The humbled pivoting voyeur and the shelved and boxed grieving parent - a story of real-time qualitative research in the COVID-19 pandemic

Abstract

This reflexive piece uniquely discusses the challenges faced by a researcher (PhD Student) conducting real-time longitudinal research during the COVID-19 pandemic. It draws on data gathered from the author's reflexive diary and participant transcripts from an interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) study utilising online diaries and semi-structured interviews. Participants were asked about their experiences of shielding their children, who were born preterm, during the COVID-19 pandemic. The note, reflectively and transparently, describes the research experience from the perspective of the PhD student. It explores the complex relationship formed between the researcher and participant, and the impact of this relationship throughout the research process. The piece highlights unforeseen and unintended psychological consequences of research during a global pandemic.