Materials

A semi structured interview schedule was utilised (appendix F) as recommended for IPA methodology (Smith et al. 2011). This was developed to use a flexible, non- leading, open ended framework for questioning to allow the participant to lead the interview with the information and experiences most important to them. Questions were designed with the consideration of the research aims, existing information in the literature and liaison with the supervision team.

70 2.3.4. Procedure.

2.3.4.1. Ethics.

The research was designed in concordance with guidance by the British

Psychological Society (BPS, 2010). Ethical approval was gained from Coventry University and a NHS Research Ethics Committee (Appendix G). The study was registered with the NHS Research and Development (R & D) departments of Coventry and Warwickshire and Worcestershire.

2.3.4.2. Recruitment

Two National Health Service mental health teams were involved in recruitment of participants. Potential participants who were identified by their psychologist as fitting the inclusion criteria were provided with an information pack. These included a participant information sheet (Appendix I) and details of how to opt into the study by contacting the researcher. A total of seven potential participants contacted the researcher. After telephone contact with potential participants, six of the potential participants decided to participate. Informed consent was ensured by providing the participant with ethically approved information about the study.

2.3.4.3. Interview Procedure

Interviews took place either where the participant received their Bipolar Disorder related care or in their own home depending on participant preference. Participants were provided with the participant information sheet to review once more and given an opportunity to ask the researcher any questions. Written consent was then

71

minutes and were audio recorded. Following the interview participants were given the opportunity to ask the researcher any further questions.

2.3.5. Analysis.

Following each interview, audio recordings were transcribed verbatim. Identifying information was removed and participants provided with a pseudonym. This data was then analysed according to the IPA method detailed by Smith et al. (2011). An excerpt of a transcript with initial coding is included (Appendix K), as well as the themes developed and clustered for one participant (appendix L). This process was repeated for all participants before patterns across cases were considered and overall themes elicited. These were then clustered to provide sub-ordinate themes within super ordinate themes.

2.3.5.1. Validity of the Study

Yardley (2008) describes criteria for demonstrating the validity of qualitative work. These include recognising and considering the role of the researcher, transparency of analysis, coherence across aim, method and analysis, and reflexivity throughout the research process. These criteria have been used throughout the research to enhance the validity of the study. All stages of the analysis were discussed with the research supervisors who are experienced with IPA methodology and the participant group.

2.3.5.2. The Researcher’s Position

The researcher was a trainee clinical psychologist who had no prior involvement with the NHS departments involved in the recruitment to the study. The hermeneutic underpinning of IPA methodology requires the researcher to be committed to

72

interpretative engagement with the data. Two methods were used to bracket the researcher’s assumptions during the analytical process. Firstly a bracketing journal was kept in order to explore and note issues which may affect neutrality. Secondly, a bracketing interview, where the researcher answers their own interview schedule, was conducted with a psychologist colleague familiar with bracketing interviews. This was used to generate a heightened awareness of assumptions held by the researcher about the type of answers that may be generated by participants (Rolls & Relf, 2006). Prior to the research starting the researcher anticipated that the

experience of mania would have both positive and negative aspects. The researcher felt that some of the positive aspects may be an increase in creativity, while the negative may be a loss of control. This is possibly as a result of the common conceptions and presentations of people with Bipolar Disorder in popular culture around the time the research took place (Spring 2013). As the researcher was trained in clinical interview skills as opposed to research interview skills there may have been a possibility that her interview style, manner and personality influenced the participants’ response styles. The researcher acknowledged this potential influence

and considered this as part of her analysis.

2.4. Results

Following analysis of the data, three super ordinate themes emerged; ‘if you could bottle it and sell it’, ‘the darker side of mania’ and ‘Loss- past, present and future’. These and the subthemes are detailed in Table 2.2 and discussed narratively with consideration to the convergence and divergence within themes.

73 Table 2.2

Superordinate and subordinate themes.

Super ordinate Theme Subordinate Themes Theme 1 If you could bottle it and sell it… It’s like a drug

Becoming super human Theme 2 The Darker Side of Mania Never fitting in

Fear of stigma Control and change Culture and mania Theme 3 Loss – past, present and future Loss of the future

Who am I? Loss of family