Hello, AEA365 community! Liz DiLuzio here, Lead Curator of the blog. This week is Individuals Week, which means we take a break from our themed weeks and spotlight the Hot Tips, Cool Tricks, Rad Resources and Lessons Learned from any evaluator interested in sharing. Would you like to contribute to future individuals weeks? Email me at AEA365@eval.org with an idea or a draft and we will make it happen.
Hi, I’m Liane M. Ventura, MPH. I am a Research Associate in the Center for Applied Research and Evaluation in Women’s Health at East Tennessee State University. My primary role is leading a longitudinal qualitative research study to evaluate a statewide contraceptive access initiative. I also have a community health consulting practice where I provide technical assistance to practice-based organizations, including program evaluation services.
Qualitative data provides rich context for program evaluation and can foster an understanding about the process of implementation and/or the experiences and perceptions of program participants. Thematic analysis is a common qualitative method applied in program evaluation.
When conducting a thematic analysis, it is helpful to use a theory or framework to guide the process of data collection, coding, and analysis. Theories and frameworks help to organize program evaluation efforts through highlighting key constructs and hypothesizing relationships about those constructs. Some behavioral health theories include: the Theory of Planned Behavior, Social Cognitive Theory, and the Health Belief Model. Two prominent implementation science frameworks are the RE-AIM framework and the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research.
In a recent project that explored contraceptive access among federally qualified health centers in South Carolina, I adapted the A’s of Access framework. The framework helped to guide the qualitative analysis of key informant interview data. The study aim was to assess clinic staff perceptions of contraceptive access during a contraceptive access initiative called Choose Well. Specifically, I focused on the “availability” component of the A’s of Access framework to better understand whether and how three key constructs influenced contraceptive access: clinical factors, administrative factors, and sustainability of external funding. I constructed a theoretical diagram to consider the relationship between the codes that enabled me to make sense of the codes and to discuss the findings in a meaningful and relevant way (Ventura et al., 2021).
Hot Tip
When applying a theory or framework, it is helpful to start from the beginning. For example, a guiding theory or framework can help you to structure your data collection instrument and think through appropriate questions to ask of your participants. Similarly, theories and frameworks can help to develop a coding structure, codes, and emergent themes. The theory or framework helps to explain the relationship between the emergent elements coming from the dataset and brings the “story” of the data to life.
Rad Resources
Using thematic analysis in psychology discusses a 6-step process for thematic analysis.
Doing a thematic analysis: A practical, step-by-step guide for learning and teaching scholars provides more information about how to conduct a thematic analysis.
Using the framework method for the analysis of qualitative data in multi-disciplinary health research explains how to apply frameworks.
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