Participatory theme elicitation: open card sorting for user led qualitative data analysis

Figures & data

Figure 1. Network diagram: The network of excerpts (shaded circles), with the thickness of the edge indicating the number of so-researchers who sorted the pair of excerpts into the same pile. The colour indicates groups identified in Step 3: Group 1 (light blue); Group 2 (green); Group 3 (pink); Group 4 (red); Group 5 (yellow) and Group 6 (orange).

Table 1. List of group 1 excerpts

Number	Excerpt Text	Central
Group 1
ID01	I think, when it started, there were one or two just technical things that … weren’t a big deal but, in some way, kind of did interrupt the flow of the conversation. So, that was quite distracting.
ID03	the technology was just a wee bit of an issue, but … I think resolved itself because when [we] moved into an office in our building where we have a good system	X
ID08	So, I think it’s less easy on a videoconferencing call to actually pick up any non-verbals of the other people who are not talking.
ID20	In terms of attendances and stuff, it was quite low, so … that sort of hindered me getting the full experience from what an online support group could be.
ID21	I really found that extremely difficult … in terms of syncing the voice when we were talking … trying to be sensitive, pick up on tones and moods … and even looking at the people and their body language
ID34	I thought it would have been nice to maybe have a few more men that I would be able to relate to, because people like myself, obviously, we question ourselves … I think we suffer in silence, that’s the problem.
ID46	The only like bad thing was some people … you would talk over each other sometimes, but that even happens face-to-face, but that’s about it. It was grand otherwise.

Recruitment of Co-researchers

Participant	Gender	Step 2 Capacity Building	Step 3 Data Sorting	Step 5 Data Analysis
Co-researcher 1	Male	X	X	X
Co-researcher 2	Male	X	X	X
Co-researcher 3	Female	X	X	X
Co-researcher 4	Female	X	X	X
Co-researcher 5	Female	X	X	X
Co-researcher 6	Female	X	X
Co-researcher 7	Male	X	X	X
Co-researcher 8	Female	X	X
Co-researcher 9	Female	X	X

