Recommend a Qualitative Design

Everleigh

NarrativeAnalysisApproaches.pdf

Home >Psychology homework help >Recommend a Qualitative Design

C H A P T E R 5

Narrative Analysis

Approaches Cigdem Esin

Introduction

This chapter is about using narrative analysis. Like the other approaches described in this book, narrative analysis is an umbrella term that covers a plurality of methods. The narrative analysis approach takes stories as the unit of analysis. The stories are usually gathered from the accounts of participants and each approach focuses on a different feature of the story. Features may be the structure (e.g. Labov, 1972), the content (e.g. Riessman, 1993; Lieblich, Tuval-Mashiach & Zilber, 1998) or the performative function (e.g. Riessman, 1993; Mishler, 1995; Denzin, 2001), for example. The chapter begins by describing the history of narrative analysis. It illustrates its migration from other social science disciplines to psychology. It then describes ontological and epistemological frameworks in which the different methods of narrative analysis can be located. The chapter provides detailed des- criptions of analytical models used in narrative research and discusses the appli- cations of each approach. It provides guidelines for their use and highlights the relevance of the research interview to this approach. Several research examples illustrating use of the different models are included.

History of narrative research

There are two parallel academic moves in the history of social sciences in which narrative research can be located (Andrews et al., 2004). The fi rst is the humanist tradition within western sociology and psychology. This tradition is person-centred; it treats storytellers and listeners as unifi ed and singular. Researchers with humanist approaches paid attention to individual case studies, biographies and life stories. The second move emerged in connection with the postmodern ontology that emphasises the role of multiple subjectivities in the construction of narratives. Researchers in the second tradition are concerned with meanings produced in narratives, including unconscious ones. They pay attention to social conditions and power relations that shape the narratives (Squire, Andrews & Tamboukou, 2008: 3).

qualitative research methods - final.pdf 102 14/06/2011 14:07

Frost, N. (2011). Ebook : Qualitative research methods in psychology: combining core approaches. ProQuest Ebook Central <a onclick=window.open('http://ebookcentral.proquest.com','_blank') href='http://ebookcentral.proquest.com' target='_blank' style='cursor: pointer;'>http://ebookcentral.proquest.com</a> Created from ashford-ebooks on 2021-08-19 17:32:55.

C o p yr

ig h t ©

2 0 1 1 . M

cG ra

w -H

ill E

d u ca

tio n . A

ll ri g h ts

r e se

rv e d .

Ontology 93

Different approaches to narratives and narrative analysis have developed within these two traditions. The focus of narrative analysis was the linguistic structure and content of narratives in the models located in the humanist tradition (e.g. Labov, 1972; Gee, 1991). The focus of analysis has shifted to the act of storytelling and construction of narratives through interaction in the models situated in the postmodern tradition (e.g. Riessman, 1993).

The use of narratives and narrative method in research positioned in both fi rst and second moves has spread through a wide a range of social science disciplines over the past three decades. A burgeoning literature on narrative and narrative research practice has been published in various disciplines including sociology, history, anthropology and folklore, and sociology of education. Psychology is one of the disciplines in which the use of narrative methodological tools has gained momentum since the early 1980s. However, the interest in the history of narrative tradition in psychology can be traced back to the developments in studies of personality and life-span development using biography and case studies at the beginning of the twentieth century (Hiles & Cermák, 2008). The foundations for the new fi eld of psychology were established by Theodore Sarbin’s Narrative Psychology: The Storied Nature of Human Conduct, which was published in 1986. In the introduction to this book, Sarbin argued that narrative analysis as a model of contextualism could be used as a method in psychology in understanding human action because narrative analysis considers the meaning of stories as created within specifi c historical contexts. This approach also integrates the effect of time, place of telling and audience into analysis. The fi eld of narrative psychology has been developed with the contribution of multiple theoretical and methodological perspectives on narrative and narrative methods (for examples see Emerson & Frosh, 2004; Hiles & Cermák, 2008).

Ontology

The assumptions that narrative analysis makes about the nature of social reality lie in the understanding and use of ‘narrative’ within this approach. The defi nition of ‘narrative’ varies depending on the discipline and approach to narratives.

What is narrative?

Narratives are stories with a clear sequential order, that connect events in a meaningful way for a defi nite audience. Story and narrative are often used interchangeably. Sequence is necessary for narrative. A narrative always responds to the question ‘And then what happened?’

Narratives are powerful forms of giving meaning to experience. Mattingly and Garro argue that ‘narrative mediates between an inner world of thought-feeling and an outer world of observable actions and states of affairs’ (2000: 1). Events do not

qualitative research methods - final.pdf 103 14/06/2011 14:07

C o p yr

ig h t ©

2 0 1 1 . M

cG ra

w -H

ill E

d u ca

tio n . A

ll ri g h ts

r e se

rv e d .

94 Chapter 5 Narrative Analysis Approaches

present themselves as narratives. It is through the experience of an event that it becomes a story. This means that the retelling of an event is always retrospective – the narrator already knows the ending.

Narratives are seen as the vehicle through which we talk about our world, lives and selves. Narratives do not simply express some independent, individual reality. Rather they help to construct the reality within relationships between the narrator and their external world. Narratives are produced in social interactions between individuals; they are not privately created (Smith & Sparkes, 2008).

Atkinson, Coffrey and Delamont (2003: 117) argue that, although people construct their own lives and those of others through biographical accounts, these accounts do not tell us unmediated personal experience. While personalised over time, stories are drawn from a limited repertoire of available narrative resources. Somers (1994) calls them public narratives. These are ‘narratives attached to cultural and institutional formations larger than the single individual’ (1994: 619). According to Somers (1994), narratives should not be considered ‘natural’ or as springing from the minds of individuals. People likewise are not free to fabricate narratives at will. While producing narratives of their lives, individuals use public narratives available in their culture. These public narratives are also used by people who listen to individual stories. They function as common sources that facilitate the communication between the storytellers and listeners.

Narrative analysis, therefore, perceives narratives as creative means of exploring and describing realities, which are arranged and bound in time. While interpreting the individual narratives, analysts take into account the individual and cultural resources people use to construct their narratives, as well as the interpersonal or organisational functions of narratives (Atkinson et al., 2003: 117). Narrative analysis is not applicable to all research topics. If you intend to use narrative analysis in your research, you need to remember that the focus of your analysis will be narratives/ stories. Topics suited to narrative analysis include various aspects of identity, individual experiences of psychological processes, interpersonal and intimate relationships, experiences of body, beauty and health.

Example research questions

What are generational differences in the experiences of teenage pregnancy? How does masculinity infl uence the success of boys in education? Does gender have a role in the transformation of ethnic identities? How do former drug users construct the self in their narratives of rehabilitation?

Source: adapted from the dissertation proposals of fi nal-year Psychosocial Studies students at the University of East London.

qualitative research methods - final.pdf 104 14/06/2011 14:07

C o p yr

ig h t ©

2 0 1 1 . M

cG ra

w -H

ill E

d u ca

tio n . A

ll ri g h ts

r e se

rv e d .

