Grounded Theory Tradition Research Articles

Peer Teachers' Professional Identity Development During a Prehospital Simulation: A Grounded Theory Study.

Peer teachers have been found to be effective instructors during simulation-based education. However, there is a lack of research regarding their professional identity development throughout the course of the teaching activity. The purpose of this qualitative study, therefore, was to develop a framework to illustrate how peer teachers develop as educators during a prehospital simulation. The participants in our study were 9 second-year medical students serving as peer teachers during a multiday prehospital simulation. We selected the grounded theory tradition of qualitative research to investigate the peer teachers' professional identity development. Our research team interviewed each participant twice during the simulation. We then used open and axial coding to analyze the interview data. We organized these codes into categories and determined connections between each category to construct our grounded theory framework. This framework described how the peer teachers progressed through 4 stages: 1) eager excitement, 2) grounded by challenges, 3) overcoming challenges, and 4) professional identity formation. Our results revealed that simulation-based education can serve as valuable learning environment not only for medical students, but also for peer teachers. Understanding their progressive development during the simulation will help medical educators focus on maximizing the peer teachers' growth and development during simulation.

Mathematics teaching for migrant students in German schools—How do teachers respond to their students’ diverse needs?

The increase in international migration and the global number of students learning mathematics through a language other than their home language makes migrants’ educational pathways a particularly urgent issue. The current paper focuses on the German context as Germany is currently one of the major immigration countries in the Western context. Because German is widely perceived as the language of opportunity for migrants in the German school system, it is overwhelmingly the selected language of learning and teaching in the broader school system and within migrant classes. The article is based on qualitative interviews with mathematics teachers teaching migrant classes; and the data analysis followed the Grounded theory tradition. The central phenomenon that seemed to preoccupy all teachers was how to adapt mathematics teaching to the language- and mathematics-related diversity of their students while simultaneously helping them to transfer smoothly to the mainstream classes or pass the final examinations successfully. Due to the lack of institutional support for teaching in migrant classes and problems in dealing with multilingualism and mathematics-related diversity in mathematics lessons, they were generally frustrated with the situation despite being strongly motivated at first. Using three examples from the data, we illustrate teachers' strategies in relation to multilingualism and mathematics-related diversity. Overall, the study points to the necessity of supporting teachers in their mathematical practices in migrant classes to contribute to more inclusive mathematics education.

AI-Assisted Formal Buyer-Seller Marketing Theory

Customer behavior, market dynamics, and technological advances have made it challenging for marketing theorists to provide comprehensive explanations and actionable insights. Although there are numerous substantive marketing frameworks, no formal marketing theory exists. This study aims to develop the first formal grounded theory in marketing by incorporating artificial intelligence and Forde's conceptual framework as a guiding lens. Charmaz's constructivist grounded theory tradition and Forde's conceptual framework and data analysis strategy were employed for this purpose. The data analysis strategy used with grounded theory‘s constant compare-and-contrast method comprises holistic and systems thinking, dramaturgical and situational analysis, perspective-taking, and deconstruction. To evaluate Glaser‘s assertion that all is data, artificial intelligence was incorporated into the research as the data source for retrieving the theoretical samples to address the primary research question: How can Forde's conceptual framework and artificial intelligence be leveraged to develop a formal marketing theory grounded in evidence? Of significance was the emergence of democratic marketing behaviors and the normalization of anti-democratic marketing approaches leveraged to manipulate buyers or gain access to segments of customers. Buyers and sellers can simultaneously benefit from and be prejudiced by marketing exchange dynamics. This finding lends credibility to the newly emerged framework of strategic actions where empowerment and disempowerment are leveraged to achieve specific goals. Considering this finding, it is suggested that businesses view marketing as a symbiotic relationship between two power centers, buyers, and sellers, who respectively strive to maintain human dignity and sustainability. Researchers are encouraged to apply the framework across substantive areas, international markets, public relations, political campaigns, and others.

Military Health Care Team Cohesion and Performance During Simulation Training.