Full list of excerpts and groups produced during Step Four

Number	Excerpt Text	Central
Group 1
ID01	I think, when it started, there were one or two just technical things that… weren’t a big deal but, in some way, kind of did interrupt the flow of the conversation. So, that was quite distracting.
ID03	the technology was just a wee bit of an issue, but… I think resolved itself because when [we] moved into an office in our building where we have a good system	X
ID08	So, I think it’s less easy on a videoconferencing call to actually pick up any non-verbals of the other people who are not talking.
ID20	In terms of attendances and stuff, it was quite low, so… that sort of hindered me getting the full experience from what an online support group could be.
ID21	I really found that extremely difficult… in terms of syncing the voice when we were talking… trying to be sensitive, pick up on tones and moods… and even looking at the people and their body language
ID34	I thought it would have been nice to maybe have a few more men that I would be able to relate to, because people like myself, obviously, we question ourselves… I think we suffer in silence, that’s the problem.
ID46	The only like bad thing was some people… you would talk over each other sometimes, but that even happens face-to-face, but that’s about it. It was grand otherwise.
Group 2
ID06	I think my part in the group was more conversational than it might be in a face-to-face group, where I probably would have said far less, largely because the face-to-face groups tend to be bigger.	X
ID07	When you’re in a group (face-to-face), you’re very much… in someone else’s building and it probably isn’t as easy to feel as comfortable to maybe be as conversational as maybe we were in the… on the online group.
ID16	There may be people who may feel more comfortable with the teleconferencing… the fact that they’re in their own home, rather than having the anxiety and… sometimes the discomfort that you can find when you have to take yourself out of that safe space and you have to go in to another space.
ID24	I think the number one reason (wanted online support) is that I do get a little bit anxious in a group of people that I don’t know.
ID26	I felt like I could open up a lot more than I would do in a room full of people. It felt a lot more comfortable for me.
ID32	Whenever sometimes you feel very down, you just don’t really feel like… getting yourself all dressed up and having to go out. You kind of just want to be in the comfort of your own home, but also talk to someone and feel close to someone… and you do feel so much better after it. So, I’d definitely recommend it.	X
ID36	I would recommend it (online support) to people. One benefit of the online session of course would be that you can just link in from your phone and you don’t have to anywhere… you just don’t have to travel.
ID38	I mainly wanted online because I don’t do very good in public, in groups… online I could do it from the comfort of my own home.	X
ID39	It helped me even more. The fact it was online, I was probably able to be more open with them (group facilitators)… if I’d been in a group, I probably would have sat there and kept my mouth shut.
ID45	I went to the doctor and obviously the waiting list was so long, so I turned [to online]… You don’t have to get like ready to go anywhere or anything, don’t have to face getting up and going somewhere, so – it’s better, I think, to do it online.
ID48	Yes, definitely (would recommend online support) because I know there’s lots of people who do find it hard to get up and get out, so doing it from the comfort of your own house and sitting just doing it online can definitely be beneficial for some people.
ID49	I do need more help and I thought a group would be a good idea, and the online one, I thought would suit my lifestyle better… and also less personal.
Group 3
ID04	I think it’s good that we see each other, and people who have been on the calls, not all of them have been used to Skype and yet it’s been a system that people have got used to very quickly.
ID05	It seems to work with most settings, you can just use it from your phone.
ID11	I actually found it quite easy to engage with the users, and I found it quite easy to communicate with them, and we didn’t seem to have any problems going back and forth.
ID22	The protocol (facilitator handbook) did help… it would be very supportive.
ID27	I didn’t have a problem with the questions at all (when registering to take part). I don’t think they did (take long to complete).
ID30	It was no problem for me (using technology). I’ve used it in the past. Sometimes I used my phone to get on and chat, so I don’t have to drag the laptop out all the time, so it’s handy.	X
ID40	Now that I’ve used it, because that was the very first time I’d ever used Skype, I would use it again, didn’t see any problem with it then once it got up and running.
Group 4
ID02	Now, it has been a small group, but even at that, people listen well and have been really good at taking their turn, so it’s been very positive
ID09	I’ve found that whenever we were able to get people engaged and connected to the sessions, the sessions went very well.
ID14	So, I think the best thing to do is just to… focus on the positives of the service and promote that, because, from what I did see from talking to the members that were using the service regularly, I could see and I could hear a difference in them, and they did seem to be benefiting from it.
ID18	Overall, I found it a very interesting and a very enjoyable experience (facilitating an online group).	X
ID19	When I was actually talking to the people on the online support group, I found… it ran very much like a normal group in terms of how you would support people.
ID25	So, it’s been really good for me, and it’s brought me a little bit closer to other people, even though it’s online. I can feel like a wee bit closer, and I don’t feel so left out.
ID28	No, I think, (facilitator) is great… She actually comes in and she says, well, I can relate, and this is what happened to me”. I think she’s amazing.
ID31	Absolutely (been a benefit). It’s been really nice to [sighing]… to have people that listen… when other people are chatting, and I can offer maybe some advice – this is just some techniques or something that you could do that I do. It’s something that I do look forward to.
ID35	The facilitator was great. I don’t know how difficult it would be for (facilitator) to manage a bigger group, but certainly, for the numbers that we were talking about, nobody felt that they didn’t get a chance to share how they were feeling.
ID41	One of the benefits was, just being able to open up to somebody, with my problems, that would listen to me and gave me some great advice.. it’s actually got me out of an abusive relationship, for a start… so that’s a very, very positive thing that came out of it.
ID42	Oh God, yeah, definitely (would recommend to others). I’ve already mentioned to a couple of people about it, and I’ve said how brilliant it was, how very, very good and how helpful it was.	X
ID44	An interesting finding is that an interviewee had mentioned … .that she is now looking at joining the other services offered by us.	X
ID47	I like somewhere that I can actually speak openly about stuff… there’s people there that are going through the same thing and they can understand and relate.
Group 5
ID13	So, I think with the face-to-face group, there’s a bit of an onus on the individual to make it to the meeting, whereas, with an online support session, the user may just think, ‘You know something, I don’t really feel up to this today’, and it may not feel as real and as concrete for them because they may feel it’s more of a virtual session rather than a real session.
ID15	I think in terms… if you’re looking to deliver a support service, it’s important to have a good support model in place (referring to facilitator handbook).	X
ID33	Obviously, the bigger the group, the more interaction, the less time there is perhaps for individual participation, but at the same time, maybe you would hear from a lot more people, from a broader range.
ID43	I thought more people would have actually jumped at the chance to get into it. Unless putting a testimonial… about somebody being afraid of using Skype but then found it so beneficial or so easy to use in the end… because I think that might be what the stumbling block is.
Group 6
ID10	I just think that the technology got in the way a little bit because, if you’d be talking to someone, there’d be a little bit of feedback… when you’re not there to pick up on non-verbal cues as easily, it can be a little bit challenging.
ID12	Maybe a little bit of training around Skype might be useful, just to be fully familiar with it, and then just to explore, small things that might make the service a little bit better or might ensure that things are smoother.
ID17	I would say… if this was going forward, perhaps we have a designated space where online facilitation happens, and if it was just AWARE’s own logo types and… information there… this isn’t just a facilitator sitting in his house doing this.
ID23	Whenever you’re signing up to register, it’s easy to do that because there’s no big commitment there and you’re not paying any money… so as your motivation or your mood would change, then that could be a barrier to coming along, or maybe it was just easy to go and click a button and say, oh, that looks interesting, like I would do with a lot of stuff online.
ID29	I think the only thing is that sometimes an hour is not long enough [laughing]!
ID37	But I do feel though that you need to be aware of the technology, how it works – and there’s a lot of elderly men and women, they’re horrified at the prospect of having to learn something new or to maybe manage something technically.