Why do narrative analysis? 95

Approaches in narrative analysis differ on the core questions of ‘why’ and ‘how’ the stories under investigation are constructed and told. ‘What’ is told in stories is also important in the analysis. As I will describe in the following paragraphs, understanding the differences between epistemological approaches is the fi rst step in narrative analysis as this will guide the narrative analyst in choosing the relevant questions to ask the data.

There are two key epistemological approaches to narrative analysis: the naturalist and the constructivist approaches (Gubrium & Holstein, 1997). ‘Naturalist’ approaches use rich descriptions of people in their natural habitats. For example, this approach is applicable to research that aims to explore interpersonal relations in specifi c conditions (e.g. trauma cases). ‘Constructivist’ approaches focus on how a sense of social order is created through talk and interaction. These are useful to consider how identities are constructed in various psychosocial contexts (e.g. in education, in families), for example.

Why do narrative analysis?

Epistemology

Narrative analysis does not only function as a method through which researchers explore how people remember, structure and story their experiences. It is also a process that can lead researchers to understanding the complexities of human selves, lives and relations. This means it is useful to illuminate both the individual experiences and social processes that shape these experiences. Narrative analysis provides the analyst with useful tools to integrate the individual details and complexity in the construction of stories rather than analysing these stories under predetermined categories (Andrews et al., 2004).

Narrative research enables researchers to see multiple and sometimes contra- dictory layers of meaning, to reconstruct meanings through linking these layers, and to explore and understand more about individual and social processes. By working with narratives, researchers investigate multiple aspects in the construction and function of stories.

Questions to explore the multiple functions of stories (Riessman, 1993 ; Squire et al., 2008 )

How are stories structured? Who produces stories? By what means (e.g. discursive, performative) are stories constructed? What are the socio-historical contexts in which stories are produced and consumed? How do stories work in these specifi c socio-historical contexts? How are stories silenced and/or contested?

qualitative research methods - final.pdf 105 14/06/2011 14:07

C o p yr

ig h t ©

2 0 1 1 . M

cG ra

w -H

ill E

d u ca

tio n . A

ll ri g h ts

r e se

rv e d .

96 Chapter 5 Narrative Analysis Approaches

Both naturalist and constructivist approaches are primarily concerned with people’s lives and experiences. However, ‘while the naturalist view is that the social world is in some sense “out there”, an external reality available to be observed and described by the researcher, the constructivist view is that the social world is constantly “in the making” ‘ (Elliott, 2005: 18). Therefore, understanding the production of the social world, which shapes narratives, is central in the constructivist approach.

The naturalistic and constructivist approaches ask different questions in the process of understanding narratives. Table 5.1 lists the questions that each approach asks while analysing narratives.

Table 5.1 Questions asked by the two approaches

Naturalist approach : focuses on ‘what’ questions

Constructivist approach : focuses on ‘how’ questions

What happened? How do story tellers make sense of their experiences?

What experiences have people had? How do story tellers talk about their experiences?

What did people do at that particular time? What does it mean to story tellers?

How do story tellers position themselves while telling stories about their lives? How are multiple stories told in the research context? How does interpersonal and /or social interaction shape the construction of stories?

The discursive positioning of storytellers and listeners is important in the constructivist approach. Davies and Harre (1990: 46) argue that it is through discursive practices that people position themselves. According to them, storytellers draw upon both cultural and personal resources in constructing the present moment in telling their stories. Narratives are constructed within a special conversation that includes both their cultural resources and the interaction between the people who are producing these narratives. A subject position incorporates both a conceptual repertoire and a location. Having once taken up a particular position as one’s own, a person inevitably sees the world from that position, and in terms of the particular images, metaphors, storylines and concepts that are made relevant within the particular discursive practice in which they are positioned (Davies & Harre, 1990: 46). ‘Positioning’ and ‘subject position’, in contrast, permit individuals to think of themselves as a choosing subject, locating themselves in conversations according to those narrative forms with which they are familiar, and bringing to those narratives their own subjective histories through which they have learnt metaphors, characters and plot (Davies & Harre, 1990: 51). In narrative analysis, it is important to identify the positions from which storytellers construct their stories because these positions are keys to understanding how various elements are put together in response to the available cultural resources and interpersonal interactions.

Mishler (1995) draws a framework for understanding the variety of approaches in narrative analysis. He offers a typology based on three aspects of narratives:

qualitative research methods - final.pdf 106 14/06/2011 14:07

C o p yr

ig h t ©

2 0 1 1 . M

cG ra

w -H

ill E

d u ca

tio n . A

ll ri g h ts

r e se

rv e d .

How to do narrative analysis 97

representation, structure and contextual features. In this typology, Mishler (1995) argues that some of the approaches focus on how the narrative represents the order of actual event/episode. These approaches particularly aim to explore the tension between the actual temporal order of events and the order in which these events are retold. Other approaches may be more interested in the structure or form of the narrative. These approaches aim to understand how a story is put together. The third category of approaches focus on the cultural, social, psychological and interactional contexts in which narratives are produced, told and consumed. While providing this typology for narrative analysis, Mishler (1995) emphasises his concern that there is no single ‘best’ way to analyse narratives, that narrative researchers need to pursue their own approaches while being open to explore what they may learn from other approaches.

The following section discusses how to do narrative analysis. It aims to provide descriptions of some ways in which narrative research is conducted, and describes commonly used analytical models. These models are shaped by the epistemologi- cal approaches to narratives summarised in Mishler’s (1995) typology.

‘Narratives do not speak for themselves or have unanalysed merit; they require interpretation when used as data in social research’. (Riessman, 2005: 2)

How to do narrative analysis

Narrative analysis considers how the narrator, the leading character of the told story, makes meaning of her/his life and/or experiences while telling their story. The analyst makes a systematic interpretation of these meaning-making processes by considering various aspects of the story being told.

Narrative analysis considers the structure, content and context of narratives. While it is possible to analyse only one of these aspects, applications of narrative analysis often integrate all of them. This is because it is important to understand the narrative process through which meaning is created and mediated as whole. For example, when narrative analysts choose to analyse the content of narratives, they describe the structure and context as well, because the ways, time and context in which stories are told shape their content.

As we have seen, narrative analysis refers to a family of methods. Each technique interprets texts that have in common a storied form (Riessman, 2008: 11). Models of narrative analysis offer different focuses and questions to analysts. Each model is shaped by different yet connected theoretical discussions. Table 5.2 illustrates some narrative analysis models.

Depending on the research questions and collected data, multiple models can be combined so as to capture multiple layers in the construction of narratives (e.g. Frost, 2009b). It should be noted that there are no strict guidelines that dictate to narrative researchers how to apply these analytical models. Depending on the interpretation of the model and specifi c research context, researchers apply each model in varied ways.

qualitative research methods - final.pdf 107 14/06/2011 14:07

C o p yr

ig h t ©

2 0 1 1 . M

cG ra

w -H

ill E

d u ca

tio n . A

ll ri g h ts

r e se

rv e d .

