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Chapter 5

Interpretative
Phenomenological Analysis
Jonathan A. Smith and Pnina Shinebourne
Copyright American Psychological Association. Not for further distribution.

Interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) is a attended closely to human experience in its own
recently developed qualitative approach to psychol- terms, rather than according to a predetermined cate-
ogy. This chapter describes the core features of IPA gory system. For the psychologist, this means as far
and its theoretical underpinnings. It then provides a as possible bracketing ones preconceptions and
step-by-step outline to conduct a study using IPA allowing the phenomenon to speak for itself. This
from data collection through analysis to writing up. philosophical program was extended by the phenom-
Each stage is illustrated with examples from a enologists who followed Husserl. Heidegger (1962)
project exploring the experience of women in reha- was particularly concerned with the way in which
bilitation for addiction problems. our experience always occurs and is made sense of
within a situated context. For Merleau-Ponty (1962)
a key factor was the importance of our bodies in
Core Features
enabling experience, and for Sartre (1943) a primary
IPA is concerned with lived experience. Experience concern was our relations with others. One can see
covers quite a lot of territory. For example, just how each of these thinkers is making their own con-
walking down the road involves experience. There- tribution to a holistic account of human experience,
fore it is useful to consider Dilthey’s (1976) distinc- and IPA draws on this holistic phenomenology as the
tion between experience and “an experience.” underpinning for its approach.
Something becomes an experience when it is impor- Although IPA is concerned with experience and
tant to us, and IPA is almost always concerned with the meaning of experience to people, it recognizes
this type of experience. Examples of experiential that this experience cannot be transparently
research questions that would lend themselves to extracted from people’s heads—rather, it involves a
the IPA approach are as follows: What is the impact process of engagement and interpretation on the
on patients of receiving a positive genetic test result part of the researcher. Therefore IPA is also influ-
for Huntington’s disease? What sense of home do enced by hermeneutics, the theory of interpretation.
recent immigrants have? How do elite sports per- Hermeneutics began by offering guides to the inter-
formers conceptualize their activity? pretation of religious texts, clearly a major feature of
IPA has three primary theoretical touchstones: academic pursuit as first constituted. Over time,
phenomenology, hermeneutics, and idiography. Phe- however, hermeneutics has extended its remit and
nomenology is the philosophical movement primar- now engages with all interpretation.
ily concerned with human lived experience. The Heidegger (1962) was a student of Husserl’s
philosopher Edmund Husserl, founder of the school and took on the intellectual mantle of pheno­
of phenomenology, argued for an approach that menology. One of the major ways in which

Thanks to two editors of this volume for helpful comments on a previous version of this chapter.

DOI: 10.1037/13620-005
APA Handbook of Research Methods in Psychology: Vol. 2. Research Designs, H. Cooper (Editor-in-Chief)
73
Copyright © 2012 by the American Psychological Association. All rights reserved.
Smith and Shinebourne

Heidegger distinguished himself from Husserl was IPA can be used in a wide range of areas. It can
in arguing that the phenomenological project be seen to be working at its best with research topics
required the type of interpretative process we are that are relatively new, however, for which we do
describing: not know much about or in areas that are inherently
complex or ambiguous. Although IPA can be used
Phenomenology is seeking after a mean-
to ask participants about topics which are not of
ing which is perhaps hidden by the enti-
current import and that therefore involve cool
ty’s mode of appearing. In that case the
reflection, it is much more effective when engaged
proper model for seeking meaning is the
in topics involving hot cognition—that is, the partici-
interpretation of a text and for this reason
pant is concerned with something of existential
Heidegger links phenomenology with
import in the here and now or recent past. In this
hermeneutics. (Moran, 2000, p. 229)
sort of project, one can often hear, during an inter-
Smith and Osborn (2003) have described the view, the participant wrestling in real time with
Copyright American Psychological Association. Not for further distribution.

psychological process of examining experience as something important that is happening to them.


