ASPECTOS GENERALES
Bloque 5. Nuevos materiales.
3.9.7 Summarising the data analysis processes
Braun and Clarke (2013) liken the development of themes to quilt making, inviting the reader to imagine a patchwork quilt comprising six separately-patterned squares. They link each of these squares to a theme in thematic analysis, whereby the pieces of material that ‘create those patterns are akin to codes’ (ibid, p.231). The six squares are then combined to ‘create an overall patchwork pattern for the quilt’ (ibid, italics in original). However, they fail to make a distinction between creating a patchwork pattern and quilting, which are two separate processes. This arises when they suggest that:
It’s your role as analyst to work out what piece of fabric (codes) to use, and the best way to combine those pieces to create certain patterns (themes), that together produce the overall patchwork quilt (analysis) (ibid, p.231)
The problem with this metaphor is that it does not proceed beyond the patchwork stage, but purports, nevertheless, to be quilting. The misappropriation of a quilting metaphor for the development of themes is not unusual in qualitative analysis; see for example the introductions to Denzin and Lincoln (2017, 2011 and 2005). In drawing together my approach to data analysis, I have ‘corrected’ the quilting metaphor by extending it because in order to proceed from a patchwork pattern to a quilt, there are other stages that need to take place. First, you need some strong backing which must be expertly stretched over a quilting frame because a good quality quilt requires a good backing that provides the structural stability for the rest of the quilt (Brunner, 2012, np). Second, you require ‘batting’ or ‘wadding’, which is the lining material between the back of the quilt and the patchwork-patterned top. However, a ‘genuine quilt is the front, backing fabric and batting’ (Sedgwick, 2018, emphasis added); further, it is both a process and product. Modifying, extending and elaborating on the quilting metaphor, here is a summary of the steps that I undertook:
The many months of data familiarisation, thinking, memo-writing, coding, reading, theme generation, and refinement, were represented by the quilting frame over which the study was stretched.
The backing material for the quilt was made up of the research questions.
The patchwork pattern comprised themes in the form of pieces of fabric onto which were stitched, where applicable, further sub-themes. Care was taken to
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ensure that my candidate themes provided a good fit with the coded data and the overall data set. The themes were assembled on the patchwork.
The themes, with their attendant sub-themes, were stitched together into a patchwork pattern to form the narrative. The codes were contained within the batting and, although invisible, fulfilled the function of supporting and giving substance to the themes and sub-themes with which they were associated. The quilting process (analysis) then took place. This entailed stitching together the
three main components: patchwork, batting and backing material; that is, themes, codes – now invisible but giving structure – and the research questions. The final stitching followed the outlines of the themes and sub-themes, bringing them further into relief (a fine-grained analysis with an easy-to-obtain overview) and securing all three components together into a coherent whole.
3.10 Some concluding thoughts
An ongoing theme of this chapter has been the elucidation of dilemmas faced before and during the research, together with their resolution. Guiding the positive outcomes that were achieved was the study’s conceptual framework. Careful consideration has been given to the framework’s underpinning philosophical assumptions and their role in shaping the data-generation, data-analysis, and theme-development activities within the reflexive school of TA. The complexities of my positionality as a quasi-insider have been examined, especially in relation to working the hyphen on the insider-outsider continuum. My dual role of researcher and co-constructor of knowledge has been subject to scrutiny. Here the focus concentrated on active approaches to data generation allied to engaged scholarship, in which memoing as a tool for thinking played an extensive role. Finally, considerable attention has been given to the ethical framing of the study through the carefully- orchestrated interplay between procedural ethics and ethics in practice. It is to the outcomes of the processes discussed in this chapter that I now turn, namely the themes that were generated.
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4 Generated Findings: An Overview
4.1 Introduction
As noted in sections 3.5, 3.8.3 and 3.8.4, the emphasis throughout the study was on the ‘construction of empirical material’ (Alvesson and Kärreman, 2011, p.45), rather than the mining of uncontaminated nuggets of knowledge (Brinkmann and Kvale, 2015, p.57). In line with this perspective, from their seminal article onwards, Braun and Clarke (2006, p.80) have stressed that the idea of themes ‘emerging’ or being ‘discovered’ does not take into account the active role of the researcher. In their most recent work, they have reiterated strongly that themes are generated and not found (Clarke and Braun, 2018); indeed, the generation of themes is, for them, ‘not a trivial concern [but] central to the underlying philosophy of reflexive TA’ (Braun, Clarke and Hayfield, 2019b, np). Within this study, based on reflexive TA, as researcher I was active in the generation of themes, often in collaboration with the TE. It is for these reasons that I have employed the term ‘generated findings’ as part of the heading for this chapter.
My point of departure for what follows consists of providing a summary of the themes outlined in 3.9.6. This is in line with Braun and Clarke (2006, p.92), who suggest that, prior to the detailed written analysis of each individual theme, a summary is provided concerning the basic ‘story’ that each theme tells, indicating how it fits into the overall research narrative. This process acts rather like an ‘expository advance organizer’ (Gurlitt, 2012, p.149) or as an ‘abstract’ (Terry el al., 2017, p.31) for each theme. But in addition to providing a sense of direction for each stage in the analytic story, my purpose here was also to indicate, where applicable, how the themes were co-constructed with the TE. Here I was working with a participant who possessed a strong analytical penchant for problematising her own teaching ─ ethically, empirically, and reflexively. In providing this overview, I also endeavour to elucidate how each theme was not only distinctive, but also displayed a strong internal coherence around a central organising concept. And whilst there should be minimal ‘bleeding’ of codes between themes (Terry et al., 2017, p.28), so as to reduce the possibility of duplication, clear links should exist between them in ways which demonstrate how they work together to produce the research narrative. When citing sections of the empirical material, I use the following referencing system that relates to the data-generation activities outlined in 3.8.1:
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Transcript description Code
Debriefing interviews from September/October teaching period D1 Debriefing interviews from January teaching period D2 Interviews with TE in October, December, February and June TE1-TE4
Focus groups in January plus ST-chosen pseudonym, e.g. Marie (F1) Pseudonym + F1 Focus groups in June plus ST-chosen pseudonym, e.g. Audrey (F2) Pseudonym + F2 Individual ST interviews plus ST-chosen pseudonym, e.g. Scott (I) Pseudonym + I
Following on from the thematic overview, I then explore each theme in greater depth. For each theme I adopt the same format, namely a brief introduction followed by the analysis. I conclude the chapter with a summary of the key insights derived from the analysis process.