Conclusiones Parciales

Data analysis applied the inductive approach that involves the collection of data and exploration of themes (Glaser & Strauss, 1967; Strauss &Cobin, 1998).

The inductive approach is necessary in this case because the study does not commence with a clearly defined theoretical framework, but relationships are identified between data and questions are developed and tested by means of theoretical propositions. However, the research begins with a clearly defined research question and objectives that may change based on the nature of data collected. The data collection and analysis processes play a crucial role in theory development.

The data collected from the participants needs to be analysed to derive useful meanings and develop theory. Since the data was qualitative, the analyses involve the application of qualitative data analysis procedures that include deductive and inductive approaches. Using these procedures, a variety of analyses

were performed ranging from simple categorization of responses to the identification of relationships among the categories. The complex nature of qualitative data necessitates that the data is summarised and categorised to facilitate meaningful analysis.

The research data, which was audio recorded, needed to be prepared for analysis through transcription. Transcribing required that the words of the interviewees be recorded into text exactly as they were uttered. In this regard, the researcher utilized the services of a professional transcriptionist to transcribe the audio interviews verbatim. While this reduced the amount of time required to transcribe all the audio interviews, errors could arise that could affect the findings adversely. To avoid possible errors, crosschecking the transcripts and audio interview enables the researcher to know the accuracy of the transcripts. Being bilingual, the researcher translated the Arabic version of the transcripts into English and re-translated the English version of the transcripts to Arabic in order to maintain the accuracy of the information. Additionally, the researcher consulted a bilingual translator to assess the transcripts to affirm the accuracy of the translation.

The researcher saved the translated transcripts in external memoryand sought help from research team when needed. NVivo (version 10) were used to analysis the data. Grounded theory tools were used, including constant comparison, theoretical sampling, memos, and field notes. Each transcript was analysed to determine various concepts, which were clustered into codes. Coding was conducted based on context whereby the transcripts were coded into respective themes in relation to the literature and data (Burns, Cross &Maycock, 2010; Burns, Maycock, Cross & Brown, 2008). The categories represented groups of concepts whose names were derived from the words of the research participants to indicate, at a higher level of abstraction, the patterns in data (Strauss & Corbin, 1998). Subsequent analyses involved constant comparison analysis of concepts and categories and refining the categories by adding more information to the categories in use or forming new categories. The researcher then assessed the patterns of relationships among the categories and sub-categories. To refine, link, and conceptualise the various categories, various coding procedures were applied

throughout the data analysis, including open, axial, and selective coding (Strauss

&Cobin, 1998).

Open coding involves disaggregating data into units, examining the units, and identifying the underlying codes. Comparative analysis was applied in finding, naming, and developing concepts. In this regard, each transcript was carefully assessed to identify the thoughts, feelings, actions, and other interactions that occur among male T2DM patients during self-management and self-care.

These concepts facilitated the development of initial codes to capture meanings, with initial codes having similar concepts being grouped into enveloping categories. Axial coding was used to assess the relationships among the categories and to develop a model that connects all the data. To derive a meaningful glimpse of social reality of the participants, selective coding was performed. Selective coding involves integrating, refining, and organizing categories around a core category. According to Strauss and Cobin (1998), the core category represents the study’s main theme and may have meaningful relationships with other categories.

Further, the researcher used diagrams and memos to aid in the analysis. Besides facilitating documentation of the analysis process, these analytic tools are useful in coding, for instance, memos provide clarifications for various questions during axial and selective coding while diagrams illustrate the relationships among the categories and sub-categories during open coding (Strauss &Cobin, 1998).

Transferability of the data was enhanced by development of themes through ground theory (Bryman, 2004). The researcher, under the guidance of the supervisors, cross-referenced the theme nodes as they emerged. This gives the researcher a better ground to develop knowledge of themes within the data (Glaser, 1992; Thorne, 2000). In addition, cross-referencing with the supervisors helped to avoid bias in the researcher’s interpretations of categories by ensuring that the meanings are those given by the research participants. The trustworthiness of the research was based on credibility, which pertains to the participants’ views about the truthfulness of the findings. This was ascertained by returning to a few participants (n=5) to validate that the categories accurately depicted their experiences. Importantly, the researcher enhanced the audit ability of the research by providing a full account of the research process. By logically and sequentially applying the grounded theory methodology and providing detailed, accurate

descriptions of the study, it is intended for the researcher to understand the process and judge the study’s suitability to their practice and theory development.

Further, the viewpoints and assumptions of the researcher concerning self-management and self-care practices of T2DM patients in Saudi Arabia could not be overlooked. As an insider, the values, beliefs and experiences of the researcher could influence the analysis of data; therefore, the researcher was reflexive to make the research the main focus of inquiry (Hsiung, 2010; Ortlipp, 2008).