Military health care team cohesion has been linked to improved performance during simulation training. However, there is a gap in current research regarding the processes by which teams become cohesive within simulation training. The purpose of this study was to explore how health care teams evolve during high-fidelity simulation training and the ways in which team cohesion impacts their performance. The participants in our study were fourth-year military medical students participating in a 5-day high-fidelity military medical simulation during Fall 2022.Twenty-three students volunteered to participate in our study. We interviewed each participant twice during the simulation and then transcribed each interview using an automated transcription service. Guided by the grounded theory tradition of qualitative data analysis, we used open, axial, and selective coding to analyze the interview data. Our data analysis revealed that teams went through a process of (1) struggle, (2) adaptation, (3) perceived improvement, (4) gained confidence, and (5) perceived team cohesion. Teams struggled through the various barriers to group cohesion (i.e., power dynamics, role designation and competency, and task failures and low team confidence) in order to understand their weaknesses. As teams adjusted and noticed improvement, they adapted new patterns, protocols, and standards of practice based on previous failures, improving their overall confidence. The participants perceived their teams as successful once they had progressed through these phases and ended the simulation as a cohesive unit. Our qualitative data analysis provided insight into team cohesion as it was forged by participants in real time as the simulation progressed. The results of our study can be used to promote team cohesion not only during simulation training but also within military health care professional teams in order to enhance their performance in the field.

Medical Students' Integration of Formative Feedback During Simulation: A Grounded Theory Study.

Formative feedback is critical for trainees' growth and development. However, there is a gap in the professional literature regarding the ways in which formative feedback affects student performance during simulation. This grounded theory study addresses this gap by exploring the ways in which medical students received and integrated ongoing formative feedback throughout a multiday, high-fidelity military medical simulation, Operation Bushmaster. Our research team interviewed 18 fourth-year medical students in order to investigate how they processed formative feedback during the simulation. Guided by the grounded theory tradition of qualitative research, our research team used open coding and axial coding to categorize the data. We then used selective coding to determine the casual relationships between each of the categories that emerged from the data. These relationships determined our grounded theory framework. Four phases emerged from the data and provided a framework to delineate the process in which students received and integrated formative feedback throughout the simulation: (1) ability to self-assess, (2) self-efficacy, (3) leadership and teamwork, and (4) appreciation of feedback for personal and professional growth. The participants first focused on feedback related to their individual performance but then shifted to a teamwork and leadership mindset. Once they adapted this new mindset, they began to intentionally provide feedback to their peers, increasing their team's performance. At the end of the simulation, the participants recognized the benefits of formative feedback and peer feedback for ongoing professional development throughout their careers, signifying a growth mindset. This grounded theory study provided a framework for determining how medical students integrated formative feedback during a high-fidelity, multiday medical simulation. Medical educators can use this framework to intentionally guide their formative feedback in order to maximize student learning during simulation.

Meaning making about performance: A comparison of two specialty feedback cultures.

Specialty trainees often struggle to understand how well they are performing, and feedback is commonly seen as a solution to this problem. However, medical education tends to approach feedback as acontextual rather than located in a specialty-specific cultural world. This study therefore compares how specialty trainees in surgery and intensive care medicine (ICM) make meaning about the quality of their performance and the role of feedback conversations in this process. We conducted a qualitative interview study in the constructivist grounded theory tradition. We interviewed 17 trainees from across Australia in 2020, eight from ICM and nine from surgery, and iterated between data collection and analytic discussions. We employed open, focused, axial and theoretical coding. There were significant divergences between specialties. Surgical trainees had more opportunity to work directly with supervisors, and there was a strong link between patient outcome and quality of care, with a focus on performance information about operative skills. ICM was a highly uncertain practice environment, where patient outcome could not be relied upon as a source of performance information; valued performance information was diffuse and included tacit emotional support. These different 'specialty feedback cultures' strongly influenced how trainees orchestrated opportunities for feedback, made meaning of their performance in their day-to-day patient care tasks and 'patched together' experiences and inputs into an evolving sense of overall progress. We identified two types of meaning-making about performance: first, trainees' understanding of an immediate performance in a patient-care task and, second, a 'patched together' sense of overall progress from incomplete performance information. This study suggests approaches to feedback should attend to both, but also take account of the cultural worlds of specialty practice, with their attendant complexities. In particular, feedback conversations could better acknowledge the variable quality of performance information and specialty specific levels of uncertainty.

Family stress during the COVID-19 pandemic: a qualitative analysis

ObjectiveThis study aimed to understand experiences with stress and coping strategies used among families in the COVID-19 pandemic.Design/SettingThis qualitative study took place in the paediatric outpatient clinics of a large...

The importance of theory at the Information Systems Journal

The importance of theory at the <i>Information Systems Journal</i>

Exploring the development of adaptive expertise through the lens of threshold concepts.