Spreadsheet Input during Step Four

Excerpt	Participant	Pile/Group Label
ID1	P1	Gp6
ID2	P1	Gp3
ID3	P1	Gp6
ID4	P1	Gp1
ID1	P2	Gp2
ID2	P2	Gp5

Number of Excerpts within each group

Group 1	Group 2	Group 3	Group 4	Group 5	Group 6
7	12	7	13	4	6

aGroup 6 included the remaining excerpts that didn’t fall into other groupings

Summary of themes developed across groups

Group Number	Proposed groups	Final Group	Theme Label
1	ID01, ID03, ID08, ID20, ID21, ID34, ID46	ID01, ID03, ID08, ID10a, ID21, ID34, ID46	Challenges of using the online service
2	ID06, ID07, ID16, ID24, ID26, ID32, ID36, ID38, ID39, ID45, ID48, ID49	ID04a, ID06, ID07, ID11a ID16, ID24, ID26, ID30a ID32, ID36, ID38, ID39 ID45, ID48, ID49	Benefits of using the online service
3	ID04, ID05, ID11, ID22, ID27, ID30, ID40	ID04, ID05, ID11, ID27, ID30, ID40	Role of technology in facilitating help-seeking
4	ID02, ID09, ID14, ID18, ID19, ID25, ID28, ID31, ID35, ID41, ID42, ID44, ID47	ID02, ID09, ID14, ID18, ID19, ID25, ID31, ID41, ID42, ID44, ID47	Therapeutic processes and outcomes within an online context
5	ID13, ID15, ID33, ID43	No thematic pattern identified	N/A
6	ID10, ID12, ID17, ID23, ID29, ID37	ID12, ID17, ID29, ID37, ID43a	Service Improvements

aMoved from original group or used across multiple groups/themes