involving a double hermeneutic. The participant is This significance and currency is then made mani-
trying to make sense of what is happening to them. fest in the resultant transcript and lends itself to a
And the researcher is trying to make sense of the fuller and richer analysis. For a full account of the
participant trying to make sense of what is happen- philosophical and theoretical foundations of IPA,
ing to them. This points to the way in which the see Smith, Flowers, and Larkin (2009).
researcher is similar to the participant and shares a IPA is not the only phenomenological approach.
common humanity, drawing on the same skills and The best known alternative is Giorgi’s phenomeno-
techniques that the participant has. At the same logical psychology (Giorgi & Giorgi, 2008). IPA dif-
time, the researcher is different from the participant. fers from Giorgi’s method in that Giorgi considers
The researcher only has entrée to the participant’s his approach to be operationalizing a descriptive
experience through access provided by that partici- Husserlian procedure, whereas IPA is interpretative
pant, and then the researcher engages in a process of and less wedded to a particular phenomenlogical
interpretation more systematically and fully than the tradition. Giorgi is also more concerned with
participant usually does. attempting to ascertain the general structure of a
IPA is an idiographic approach: It is especially con- phenomenon, whereas IPA is more concerned with
cerned with the particular experience of the individ- capturing the individual nuance of experience. IPA
ual. Although it does not eschew more general claims, shares a considerable amount of ground with
such generalizations can only be made after a careful Benner’s (1994) interpretive phenomenology, which
examination of accounts of experience, on a case-by- is focused particularly on a Heideggarian analysis of
case basis. Most research, quantitative and qualitative, caring, and with Van Manen’s (1990) phenomenol-
is by contrast nomothetic—that is, it is concerned ogy of pedagogy and writing.
with an analysis at the level of the population or group
rather than the individual. IPA’s commitment to idiog-
Design
raphy is most obviously demonstrated in the case
study, and there is a growing corpus of IPA case study As discussed, IPA research is concerned with an in-
research (e.g., see de Visser & Smith, 2006; Eatough & depth exploration of lived experience and with how
Smith, 2006). More commonly, however, an IPA people are making sense of that lived experience.
study involves a small number of cases each analyzed The focal point of an IPA study is therefore guided
in turn. The researcher then moves to look for pat- by open and exploratory research questions. Exhibit
terns across cases but tries to retain the individual 5.1 illustrates the research questions guiding a proj-
detail and nuance of the case. Therefore, the best IPA ect conducted by the authors exploring the experi-
presents an analysis of convergence and divergence ence of women in rehabilitation for addiction
within its participant sample. problems (Shinebourne & Smith, 2009).

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Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis

a small number of participants, it is sensible to aim


Exhibit 5.1 for a fairly homogeneous sample. The aim then is to
Research Questions From Project Exploring look in detail at psychological similarities and differ-
the Experience of Women in Rehabilitation for ences within a group that has been defined as similar
Addiction Problems according to important variables. So, for example, in
a study on how well the participants think the U.S.
■■ How do the participants describe their experiences of president is performing, one might decide to con-
addiction and recovery? duct this particular study on young, first-time vot-
■■ In what contexts do their experiences occur? ing, working-class, Black women. The aim is to look
■■ How do the participants understand and make sense of
at this particular group in detail and then bound the
their experiences of addiction and recovery?
■■ How are individual differences reflected in the partici- claims that can be made. The next study can look at
pants’ accounts of their experiences with alcohol or drug a different group (e.g., young, first-time voting,
addiction and recovery? working-class, Black men) and so forth. Making a
Copyright American Psychological Association. Not for further distribution.

Note. From Qualitative Research Methods in decision on the extent of homogeneity is guided
Psychology: Combining Core Approaches (p. 54), partly by interpretative concerns (degree of similar-
by N. Frost (Ed.), 2011, Maidenhead, England: ity or variation that can be contained in the analysis
Open University. Copyright 2011 by McGraw-Hill.
of the phenomenon) and partly by pragmatic consid-
Reprinted with permission.
erations (ease or difficulty of contacting potential
participants, relative rarity of the phenomenon).
The questions are broad and open, aiming to Sample size tends to vary according to the
explore in detail participants’ accounts of lived expe- research question and the quality of data obtained.
rience. In this example, the first two questions are For example, the rehabilitation project incorporated
descriptive. The third question opens up a space for two separate studies: a single case study of one par-
participants to reflect on how they make sense of ticipant whose account was particularly detailed and
their experience. The fourth question encourages nuanced, and a second study of six participants. In
the participants and the researcher to stay focused this way, it was possible to develop the analysis of
on the particular detail, texture, and nuance of each the single case in considerable depth. At the same
participant’s account. time, the study of six participants provided suffi-
cient cases for examining similarities and differences
between participants but not so many as to over-
Sampling
whelm the researchers by the amount of data gener-
In line with the theoretical underpinnings of IPA, ated. In the second study, homogeneity was
participants are selected purposively because they achieved by using the following inclusion criteria:
can offer access to a particular perspective on the participants needed to be women, between the ages
phenomena being studied. IPA makes a strong case of 31 and 52, based in the same rehabilitation pro-
for a single case study. A detailed analysis of a single gram, and within 1 to 2 years of starting their reha-
case would be justified when one has a particularly bilitation program. Potential participants can be
rich or compelling case. A detailed single case study reached by approaching relevant groups, agencies,
offers opportunities to learn a great deal about the or gatekeepers; through personal contacts; or
particular person and their response to a specific sit- through snowballing, that is, asking participants as
uation as well as to consider connection between dif- they are recruited whether they know other people
ferent aspects of the person’s account (Smith, 2004). who may be interested in participating.
More commonly, researchers conduct IPA studies
with a small sample of participants rather than just
Data Collection
one. IPA research is conducted on a small sample
size because the detailed examination of a case-by- IPA requires a data collection method that will
case analysis is elaborate and time-consuming. With invite participants to offer rich, detailed, first-person