98 Chapter 5 Narrative Analysis Approaches

The following sections will fi rst briefl y discuss the data-gathering and preparation processes in narrative research. Then they will summarise some of the main analytical models and basic guidelines that can help narrative analysts to constitute their own analytical path in working with narratives.

Sampling and recruitment

In common with other qualitative research approaches, sampling criteria are set by the researcher. The characteristics of research participants should be relevant to the research questions and aims. The number of participants in narrative research practice varies depending on the research topic. For example, for their research on young athletes’ perceptions of self-ageing, Phoenix and Sparkes (2008) set the criteria as age and involvement in team or individual sports, and selected 22 people.

It should be noted that narrative methods are not appropriate for research conducted with a large number of respondents. The construction of rich, detailed narratives within the research context is the key to a good narrative analysis. Therefore, the number of participants is not a major concern. Narrative researchers often tend to interview each participant multiple times so as to capture the changes in the meaning-making processes in narratives. For example, in some oral history

Table 5.2 Modes of narrative analysis

Models of narrative analysis Focus of analysis

Structural model (Labov, 1972) The structure of stories The ways in which in which stories are told

Thematic model (Riessman, 2008) The content of stories The themes around which stories are told

Interactional /performative model (Riessman, 1993; Mishler, 1995; Denzin, 2001)

The contextual features that shape the construction of narratives How the meaning is collaboratively created through interaction between story tellers and listeners

Problem-based question

Consider yourself a narrative researcher who plans research to explore experiences of divorce among middle-aged men in London. What will be your criteria for the selection of participants? How many participants will you recruit for this research? What is the best way to approach possible participants?

qualitative research methods - final.pdf 108 14/06/2011 14:07

C o p yr

ig h t ©

2 0 1 1 . M

cG ra

w -H

ill E

d u ca

tio n . A

ll ri g h ts

r e se

rv e d .

Gathering data : narrative inter viewing 99

projects, narrative researchers work with fi ve participants. They conduct multiple interviews with these participants over fi ve years.

Decisions about sampling and recruitment are not limited to setting criteria about how research participants will be selected. The initial contacts and con- versations about participation in research before the actual interview also need care. Possible participants may be approached either by researchers themselves or through gatekeepers. At this initial stage, it is explained clearly to potential participants, who are interested in being part of the research, what the research is about, what method(s) will be used to collect and analyse data, and how they are expected to contribute to answer the research question(s).

Ethics

Ethical considerations need extra care in narrative research in which the research process itself is integrated into the analysis. Similar to other social science research practice, researchers should follow the ethical guidelines of the university and places where they recruit participants and conduct research. Confi dentiality statements and information sheets should include detailed information about research questions and aims as well as the rights of participants. You need to get approval from the ethics board of your university before you start interviewing participants. The written consent of participants should be secured.

As narrative research focuses on stories about people’s lives and selves, confi - dentiality is of particular importance. Participants should be assured that personal identifi ers will be removed or changed from the written data and presentations of analysis. Sharing transcripts, analysis and publications with research participants is common practice in narrative research. It is part of the conversation between researchers and participants in the co-construction of narratives.

Researchers have obligations and responsibilities in considering the effects of the research both on the participants and wider communities. Narrative research is no exception. Critical and systematic refl exivity about all layers of the research process, and the revelation of power relations between researchers and participants in analysis and presentations are part of these responsibilities.

Gathering data : narrative interviewing

Narrative researchers from various disciplines analyse narratives that are elicited from a wide range of sources. However, interviews are central to much research in social sciences. Over the past two decades, there has been a proliferation of discussions about the variety of approaches to interviewing methods and how to analyse interviews (see Elliott, 2005: 18). The link between in-depth interviewing and narratives has been part of these discussions. Similar to semi-structured interviews, narrative interviewing uses open, non-leading questions. Narrative interviews give priority to the elicitation of participants’ stories with minimum intervention from interviewers.

qualitative research methods - final.pdf 109 14/06/2011 14:07

C o p yr

ig h t ©

2 0 1 1 . M

cG ra

w -H

ill E

d u ca

tio n . A

ll ri g h ts

r e se

rv e d .

100 Chapter 5 Narrative Analysis Approaches

In his book Research Interviewing: Context and Narrative (1986), Mishler (1986: 54–55) argues that interviews go beyond participants’ responses to interviewers’ questions within research contexts. Rather, the interview might be defi ned as a game, which is constituted over a complex interaction of responses. This accumula- tive process turns into collaborative meaning-making rather than simply imposing or receiving the interviewer’s framework of meanings. Therefore, interviewing and the analysis of interviews require ‘close attentiveness to what interviewers and respondents say to each other, and how they say it’ (1986: 76). Interviews that view the interviewing as a participatory site in which meaning is co-produced by participants and interviewers are defi ned as ‘narrative interviews’ (Mishler, 1986).

Questions to be asked

Developing an interview schedule is one of the fi rst steps in narrative interviewing. Although narratives can emerge in every kind of conversation, even in answers to yes/no questions, certain open-ended questions are more suitable to receive narrative responses. The narrative interview can begin with an open invitation: ‘Tell me about your life …’ or ‘Tell me what happened … and then what happened.’ This particular phrasing is less restrictive than a question such as ‘When did this event happen?’ Narrative interviews can involve more topic-orientated, open-ended questions such as ‘How did you decide to go for further education?’ or ‘Tell me about your relationship with your parents.’

As Elliott (2005: 28–29) discusses, unlike the common expectation that narratives emerge in the context of interviews naturally, there are situations when researchers fail to get narratives from respondents. This is usually caused by problems with the effectiveness of questions. These should be simple and straightforward. Listening to participants’ responses is the key in narrative interviewing. Sometimes even a very open-ended question may not help to produce narratives; events may be summarised and given little signifi cance. Further questions that aim to encourage the participant to unpack the layers of the story should be asked in interviews.

Interview interaction

Emerson and Frosh (2004: 26) argue that the power between the interviewer and participants should be balanced well in interview practice. While interviewing places the interviewer in a powerful position to ask questions, this should not disempower participants. They have the right to choose how they are going to answer the questions, what they are going to tell the interviewer.

Mishler (1986: 118–119) argues that empowering respondents through re- structuring the interviewer–interviewee relationship is an important part of the interview design, to ‘encourage respondents to fi nd and speak in their own “voices” ’. The respondents are likely to tell stories when the balance of power is shifted between interviewers and interviewees. One of the components of restructuring

qualitative research methods - final.pdf 110 14/06/2011 14:07

C o p yr

ig h t ©

2 0 1 1 . M

cG ra

w -H

ill E

d u ca

tio n . A

ll ri g h ts

r e se

rv e d .

Gathering data: narrative interviewing 101

this relationship is asking less restrictive, open-ended questions. The other component is interviewers being attentive listeners.

