilised to expand upon descriptive information to provide deeper insight into a specific context. The more detailed, contextual data from the online forum indicates, to borrow from gestalt psychology, that the whole is greater than the sum of each separate capability. In this respect,
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Venkatapuram’s (2011) conception of health, as not just the absence of disease but having the opportunity to achieve a cluster of vital goals, is well positioned to account for this complexity.
On a personal level, a key moment in the analyis occurred at this stage of the study. My mother was hospitalised and her requirements became my first priority. I had to attend to her needs in hospital as well as maintain the practical aspects of her home life – paying bills, changing appointments, tending the garden and keeping her friends updated with progress reports. I assumed total responsibility for my mother’s affairs, putting myself in her shoes and anticipating what needed to be done next, while also attending to my own household and other family members. However, the practical tasks were easily managed compared to the emotional energy that was invested in her care. I found that this aspect of her care left me physically and mentally drained, which was also reported in the lives of the study
participants.
Having begun the study thinking that I would be writing about how the demands of the practicalities of caregiving impacted caregivers’ health, I found myself instead reading about caregivers’ feelings and choices. While the participants’ situations were varied and their experiences not necessarily the same as mine, the data reflected back what was
happening in my own life and suggested that emotions play an important role in the lives of informal caregivers for older people. This experience impacted my analysis of the data in several ways. Firstly, it advanced my awareness of the demands faced by caregivers, and particularly those who are long-term caregivers. Secondly, I became acutely aware of the emotional complexities associated with caregiving. As my initial feelings of concern became tempered with ambivalence, I realised how emotional involvement can lead to mental and physical exhaustion. This increased my empathy for the caregivers in the forum and enabled
deeper insight into their experience. The positive side to this is that it may have enriched the analysis and enabled me to consider things I might otherwise have missed. On the other hand, it made me think about what I was bringing to the study and how my own experience might ‘colour’ the analysis. While it was difficult to objectively remove myself from the analytical process, I tried to be reflexive and manage the situation as best I could. As a result, I re-visited the analysis some months later, in order to approach it with ‘fresh’ eyes. After working through the data a second time, my overall findings remain virtually unchanged.
In the following chapter, the findings from a second analytic iteration of the data, which took an interpretive approach to analysing the theme or capability for emotions, are presented.
References
Brooks, J., McCluskey, S., Turley E., & King, N. (2015): The Utility of Template Analysis in Qualitative Psychology Research, Qualitative Research in Psychology,12(2), 202-222. King, N., Carroll, C., Newton, P., & Dornan, T. (2002). “You can’t Cure it so you have to
Endure it”: The Experience of Adaptation to Diabetic Renal Disease. Qualitative Health Research, 12(3), 329-346.