While expert clinical practice requires a flexible approach to problem solving, evidence shows that medical clerks tend to focus on knowledge acquisition as the key to expertise. It is not until residency training that learners shift their understanding of expertise towards developing adaptive approaches to clinical problems. This raises the possibility that adaptive expertise is a threshold concept and that authentic clinical experiences involving complex problem solving are required to create the liminal state that enables transformation to an adaptive expertise mindset. With this possibility in mind, the current study examined the conceptualisations of expertise held by recently graduated physical therapists using the framework of threshold concepts as a sensitising lens. An exploratory qualitative study in the Constructivist Grounded Theory tradition was conducted, utilising 14 one-on-one semi-structured interviews with recently graduated physical therapists. Most participants were in a transitional state regarding their conceptualisation of expertise, sometimes focusing on the acquisition of knowledge and routinisation of practice as their hallmark of expertise and at other times acknowledging the need for developing more dynamic and adaptive problem-solving approaches to patient care. These mixed responses were expressed not only in their framing of patient management but also in their reasons for valuing colleagues and in their approach to continuing professional development. Notably, many participants suggested that the interview itself was a key impetus to their reflecting on these issues. Our findings suggest that participants were only beginning to transition into an adaptive expertise mindset upon entering practice, reinforcing the possibility that authentic practice may be an important impetus for recognising the limits of routine expertise. However, spontaneous comments from participants suggest that this transition might be better supported though active guided reflection in addition to meaningful clinical engagement with patients and colleagues.

Travelling to die: views, attitudes and end-of-life preferences of Israelis considering receiving aid-in-dying in Switzerland

BackgroundFollowing the increased presence of the Right-to-Die Movement, improved end-of-life options, and the political and legal status of aid-in-dying around the globe, suicide tourism has become a promising alternative for individuals who wish to end their lives. Yet, little is known about this from the perspective of those who engage in the phenomenon.MethodsThis study applied the qualitative research approach, following the grounded theory tradition. It includes 11 in-depth semi-structured interviews with Israeli members of the Swiss non-profit Dignitas who contemplated traveling to Switzerland for aid-in-dying.ResultsSeven themes emerged from the data analysis, including health and functioning; feelings regarding survivorship and existence; interacting with the health sector; attitudes regarding death and dying; suicide; choosing death; and choosing suicide tourism. A significant portion of the participants had experienced suicidal thoughts and had even previously attempted suicide, some more than once. Most of them referred to chronic illnesses, functional disability, and social isolation. They understand suffering within the subjective dimension, namely only by the person who is actually subjected to the disease, ailments, and disability. Participants regarded aid-in-dying in Switzerland as positive thanks to its guaranteed outcome: "beautiful death", compared to "disadvantaged dying" which places a burden on the participants' loved ones throughout the prolonged dying. Most of them do not necessarily want to have their loved ones beside them when they die, and they see no significant meaning in dying in a foreign country to which they have no emotional or civil attachment.ConclusionThe desirable approval or tragic refusal by Dignitas to participants' requests for suicide tourism enhances the paradox between the perception of aid-in-dying as a mechanism for fulfilling controlled death and its bureaucratic and materialistic characteristics specifically reflected in a paid, formalized approach to aid-in-dying that cultivate dependency and collaboration.

A model for professional counselors to integrate multiculturalism and social justice into correctional settings

AbstractThe purpose of this study was to develop a theoretical model for how counselors integrate multicultural and social justice competency into their work with persons who have offended. A qualitative grounded theory tradition was used to generate an inductive theoretical model for integrating the Multicultural and Social Justice Counseling Competencies (MSJCC) into correctional settings. Participants (n = 16) were professional counselors recruited through counseling listservs and snowball sampling who work in prison, residential, jail, private practice, and community mental health settings. The findings revealed the need for ongoing training, multicultural and social justice awareness, and knowledge about structural barriers and systemic oppression.

The Development, Implementation, and Evaluation of an Acute Otitis Media Education Website.

To develop, implement, and evaluate an acute otitis media (AOM) education website for clinician-educators. We developed an education website following Kern's curriculum model. The website contained peer-reviewed content, educational objectives, library search pages to identify evidence-based resources, and a faculty toolbox with instructional and evaluation instruments. Pediatric clinician-educators were purposefully sampled from different clinic sites to evaluate the website. Semistructured interviews explored key website components for content and usability in clinical teaching. In grounded theory tradition, investigators used the constant comparative method with qualitative analysis software to identify themes and representative quotations. Eleven faculty members (9 females and 2 males with teaching experience from 6 to 26 years) participated in the study. Identified themes were: 1) value of visual impact for learning specific topics, 2) promotion of efficiency in teaching clinical topics, 3) varying approaches for using website, and 4) faculty's self-report of knowledge and self-efficacy needs. An education website may enhance the teaching of AOM, accommodate different teaching preferences, promote efficiency in teaching, and advance clinician-educator knowledge and skills. Next steps include evaluation of learners' perspectives, generalizability in varied teaching settings, and assessment of higher learning outcomes including impact on knowledge, skills, and patient outcomes.