Narratives can easily be suppressed if interviewers interrupt accounts that might develop into narratives, if interviewers do not respond to a response, or they appear not to be listening to interviewees. Narratives can be elicited in interviews where interviewers allow interviewees to continue telling until they indicate that they have fi nished answering. Attentive listening in narrative interviews includes discerning interviewees’ silences in their responses to questions. These silences can give interviewers important clues about what or what not to ask in interview conversations.

Interviewers should be aware of the fact that interviewees have their own agendas and understanding of the interview interaction, that they cannot control this interaction. We should remember that the aim is to invite participants to tell their stories in their own way, to express their own views, which may be different from others’ views. Interviewers’ role in the interview relationship is neither to judge nor to approve any story and/or personality of the respondent. Instead, they should focus attention on and give non-judgemental validation of participants’ stories (Bloom, 1998: 18). This validation is not limited to respecting participants’ ways of telling stories; encouraging participants to collaborate in interviews is part of the interviewer’s role.

Narrative interviewing provides a space for researchers to use the idea of co- construction of the meaning in a creative way. Contemporary researchers go beyond the classical question–answer interview style and expand the interview conversations by using other tools such as visual material (e.g. videos, artwork produced by participants, photographs taken by participants or participants’ responses to others’ photographs).

Transcribing

The transcription of interviews is part of narrative analysis. As Riessman (1993) states, the choices of what to include, how to structure and present the transcribed text ‘have serious implications for how a reader will understand the narrative’ (1993: 12). The act of transcription is an interpretive practice that is shaped by the assumptions of the researcher (Mishler, 1991). The transcription of interviews is carried out in multiple rounds. Riessman (1993: 56) advises to begin with a ‘rough transcription’. This is a fi rst draft of the entire interview, and includes all the words and other main features of the conversation such as crying, laughing and pauses. The interview can be re-transcribed to add the shorter pauses, false starts, emphases and utterances such as ‘uhm’. Researchers also utilise fi eldnotes about the interview interactions so as to include the interactional details into transcriptions. These notes are very useful in the transcription and analysis process as they help the researcher to locate the narrative sections in the whole interview (see Frost, 2009b).

qualitative research methods - final.pdf 111 14/06/2011 14:07

C o p yr

ig h t ©

2 0 1 1 . M

cG ra

w -H

ill E

d u ca

tio n . A

ll ri g h ts

r e se

rv e d .

102 Chapter 5 Narrative Analysis Approaches

Reflexivity and positioning of the researcher in narrative analysis

The positioning of researchers, both in interview conversations and in the analytical process, is particularly important in understanding, analysing and pre- senting narratives. Ruthellen Josselson (2004: 3–5) defi nes two distinct positions for

Example interview schedule

This is the schedule that I used in my research on the construction of sexuality in the narratives of educated young women. I interviewed young women aged between 18 and 25 with university education. One of my aims was to explore the generational differences in telling sexual stories. Therefore, I also interviewed the mothers of younger participants. I asked the same questions to both groups.

Introduction

In this section, I introduced my research, what I aimed to explore in this research, how participants would contribute to the research, what I would do to take care of confi dentiality matters. I explained to participants their rights. I clarifi ed that I was open to listen to everything they wanted to tell me; that I was not there to judge them for what they would tell me. Having considered the sensitivity of the research topic (sexual experiences), this clarifi cation was necessary to open up the space for a collaborative interview. I also told the participants that I was ready to answer their questions if they had any.

Questions

Can you tell me about yourself, your life, your family, your friends? Can you remember your initial conversations about sexuality? Who

did you talk to? What did you talk about? Can you tell me the story of your fi rst period? Can you tell me about your relationships and sexual experiences?

Anything that you want to tell me? [To younger participants] What kind of conversation do you have with

your mother about sexual matters? [To mothers] What kind of conversation do you have with your daughter

about sexual matters?

Closure

Is there anything else that you want to talk about? I’d love to listen to you.

Ex am

pl e

qualitative research methods - final.pdf 112 14/06/2011 14:07

C o p yr

ig h t ©

2 0 1 1 . M

cG ra

w -H

ill E

d u ca

tio n . A

ll ri g h ts

r e se

rv e d .

Refl exivit y and positioning of the researcher in narrative analysis 103

narrative analysts. The fi rst is characterised by a willingness to listen and understand meaning in its given form. The analysts in this category aim to present the narratives of storytellers as they are told and highlight meanings that are present in the participants’ story. By contrast, the second position focuses on decoding the meaning while analysing narratives. According to Josselson (2004: 16), this second position recognises the relativity of all narratives. In this approach, the researcher may seek to understand the interrelations of various voices and positions depicted in a narrative, beyond the connections made by the narrator. In such a framework, the narrative analyst’s aim is not re-present the stories of participants as they are told but to offer a different reading of them. While presenting their analysis, narrative analysts clearly distinguish their own voice from that of the participant. For example, while storytellers are recounting their experiences in a story, researchers may be more interested in the confl icting cultural discourses behind the presentation of that story.

The integration of critical and systematic refl exivity in narrative analysis is a way for researchers to position themselves. Refl exivity as a research practice means examination of research decisions such as theoretical assumptions, selection of participants, interview schedules, interviewing, analysing the data and presentation of analysis, as well as the relationship between the researcher and participants. Refl exivity underlines the role of the researcher in the constitution of narratives.

Example (from PQR analysis)

Integrating the analyst’s position into analysis

In my fi rst reading of Liz’s interview transcript, I thought that she did not talk about her body except the lines where she described the baby as a part of her body. Later, I realised that she implicitly talks about her body in between the lines where she tells about the tiring routine of looking after a child. However, even if she implies her body, this is the body of the mother. There might be a few reasons to explain why her body is missing in her narrative. One of them might be the core of the interview, which is her emotional experience of motherhood. Since she focuses on the emotions she might skip the embodied experience.

The other one I can think of is related to my own expectation, which is shaped by my research interests. I work on social construction of sexuality. Therefore the connection between the body and sexuality is one of the fi rst themes I had in mind in analysing data. Probably because of this I found her not telling much about her own body interesting. However, since she voices storylines within motherhood discourse, which portrays mothers as ‘asexual’, it is not surprising not to hear anything about her own body.

Ex am

pl e

qualitative research methods - final.pdf 113 14/06/2011 14:07

C o p yr

ig h t ©

2 0 1 1 . M

cG ra

w -H

ill E

d u ca

tio n . A

ll ri g h ts

r e se

rv e d .

104 Chapter 5 Narrative Analysis Approaches

Data analysis

Basic steps in analysing narratives

1. Situating the epistemological approach

Situating the methodological approach is the fi rst and one of the most important steps in the analysis of narratives. This fi rst step will infl uence the choice of the analytical model as well as the analytical position of the researcher. Research questions and the theoretical framework of the research can help the researcher in his/her decision about whether they are going to situate their analysis within a naturalist or constructivist approach to narratives. As discussed above, these two approaches differ in their understanding of how meaning is created in narratives.

