Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis Rachel Shaw Aston University r.l.shawaston.ac.uk

1. Interpretative Phenomenological AnalysisRachel ShawAston Universityr.l.shaw@aston.ac.uk

2. Objectives To introduce the theoretical underpinnings of IPA To outline the relationship between IPA in Psychology To describe the appropriate research questions, sampling & data collection methods To describe analytic process To offer the opportunity to do some IPA To offer some suggestions for emphasis in teaching To offer some suggestions for supervising IPA projects

3. Assumptions & aims of IPA People are “self-interpreting beings” (Taylor, 1985) Interpretative activity - “sense-making” – is central to human experience & action Central concern: how do people make sense of their experiences? Dual Aim - To provide: an in-depth exploration of people’s lived experiences a close examination of how people make sense of these experiences

4. Theoretical underpinnings of IPA Phenomenology Concerned with how things appear to us in experience As individuals, how do we perceive & talk about objects & events This is in contrast with: The attempt to produce an objective statement about the object or event in itself Examining the event or object in terms of pre-existing conceptual or scientific criteria

5. Theoretical underpinnings of IPA Hermeneutic inquiry Concerned with people as interpreting and sense-making individuals IPA’s aim is achieved through interpretative activity on the part of the researcher Research is a dynamic process & the researcher has an active role Researcher aims to assume an insider perspective (Conrad, 1987) – to stand in the shoes of the participant

6. Theoretical underpinnings of IPA Double hermeneutic (dual interpretation process) Access to the participant’s experience depends on, & is complicated by, the researcher’s own conceptions These processes are necessary in order to make sense of that other personal world through a process of interpretative activity “the participants are tying to make sense of their world; the researcher is trying to make sense of the participants trying to make sense of their world.” (Smith & Osborn, 2003: 51)

7. Theoretical underpinnings of IPA Idiography Focusing on the particular rather than the universal Nomothetic studies work at the group/population level to make probabilistic claims/predictions Idiographic studies work at the individual level to make specific statements about those individuals NOT either/or, rather we argue for: “(a) the intensive examination of the individual in her or his own right as an intrinsic part of psychology’s remit, and (b) that the logical route to universal laws & structures is an idiographic-nomothetic one” (Harré, 1979 cited in Smith & Eatough, 2006: 326)

8. Basic principles of IPA Inductive – rejects the hypothesis in favour of open-ended questions Idiographic – works at the individual level Assumes agency to the individual Individuals actively interpret their experiences & their world (in fact we can’t not interpret) It is concerned with understanding individuals’ lived experiences & how they make sense of those experiences It is data-driven (bottom-up) – prioritises participants’ accounts Research is a dynamic process – the researcher is active in the research

9. IPA and Psychology Cognition is a central analytic concern Social cognition: “a concern with unravelling the relationship between what people think (cognition), say (account) and do (behaviour)” (Smith & Eatough, 2006:325) IPA method is in contrast to cognitive psychology: Cognitive psychology as a science of meaning-making rather than information processing (Bruner, 1990)

10. Research questions in IPA Open-ended questions (rather than hypotheses) to gain rich & detailed descriptions of the phenomenon being studied How do people make the decision whether or not to have a genetic test? What does jealousy feel like? How do people view voluntary childlessness? Focus – significant issues either ongoing or at a critical juncture in life: Identity, sense of self Hot cognition – current issues, emotive, dilemmatic Cool cognition – longer term, reflection across life course Key – meticulous exploration of lived experience of the participant

11. Sampling & data collection Small sample sizes because of the case-by-case, idiographic approach to analysis How many? It depends on: One’s commitment to the case study level of analysis The richness of the individual cases How one wants to compare or contrast cases The pragmatic restrictions one is working under Data collection needs to focus on experience & recognise multiple influences on that experience Semi-structured interviews

12. Doing the analysisIdentifying Themes Identify themes in the first case This involves lots of reading & re-reading Write comments in the left margin: summaries, associations, connections, preliminary interpretations Document emerging theme titles in the right margin: these need not be definitive but should enable you to articulate something about the concept identified

13. Looking for connections: list the emerging themes & look for connections between them Cluster themes together into super-ordinate themes made up of subordinate themes Create a table of master themes Ensure each theme is represented by data in the transcript to avoid researcher bias Theme Clusters

14. Continue with other cases Start with the master themes from case 1 & look for further evidence in case 2 Be ready for new themes to emerge in case 2 The process is cyclical: go back case 1 to see if they are represented there also Be prepared to go over the phases of analysis several times, going back over transcripts & rethinking theme clusters Continuing with Other Cases

15. Writing Up This is the final stage of analysis The aim is to translate your themes into a narrative account Deciding which themes to focus on requires you to be selective The choice is not purely based on prevalence but also on the richness of particular passages that highlight the theme & how the theme illuminates other aspects of the account

16. Tips for emphasis in teaching IPA is about individuals’ experiences IPA is interpretative –we want participants to reflect on & interpret their experiences in the interview & we want to interpret them in the analysis Interviews are analysed on a case-by-case basis (there may only one case – a case study) Doing IPA is a creative process – the active interpretative role of the researcher is valued An IPA analysis usually reveals something about participants’ meaning-making processes & how an event or state impacts on identity

17. Tips for supervision IPA involves in-depth & systematic exploration of lived experiences Homogeneous sample – people who have had the same experience Interviews need to focus on concrete experiences & participants’ reflections on those experiences Detailed transcription coding is not always necessary Analysis is time consuming – don’t leave it too late

18. Key references Smith, J.A. & Eatough, V. (2006) Interpretative phenomenological analysis. In G.M. Breakwell, S. Hammond, C. Fife-Schaw & J.A. Smith (Eds) Research Methods in Psychology (3rd edition). London: Sage. Smith, J.A. & Osborn, M. (2003) Interpretative phenomenological analysis. In J.A. Smith (Ed) Qualitative Psychology: a practical guide to research methods. London: Sage.[A 2nd edition is available published 2008.] Smith, J.A. & Osborn, M. (2004) Interpretative phenomenological analysis. In G.M. Breakwell (Ed) Doing social psychology research. Oxford: BPS Blackwell.