The HIV epidemic and cognitive psychology: negative affect and associative imagery of HIV/AIDS among young adults in Cameroon.

Background: Although HIV/AIDS negatively affects socio-economic development in many countries, there are limited studies that have applied concepts in cognitive psychology to investigate population level attitudes towards HIV/AIDS. The objectives of this study were to: (1) investigate the affective imagery of HIV/AIDS; and (2) identify the predictors of “worry” about the negative consequences of HIV/AIDS among young adults. Methods: A population-based study was conducted in Kumba, Southwest Cameroon among youth aged 21-35 years. Data were collected from September to October 2016 by trained interviewers using paper-based questionnaires. Respondents were asked the extent to which they were worried about the negative consequences of HIV/AIDS on themselves, family, community, society, current and future generation. Respondents were also asked to identify the first thought/image that comes to their mind when they think of HIV/AIDS. Qualitative data were analyzed by the grounded theory tradition while weighted hierarchical linear regression was used to analyse quantitative data to identify the predictors of worry about the negative consequences of HIV/AIDS. The statistical level of significance was set at pResults: The median age of the 767 respondents who participated in the study was 26 years (IQR: 23-29), 58.2% were males while 41.8% were females. 68.1% of respondents had negative feelings about the consequences of HIV/AIDS. Respondents who attained high school education and above (β= 1.12, p Conclusions: Most respondents were worried about the consequences of HIV/AIDS and associated the epidemic to death and fear. These findings underscore the need for the psychosocial and cognitive processes of young adults to be considered during the design of HIV prevention and risk communication messages.

Future-proofing placements

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to present a case study centred on steps taken at a Business School in a UK university, to improve local work placement provision, respond to student demand and engage more productively with local businesses. It is situated against renewed focus on universities’ engagement with local economies and the graduate labour market context as demonstrated by the government’s Industrial Strategy (BEIS, 2017) and the OfS (2018) business plan. It aims to emphasise how moving the focus back from graduates to placement students could offer a useful collaborative opportunity for local businesses to articulate what they want from future employees. Design/methodology/approach The paper follows a mixed methods approach, drawing upon a case study on a new intervention piloted in the Business School as well as qualitative research gathered from questionnaires and interviews with students. Responses to questionnaires and interviews were analysed thematically in the Grounded Theory (Glaser and Strauss, 1967) tradition. Findings The paper highlights the lack of literature on local placements and also demonstrates findings which echo existing research on typical barriers and drivers to placements in general. It offers original outcomes such as how for some students local placements offer a convenience value but for others they are part of committing to living and working locally after graduation. Research limitations/implications The small-scale nature of the study means that only indicative findings are presented. Further research is necessary for a more detailed examination of its implications. Practical implications Recommendations are made for a systematic approach to developing, or establishing for the first time, university–employer relationships in order to future-proof local placement opportunities. Originality/value The paper fills a gap in the literature on local placements and also provides a fresh approach to how universities and employers might work together to identify local skills gaps and increase the provision of local placements. It also offers ways in students’ often negatively framed reasons for not undertaking a placement can be mitigated through engaging with the local context.

Success Factors of Start-Up Acquisitions: Evidence from Israel

Objective :This article aims to explore the factors behind successful M&A of start-up companies. Research Design & Methods : The objectives of this qualitative study are pursued in the context of acquired high-tech start-ups in Israel. The study employed semi-structured interviews. The practical model for analysing the transcribed interview responses was based on Shkedi’s (2003) method, drawing also from the grounded theory tradition in the process of coding and interpreting data categories. Findings: The results of this research highlight the communication climate (comprising factors such as openness, trust, supportiveness and interest of top managers in the employee’s well-being) as a vital behavioural mechanism influencing post-acquisition performance. Also, we found that effective knowledge transfer to the acquired company is one of the essential determinants of success.company is one of the essential determinants of success. Implications & Recommendations: M&A require a clear business plan, that which is based on realistic needs. A major fault in many start-ups is focus on technology rather than on strategy. Many start-ups are established and staffed by engineers and scientists who often believe, erroneously, that a good product will sell. Contribution & Value Added: In extant research, most attention has been paid to the acquiring company perspective on success. In contrast, this study focuses on the seller’s perspective and contribution to M&A success, instead of on the buyer’s perspective.