2. Selecting the analytical model(s) to be used

The next step is to decide which analytical model or models will be used in analysing narrative data. Different models of narrative analysis are interested in different features of the narratives and they ask different questions while analysing narratives. Decisions on using singular or plural models in analysing the narratives are informed by the epistemological approach that shapes the research design.

3. Selecting narratives to be analysed

Selecting narratives in the data is important. Even in applications that aim to analyse the data as a whole instead of selecting parts of it, particular narratives can be put under close scrutiny for analytical purposes. The selection can be made by fi rst breaking down the text into segments (sentences and paragraphs), as suggested by Hiles and Cermák (2008: 153). Then segments can each be considered as a self- contained episode in telling a story, as they constitute the micro units of analysis. The selection of these units is determined by the researcher’s analytical strategy.

4. Analysing narratives

The clear and systematic application of one or multiple analytical models is essential in narrative analysis practice. It does not matter which method or methods are employed in generating insight into the structure or function, content, context and impacts of narratives (Willig, 2008: 133). So how do researchers choose? Narrative analysts are aware that the stories located in data are also varied. Storytellers often do not follow structured lines in telling their stories. This variety leaves the analyst with questions concerning the choice of the best analytical model that can preserve and respect the content, meaning and context of stories within which they are constructed.

Structural model

The structural model proposed by Labov and Waletzky (1967/1997) closely examines how the narrative is formed, how different elements in this structure function in personal experience narratives. This model treats personal narratives as a text,

qualitative research methods - final.pdf 114 14/06/2011 14:07

C o p yr

ig h t ©

2 0 1 1 . M

cG ra

w -H

ill E

d u ca

tio n . A

ll ri g h ts

r e se

rv e d .

Data analysis 105

which functions as a representation of past events in the form of a story (Patterson, 2008: 23). The focus of analysis in the structural model is on the way an event is told in a story text.

Labov (1972: 362–363) developed his model on the assumption that stories of events contain narrative clauses. These clauses have a beginning, a middle and an end. But there are other elements of narrative structure found in more fully developed narrative clauses. He developed a six-part model to be used in analysing the structure of narratives (Table 5.4).

Table 5.3 Basic steps in analysing narratives

Step Activity

1. Situating the epistemological approach

Decision on using naturalist or constructivist approach

2. Selecting the analy tical model

Decision on using one or more models of narrative analysis: • structural • thematic • performative

3. Selecting narratives to be analysed

Breaking the narrative into segments /units of analysis

4. Analysing narratives Application of analy tical models so as to explore the multiple layers of meaning

Problem-based question

Researcher B designed a research project that aims to understand how immigrant women’s experiences in further education in the UK infl uence their processes of self-construction. The researcher aims to explore the interconnected psychological, social and political factors that shape the experiences of these women in education. Her research draws on in-depth interviews with immigrant women from X country living in London. She selected a group of participants by their age and current status in education. She planned to interview participants twice over the course of a year. She structured her interview schedule with a focus on the participants’ experiences in education, how they make sense of these experiences and how they relate these experiences to their experiences of immigration.

Consider yourself as researcher B. What will be the epistemological approach that you will use to situate this research? (Consider the research questions.) Which analytical model or models will you use in your analysis?

qualitative research methods - final.pdf 115 14/06/2011 14:07

C o p yr

ig h t ©

2 0 1 1 . M

cG ra

w -H

ill E

d u ca

tio n . A

ll ri g h ts

r e se

rv e d .

106 Chapter 5 Narrative Analysis Approaches

Analysts can use the ‘question method’ for the categorisation of clauses in narrative that can be assigned to one element in Labov’s model. This is based on the idea that narratives provide a series of answers to the underlying questions that all narratives address. Thus the function of clauses in narratives is to answer different questions (Patterson, 2008: 25). Table 5.5 shows the questions that could be used to identify each element in a story.

Strict use of the structural model has the danger of decontextualising narratives by paying little attention to the broader historical, socio-cultural and institutional narratives as well as to the interactional factors that shape the context of the narration (Riessman, 2008). Labov focuses on the narrative as a straightforward representation of past events in a story. The narrative text to be analysed is a naturally produced monologue in his approach rather than being co-constructed in interview conversations. These narratives are likely to be produced in research interviews within which the interviewer has a minimal role and the interviewee sticks to the point. This idealised, controlled context is rarely the case in interview experiences. However, the structural model provides the analyst with a detailed method that can be utilised as a good starting point in analysing transcripts of spoken narratives produced in various contexts. It can be used to identify important narratives in a

Table 5.4 The elements of story text in Labov’s model

1. Abstract (A) : There are one or two clauses that summarise the story When the whole story is heard it can be seen that the abstract does encapsulate the point of the story

2. Orientation (O) : Orientation clauses function to provide a set ting in which the events of the story are told

3. Complicating action (CA) :

Complicating action clauses relate the events of the story These clauses usually represent time in a linear way with a chronological order following the ‘then, and then’ structure They may relate a series of events

4. Result (R) : These are the clauses that tell the listener how the story ends

5. Evaluation (E) : The evaluation clauses present the narrator’s perspective on the events They mediate the ‘point’ of the story Labov (1972) identifi es three main types of evaluation in story texts: 1. External: these are the clauses in which the narrator steps outside the

complicating action and tells the listener the point 2. Embedded: these are the clauses in which the narrator tells the listener

how they felt at the time, without interrupting the fl ow of the story 3. Evaluative : these clauses report actions that reveal emotions as a part

of the story

6. Coda (C) : These clauses link the past world of the story to the present world of the story telling They function ‘to “sign off” the story and offer the fl oor to the listener’ (Pat terson, 2008 : 27)

qualitative research methods - final.pdf 116 14/06/2011 14:07

C o p yr

ig h t ©

2 0 1 1 . M

cG ra

w -H

ill E

d u ca

tio n . A

ll ri g h ts

r e se

rv e d .

Data analysis 107

transcript. Mishler (1995) argues that the model proposed by Labov and Waletzky is not only interested in the structural sequence of event but also in the evaluative function of the narrative content. This model aims to make clear the meaning of those events and experiences told in the narratives.

Presentation of narratives analysed by the structural model usually follows the same principle of focusing on the ‘core narrative’ in a story. Analysts usually present the details of their application of the six-part model to a selected story using a table, and give detailed descriptions of their structural analysis under each element of the structure defi ned in the Labovian model.

Table 5.5 Questions that could be used to identify each element in a story

Elements Questions

Abstract What was this about?

Orientation Who is the story about, when did it happen, What happened, where did it happen?

Complicating action Then what happened?

Evaluation So what?

Result What fi nally happened?

Coda This element does not answer any particular question It functions to sign off the narrative as it returns to the present time of the telling

Table 5.6 Example of Labov’s narrative analysis model

I saw him on the bus Abstract

yesterday, months af ter the argument we had.

Orientation

I was on my way back home, reading a funny magazine. Orientation

Then my phone rang. I was trying to fi nd it in the depths of my bag. Then he touched my shoulder.

