Finding a path in a methodological jungle: a qualitative research of resilience

Qualitative research provides an in-depth understanding of lived experiences. However, these experiences can be hard to apprehend by using just one method of data analysis. A good example is the experience of resilience. In this paper, the authors describe the chain of the decision-making process in the research of the construct of resilience. s The authors justify the implications of a multi-method, pluralistic approach, and show how the triangulation of two or more qualitative methods and integration of several qualitative data analysis methods can improve a deeper understanding of the resilience among people with chronic pain. By combining the thematic analysis, narrative analysis, and critical incident technique, lived experiences can be seen from different perspectives.Therefore, the thematic analysis describes the content and answers to what regarding resilience, the narrative analysis describes the dynamics of resilience, and answers to how, while the critical incident technique clarifies the most significant experience and the answers to why changes happen. This integrative approach could be used in the analysis of other psychological constructs and can serve as an example of how the rigour of qualitative research could be provided.

Automated summary

This paper illustrates the importance of using a multi-method, pluralistic approach in qualitative research to obtain a deeper understanding of resilience among people with chronic pain. By combining thematic analysis, narrative analysis, and critical incident technique, the authors demonstrate how different perspectives can be obtained and different questions regarding resilience can be answered.