Drawing Upon Lessons Learned

Javits Gifted and Talented Education Program has provided a wealth of knowledge on culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) gifted learners and how to support teachers in their work with CLD students. This study examined five impactful Javits projects through qualitative inquiry centered on how innovative practice takes root or not. Using grounded theory tradition, examination of Javits project participation enabled insight into how educators act and react to innovation as well as their perceptions of CLD student impacts. Data sources (documents, conversations with principal investigators, and interviews with 14 educators) provide evidence for what sustains effective, research-based practices and explores continued student benefits. Major findings are (a) context matters in sustaining innovation, (b) powerful curriculum and instruction can transform teaching and teachers, and (c) student impacts continue. Data point to leadership as an underlying element in sustaining innovation. Leaders ensure that innovation extends from broad-based goals; they develop innovation through scale-up and involvement of others; they purposefully track results. Growing effective approaches is critical to access and opportunity and CLD-gifted learners’ talent development.

The client-centred approach as experienced by male neurological rehabilitation clients in occupational therapy. A qualitative study based on a grounded theory tradition

Purpose To explore the perspectives of male clients in a neurological rehabilitation setting with regard to the occupational therapy they have received and the client-centred approach. Method This study involved a qualitative research design based on the grounded theory tradition. Individual in-depth interviews were used to collect data. Data were analysed using a constant comparative method. Seven male participants from an inpatient neurological setting were included using a theoretical sampling technique. Results Three themes emerged to describe the approach of the therapists to client-centred practice: (a) a shared biomedical focus as the start of the rehabilitation process, (b) the un-simultaneous shift from a biomedical towards a psycho-social focus and (c) formal versus informal nature of gathering client information. Conclusion A client-centred approach entails a shift from the therapist focussing on recovery from the short-term neurological issues towards the long-term consequences of the disease. According to the client, this shift in reasoning must occur at a specific and highly subjective moment during the rehabilitation process. Identifying this moment could strengthen the client-centred approach.Implications for RehabilitationClient-centred practice entails a shift from recovering the short-term neurological issues towards the long-term psycho-social consequences of the disease.To be effective in client-centred practice, the clients expect from the professional to be an authority with regard to biomedical issues and to be partner with regard to psycho-social issues.Client-centred practice is most likely to be successful when client is susceptible to discuss his psycho-social issues and finding this moment is a challenge for the professional.Using formal methods for goal setting do not necessarily cover all the information needed for a client-centred therapy programme. Rather, using informal methods could lead to a more valid image of the client.

A Study of Student Radiographers' Learning Experiences in Imaging Obese Patients

IntroductionAs the prevalence of obesity rises, radiographers must be capable of producing high-quality radiographs despite difficulties presented such as inadequate radiation penetration, increased scatter/poor image quality, and compromised surface anatomy palpation. Greater awareness and development of strategies are required because current scientific literature and learning resources addressing radiographic imaging of obese patients may be inadequate for student radiographers. This study investigates the confidence, perceived competence, and learning experiences of student radiographers imaging obese patients. MethodsAfter ethics approval, a qualitative study in a grounded theory tradition was conducted through focus groups with second- and third-year diagnostic radiography students (31 participants over six focus groups). ResultsKey concepts of experiential learning during placement, radiographic technique, and student confidence were identified as influential at the student-supervisor level. Key concepts of negativity toward obese patients by supervising radiographers and communication operated at the patient-student-radiographer level. Students stated difficulty applying theoretical teachings in a practical sense because of their limited experience in accounting for anatomic variations and increased adipose tissue, and their difficulty was linked to specific anatomic regions. ConclusionStudents were challenged by knowledge of exposure factors and limited practical-simulated learning when imaging obese patients. Additionally, participants rated current learning resources as inadequate and preferred to be paired with a qualified radiographer for confidence and manual handling issues. Students reported negative weight bias toward obese patients by qualified/senior radiographers, and this may influence the empathy and attitudes of student radiographers.

Allen, D.The Invisible Work of Nurses: Hospitals, Organisations and Healthcare. London: Routledge. 2014. 170pp £85 ISBN 978–0‐41572325–1 (hbk)

Allen, D.The Invisible Work of Nurses: Hospitals, Organisations and Healthcare. London: Routledge. 2014. 170pp £85 ISBN 978–0‐41572325–1 (hbk)

Exploring classroom feedback interactions around EAP writing: A data based model

This paper is based on case study research in the grounded theory tradition. In this paper we describe and theorise feedback interactions on EAP writing which were observed in classes in our institution. Working from detailed descriptions of feedback incidents and from interviews with teachers and students, we theorise a series of teacher and student actions. We argue that combinations of these actions are both reflective and constitutive of patterns of teacher–student relationships in the classes observed. Using interview data, we explore factors which may influence the nature of the actions and relationships which we have modelled. We also comment on the possible consequences for learners' ongoing understanding of academic writing.