Complicating action

I was like ‘Oh my god! I haven’t seen him for ages …’. I really miss him, you know, he was my best friend.

Evaluation

We chat for ten–fi f teen minutes then it was my stop. Complicating action

He apologised for what happened between us just before I got off. I promised to keep in touch.

Result

But I know, Nothing will be the same

Coda

qualitative research methods - final.pdf 117 14/06/2011 14:07

C o p yr

ig h t ©

2 0 1 1 . M

cG ra

w -H

ill E

d u ca

tio n . A

ll ri g h ts

r e se

rv e d .

108 Chapter 5 Narrative Analysis Approaches

Thematic model (Riessman, 2008 )

This model focuses on the content of a narrative: ‘what’ is said more than ‘how’ it is said, the ‘told’ rather than the aspects of ‘telling’ (Riessman, 2008: 54). The content of the told story is at the centre of thematic analysis. There is minimal attention to structures selected by the narrator to tell her/his story, function or contextual details of the stories. The thematic model can be applied to a wide range of narrative text, including narratives produced in interviews and written documents.

The analyst can start the thematic analysis by the open coding of data. This means building a set of themes by looking for patterns and meaning produced in the data, labelling and grouping them in connection with the theoretical framework of the research. In practice analysts utilise both the ideas and themes from their conceptual framework and ‘new’ themes in data while conducting thematic narrative analysis.

The steps in the categorical content analysis described by Lieblich et al. (1998) can be used in the process of thematic analysis. The categorical content analysis focuses on thematic similarities and differences between narratives generated in interviews. The analytical approach of Lieblich et al. (1998: 112–113) involves breaking the text into smaller units of content.

The thematic model is useful for theorising across a number of cases, fi nding common and different thematic elements between the narratives of different

Table 5.7 Four stages in the application of the thematic model

1. Selection of the subtext /segments All the relevant sections of the transcript relevant to the research question are marked and assembled to create a new fi le or subtext. For example, if the research question involves healthcare, all the sections about various aspects of healthcare should be marked for analysis. Usually the selected subtexts are treated independently from the total context of the narrative. However, in practice, narrative researchers include contextual details in their interpretation (see Riley & Hawe, 2005; Phoenix & Sparkes, 2008).

2. Defi nition of thematic categories Themes or perspectives are identifi ed across the selected subtext. These can be in the form of words, sentences or groups of sentences. These categories can be predefi ned by the theory. Another method can be reading the selected subtexts multiple times and defi ning the themes that emerge from these readings. There is no limit to the number or form of thematic categories. The decisions on the number of categories depend on the analyst’s perspective. Some analysts work with many, subtle categories that retain the richness of the narrative, which will require meticulous work on the identifi cation and analysis of categories. Some analysts, on the other hand, work with a small number of broad categories, which require less work.

3. Sorting the material into categories Separate sentences and ut terances across the narrative texts are assigned to relevant categories. In this way, different parts of narratives will be grouped under the defi ned thematic categories.

4. Drawing conclusions The narrative content collected in each thematic category can be used to describe the meanings in the content of the narrative text.

qualitative research methods - final.pdf 118 14/06/2011 14:07

C o p yr

ig h t ©

2 0 1 1 . M

cG ra

w -H

ill E

d u ca

tio n . A

ll ri g h ts

r e se

rv e d .

Data analysis 109

research participants. One of the limitations of using this model is to do with the meaning reported in narratives. It is not possible to know that all the participants in a research context mean the same thing although the analyst groups their narratives into a similar thematic category. The narrative analyst can tackle this problem by making nuanced, well-illustrated descriptions of the thematic categories, including the contextual details of the interviews.

Presentation of thematic analysis is usually structured by the thematic categories used in analysis. The description of categories, and similarities and differences between different narratives are illustrated by the case studies and small sketches.

An example of thematic narrative analysis is applied by Phoenix and Sparkes (2008). Their study explores young athletes’ percep- tions of self-ageing. In their analysis, the researchers sought connections across narrative segments and themes in interviews with 22 young athletes (2008: 214). They aimed to identify patterns and meanings constructed both within and between the stories, which helped them to develop conceptual categories of the self, namely the ‘sporting self’, the ‘settled self’ and the ‘refl ective self’. While developing the categories, the researchers also analysed the structural and contextual elements that constituted the narratives.

Ex am

pl e

Interactional-performative model (Riessman, 1993 ; Mishler, 1995 ; Denzin, 2001)

The focus of analysis in this model is storytelling as a co-construction in which narrator and listener (the interviewer and audience in a broader sense) collaboratively create meaning. This model also pays attention to thematic content and narrative structures, but goes beyond a structural analysis. It requires close reading of contexts, including the infl uence of researcher, audience, setting and social circumstances on the constitution and performance of the narrative. Storytelling is seen as performance by an individual with a history, who involves, persuades and moves the audience through language and gesture, both ‘doing’ and ‘telling’ (Riessman, 2008).

The interactional-performative model understands stories as composed and received in interactional, historical, institutional and discursive contexts (Riessman, 2008: 105–106). As social products, stories not only tell listener(s) about individuals, but also about society and culture in which they are constituted and performed. The interactional context of interviews is particularly important in this model. Mishler defi nes interview interaction as ‘a dialogic process, a complex sequence of exchanges through which interviewer and interviewee negotiate some degree of agreement on what they will talk about, and how’ (1999: xvi). The analysis of interview conversations as one of the contextual layers provides the analyst with the

qualitative research methods - final.pdf 119 14/06/2011 14:07

C o p yr

ig h t ©

2 0 1 1 . M

cG ra

w -H

ill E

d u ca

tio n . A

ll ri g h ts

r e se

rv e d .

110 Chapter 5 Narrative Analysis Approaches

The process of analysis can be constructed as a conversation between the analyst and the narrative. The analyst can ask these questions and other relevant ones to gather data, build her/his interpretation on the responses and ask further questions to make the analysis more detailed. By asking these questions, the analyst may focus on one or more features, such as the characters and their positioning in a story, the circumstances of performance, the enactment of dialogue between characters, and audience (listener and reader) response to the performance.

necessary tool to understand how the interview moment facilitates or obstructs the way respondents make sense of their lives.

Denzin (2001: 24–25) defi nes the interview as an active site where meaning is created and performed. Indeed, the interview produces a site where the meanings are contextual and improvised in a conversational performance. This performance further crafts the interview as a narrative device, which allows persons who are so inclined to tell their stories as part of an ongoing dialogic conversation. So the interview process does not simply work as an information-gathering exercise, but also as a performance in which both the teller and the listener participate so as to transform information into a shared experience.

Close reading of data is essential in applying interactional-performative analysis. The analyst can ask several questions about the co-construction of narratives; these will help them to reveal multiple elements in the construction of narratives. Interactional-performative analysis deals with questions such as those listed in the following box.

Questions to ask in the application of the

interactional-performative model

• How is a story co-constructed? • How does the interaction between storyteller and listener, and their

historical and cultural location shape this co-construction process? • Why was the narrative constructed and told in that way? • How does the narrator position him/herself in relation to the audience, and

vice versa? • How does this positioning infl uence the construction and interpretation of

the story? • How does the storyteller talk about the characters in the story and her/his

relationship with these characters? • How do these relational characters, including the narrator her/himself

infl uence the construction and performance of the story? • How does the presence of audience (interviewers, listeners, readers) shape

the construction and the performance of the story?

qualitative research methods - final.pdf 120 14/06/2011 14:07

C o p yr

ig h t ©

2 0 1 1 . M

cG ra

w -H

ill E

d u ca

tio n . A

ll ri g h ts

r e se

rv e d .

Data analysis 111

The model requires transcripts that present all conversational details of the interview interaction. This should include all participants in the conversation and unspoken features of interaction. The transcript should not only be seen as a vehicle for content: it must tell the analyst the story of the interview conversation. The unspoken is a very important element in the analysis. Some researchers use video tapes to record interviews in order not to skip the unspoken parts of the interaction. As mentioned above, fi eldnotes on the details of the interview conversation can also be included in the transcripts. As Riessman (2002) reminds us, it is misleading to focus only on the transcripts that have been constructed from the interviews. The multiplicity of voices in the narrative performances should be part of the analysis in this model. While telling our stories, we do not speak from a single position. As we draw on available storylines, public discourses and others‘ stories, our position changes continuously in connection with the discursive resources. For example, while telling about her experiences, the research participant may start by voicing the dominant public discourse of the necessity of full-time motherhood. The participant may answer another interview question in a voice critical of the same dominant discourse to say that working mothers can also be as attentive as full-time mothers.

The interactional-performative model is suitable for detailed studies of identity construction and for studies of communication practices, as it analyses the positioning of the narrator and her/his interaction with the audience in narrative performance. Narrative researchers working with the interactional-performative model use creative ways to present their analysis. As the analyst follows the narrative closely in analysis, the presentation usually aims to demonstrate this close relationship. It usually takes the form of a narrative, which tells the audience the story of the interaction-performance. In addition to extracts from transcripts, details of cultural and historical contexts that shape the narrative, as well as the details of dialogic performance, are presented as part of the analysis.

Example of interactional-performative analysis

Aida: Later, I started to go to classical music concerts at the weekends. It was like a blossoming for me. [...] you know how it is ... I felt relieved outside home by these outings. I hadn’t had any problems with my family until then. The problems started with these concerts. To that point, I was [err], compared to my sister, more modest, more respectful to parents, more serious whereas she was loose, lazy, and unsuccessful […].

Ex am

pl e

qualitative research methods - final.pdf 121 14/06/2011 14:07

C o p yr

ig h t ©

2 0 1 1 . M

cG ra

w -H

ill E

d u ca

tio n . A

ll ri g h ts

r e se

rv e d .

112 Chapter 5 Narrative Analysis Approaches

Questions Analysis

• How is a story co- constructed? How does the interaction between the story teller and listener, their historical and cultural location shape this co-construction process?

Aida was a vivid story teller with a highly analy tical voice, which was shaped by the feminist perspective that Aida and I shared throughout the interview. She constructed stories on her analysis of gender discourses and her position (s) in connection to these discourses. She presented herself as a ‘performer’ so as to describe her discursive movements within the gender regulations constantly shaping her as a young woman.

• How does the narrator position him /herself in relation to the audience, and vice versa?

Aida was aware of the availability of multiple positions for her in the gender-power networks in which she was raised. In telling her stories, she refers to the dominant and marginal storylines uncovering the links between gender and sexuality in contemporary Turkey.

In this particular interview excerpt, she tells me about the tensions she experiences in leaving her ‘good girl’ position in search of a space of freedom outside the regulations of home.

By the phrase ‘you know how it is …’ Aida also positions the interviewer as someone with similar experiences in the same culture who will understand what she means.

• How does the story teller talk about the characters in the story and her/his relationship with these characters? How do these relational characters, including the narrator her/himself infl uence the construction and performance of the story?

Aida portrays her sister and herself as representatives of two storylines located in the dominant discourses of gender. While describing herself as a ‘good’ girl who is ‘modest’ and ‘serious’, she positions her sister as a ‘bad’ girl who is ‘loose’ and ‘lazy’.

Pluralist approach to analytical models

While mapping out the contemporary models of narrative analysis, Riessman (2005) underlines the considerable variation in the defi nition of narratives and narrative analytical methods, which are often shaped by the disciplines of the researchers. Although it is possible to identify some models, according to Riessman, ‘in practice, different approaches can be combined; they are not mutually exclusive and, as with all typologies, boundaries are fuzzy’ (2005: 2).

In practice, a combination of analytical methods is common among narrative researchers as this can work as a methodological tool to analyse the multiple aspects of data. Narrative researchers aim to explore the multiple layers of meaning that are

qualitative research methods - final.pdf 122 14/06/2011 14:07

C o p yr

ig h t ©

2 0 1 1 . M

cG ra

w -H

ill E

d u ca

tio n . A

ll ri g h ts

r e se

rv e d .

Data analysis 113

constructed and presented in narratives. Combining various analytical models is a way to explore structural, linguistic and contextual aspects of the narratives that can enrich the multilayered analysis. This approach usually draws on the strengths offered by each analytical model to uncover the layers of meaning in narratives. In addition, using multiple methods for data analysis is more likely to make the fi ndings and analysis grounded and, as a result, they are more likely to be valid (Mello, 2002: 235).

Narrative researchers who analyse narratives with a pluralistic approach usually start their analysis with structural or thematic models and expand their analysis by revealing multiple layers in the construction and performance of narratives. In mapping out these layers, researchers apply various versions of interactional- performative analysis in order to analyse the historical, cultural and discursive circumstances in which narratives are constructed and function. The role of inter- viewer and/or researcher in the collaborative production of narratives in research contexts is one of the elements explored through the pluralistic approaches. This exploration includes the positioning of the storyteller and researcher in telling, listening to and analysing narratives.

In the following research example box you will fi nd the summary of Nollaig Frost’s research about the transition to second-time motherhood, which was conducted using a pluralistic approach to narrative analysis.

Frost, N. (2009). ‘Do you know what I mean?’: the use of a pluralistic narrative analysis approach in the interpretation of an interview’, Qualitative Research, 9(1), pp. 9–29

Aim of the research

Frost’s research aimed to explore women’s experiences of transition to second- time motherhood through participants’ maternal narratives. The researcher chose to use narrative analysis in her research so as to understand how stories are functional for storytellers to make sense of changes in their sense of self and in their social relationships at times of incoherence in events and the individual’s sense of identity. Through the narrative analysis, she aimed to understand the ways in which the participants made sense of the changes in their identity as they became mothers to two children (2009b: 14). Unlike other psychology research about motherhood, which tends to medicalise this process, Frost aimed to privilege the voices of mothers in understanding the experiences of motherhood.

Participants

The participants in the research were British, white, middle-class women who lived in London and were professionally employed. Participants were recruited when they were six months pregnant with their second child. All of the participants were in stable relationships with the father of their children.

R e

s e

a rc

h E

x a

m p

qualitative research methods - final.pdf 123 14/06/2011 14:07

C o p yr

ig h t ©

2 0 1 1 . M

cG ra

w -H

ill E

d u ca

tio n . A

ll ri g h ts

r e se

rv e d .

114 Chapter 5 Narrative Analysis Approaches

Analytical approach

Frost (2009b) employed a pluralistic approach to analysing the narratives elicited in interviews that she conducted. Her aim in using this approach was to understand the multidimensional meaning of the narrative by adding texture to the interpretation of it rather than verifying meanings (2009b: 10). Frost uses a combination of structural and linguistic models from a critical analytical perspective that take account of the context, the interaction between narrator and interviewer, and the unspoken interactions and nuances in the narration of stories. In her application, she selects different narratives from the same interview and analyses the structural or linguistic features of each narrative. She conducts her analysis by applying the same analytical model to different pieces of the interview and employs different models of narrative analysis to the same selected data. Since Frost works with a critical perspective, she adds another layer to her structural analysis by providing the details of interview interaction, which creates a specifi c context for the production of the narratives analysed.

Frost employed her narrative approach in a fl exible way. She followed the structure and content of stories within each interview while making decisions about the model she was going to apply to each piece of data. For example, if there were stories with clear temporal order, Frost used Labov’s model for the initial analysis of these stories. If there was a part of the interview that sounded like a narrative without a temporal order, she used linguistic or performative models for the initial analysis. Frost used a systematic technique to build the layers in her analysis. Following her initial analysis of different pieces, she revisited the interview transcript, her fi eldnotes

R e

s e

a rc

h E

x a

m p

Methods

The research draws on interview data collected over the course of a year. Frost carried out three or four semi-structured interviews with each research participant and gathered accounts of their experiences of second-time motherhood. The interview questions were constituted around participants’ ‘hopes, fears, expectations and, as appropriate, realities of being mothers in the past, present and future of their transition to second-time motherhood’ (2009b: 14).

Frost carefully positioned herself as an interviewer as she, too, was a British, middle-class, white, professional woman with two children. She avoided imposing her own story of motherhood, but was open to the questions of participants about her experiences. Rather than strictly drawing on her interview schedule, Frost followed the participant’s story in each interview closely.

qualitative research methods - final.pdf 124 14/06/2011 14:07

C o p yr

ig h t ©

2 0 1 1 . M

cG ra

w -H

ill E

d u ca

tio n . A

ll ri g h ts

r e se

rv e d .

Data analysis 115

and written observations, to understand the positioning of the participants as storytellers, the location of the particular story within the whole interview as well as the interactional features that constituted the story as it was.

By her systematic, pluralistic approach to narrative analysis, Frost explored the complexity and diversity of participants’ narratives about second-time motherhood. Her approach was also useful in the recognition of multiple ways in which women might express their feelings about and experiences of motherhood.

Refl ection on Practice

I was very excited at the idea of being a part of the Pluralism in Qualitative Research Project. Reading the same data from different analytical approaches has always been a very interesting idea for me. I thought that this would be an excellent opportunity to contribute to a very rich methodological approach. I was also a little bit nervous, for this was the fi rst time I met a ‘participant’ in a transcript as a researcher/ analyst. I had analysed various types of material before, but I had not analysed an interview that I had not conducted myself. My approach to narratives includes uncovering the layers in their construction. These are multiple interrelated contextual layers that constitute the narratives that we analyse.

Similarly, my focus was on the way narratives were constructed in the PQR interview. The interview was about the participant’s experi- ences of second-time motherhood. I focused on multiple stories in the interview, on different aspects of motherhood, and applied narrative analysis to understand some of the layers in the construction of these stories. I used a mixture of thematic and performative models in a fl ex- ible way. One of the steps in my analysis was to identify the positions that the participant inhabited and utilised in constructing and com- municating her stories of motherhood. Eventually, the positions of the participant and her movements between – sometimes contradictory – positions became central in my analysis to understanding the ways in which she made sense of her experiences.

I briefl y mentioned the interaction between the participant and re- searcher in my analysis, but I made a decision and did not integrate the interview context into it. I thought that I needed more than the tran- script to analyse the interview process. The timing and phrasing of the questions and responses of the participant revealed a positive inter- view interaction. However, I did not feel confi dent enough to make a further reading of the interview conversation. Instead, I focused on the stories of motherhood that the participant constituted in the interview, and structured the analysis in a standard way – around themes.

R efl

e ct

io n

o n

P ra

ct ic

qualitative research methods - final.pdf 125 14/06/2011 14:07

C o p yr

ig h t ©

2 0 1 1 . M

cG ra

w -H

ill E

d u ca

tio n . A

ll ri g h ts

r e se

rv e d .

116 Chapter 5 Narrative Analysis Approaches

Chapter summary

■ Narrative analysis is an umbrella term, which refers to multiple approaches and analytical models, and that takes the story itself as the unit of analysis.

■ The roots of narrative analysis can traced back to the humanist and post- structuralist traditions that aim to understand narratives. While humanists approach narratives from a person-centred, holistic perspective, post- structuralist approaches are more concerned with the meaning created in narratives.

■ Narratives are forms through which people make sense of their experiences and mediate the meanings they give to these experiences.

■ While personalised over time, narratives are not created by individuals independently. They are constructed by drawing on a number of available resources.

■ Narrative research enables researchers to see multiple and sometimes contradictory layers of meaning, to reconstruct meanings through linking these layers, and to explore and understand the interrelations between individual and social processes.

■ There are two main epistemological approaches that shape the understanding of narratives: ‘naturalist’ approaches use rich descriptions of people in their natural habitats, whereas ‘constructivist’ approaches focus on how a sense of social order is created through talk and interaction.

■ Narrative analysis makes a systematic interpretation of meaning-making processes in narratives. Unlike other qualitative research approaches, narrative research does not offer strict rules about the nature and mode of investigation.

■ Close attentiveness to research relations, contextual details in the construction of narratives and interview conversations is the main principle in conducting narrative analysis.

■ Analytical models in narrative analysis differ from each other by their focus of analysis. The focus of analysis in the structural model is on the way an event is told in a story text. In contrast, the thematic model focuses on what is said in narratives. The interactional-performative model, on the other hand, places collaborative meaning-making processes at the centre of narrative analysis.

It was very interesting to read the analysis of other analysts who used different qualitative approaches, particularly to fi nd out how we all selected similar parts of the interview transcript to analyse. This experience made me think further about the meanings created in stories as well as my role as an analyst in this meaning-making process.

qualitative research methods - final.pdf 126 14/06/2011 14:07

C o p yr

ig h t ©

2 0 1 1 . M

cG ra

w -H

ill E

d u ca

tio n . A

ll ri g h ts

r e se

rv e d .