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Smith and Shinebourne

accounts of experiences and phenomena. The


majority of IPA studies have used semistructured, Exhibit 5.2
in-depth, one-on-one interviews. The advantage of Part of the Interview Schedule From Project
using semistructured interviews is that they enable Exploring the Experience of Women in
the researcher and the participant to engage in a dia- Rehabilitation for Addiction Problems
logue in real time, and they afford a flexibility to fol-
low up important issues that come up in the 1. Can you tell me what place alcohol and drugs have in your
participant’s account. It is possible, however, to use life at the moment?
other methods suitable for collecting detailed verbal Possible prompts: What happens? How do you feel? How
do you cope?
accounts, for example, diaries (e.g., Smith, 1999),
2. Can you tell me about a recent time when you used alcohol
focus groups (e.g., Flowers, Knussen, & Duncan, or drugs?
2001), and e-mail dialogues (Turner, Barlow, & Possible prompts: What happened? How did you feel? How
Ilbery, 2002). did you cope?
Copyright American Psychological Association. Not for further distribution.

3. Can you describe how alcohol, drinking, and using drugs


With semistructured interviews, preparing an affect your relation with other people?
interview schedule in advance is helpful to keep the Possible prompts: Partner, family, friends, work
focus on the specific research area and to anticipate colleagues?
possible difficulties, for example, in wording sensi- 4. Can you tell me how you started drinking or using drugs?
Possible prompts: How long ago? What do you think
tive questions. The example in Exhibit 5.2 illustrates brought this about?
an interview schedule that was developed for the 5. Have you changed the ways you used alcohol or drugs over
rehabilitation project. time?
Possible prompts: In what ways? Does anything make it
The questions are open and expansive, encourag-
better? Does anything make it worse? How do you feel
ing participants to talk at length. At the same time, it about these changes?
is helpful to prepare specific prompts as participants 6. What would be for you a positive development?
may find some questions too general or abstract. To Possible prompts: How can your situation improve? Can
you imagine what it would feel like?
reduce potential unease in the interview situation, it
is usually helpful to start the interview with a Note. From the doctoral dissertation Women’s
descriptive question about the present before asking Experience of Addiction and Recovery (p. 111),
by P. Shinebourne, 2010, London, England:
questions about potentially sensitive issues and Birkbeck University of London. Copyright 2010
questions inviting reflection. by P. Shinebourne. Adapted with permission.
An IPA interview typically lasts for an hour or
longer. It is not necessary to follow the sequence of
the interview schedule or to ask all the questions in the participant. It may be prudent to proceed gently
exactly the same way of each participant. As the dia- or to avoid pursuing some questions if the participant
logue evolves, the researcher may decide to vary the appears uncomfortable. In IPA research, it is neces-
order of the questions or to make space for a novel sary to audio record the interviews and to transcribe
perspective that has not been anticipated but the whole interview verbatim. This means producing
appears particularly pertinent to the participant. a transcript with everything said by the participant
The participant is the experiential expert on this and researcher with spaces to mark conversational
particular topic. The schedule is merely a guide to turns and with wide margins to allow analytic notes.
facilitate the participant giving their account. It is Conducting good interviews requires a high level
critical that the participant is given considerable lee- of skill. The interviewer needs to establish rapport at
way in how the interview proceeds, and it is incum- the outset, listen attentively to what the participant
bent on the researcher to probe interesting and is saying to judge how to phrase the next question,
potentially important issues as they arise. and manage the interview flow so a calm and reflec-
Because most IPA studies are concerned with sig- tive atmosphere is created. It may well take a con-
nificant existential issues for the participants, it is siderable amount of practice before a researcher
important to monitor how the interview is affecting feels confident that he or she is interviewing well.

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Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis

Analysis Although still grounded in the particular detail of


the participant’s account, the researcher aims to
IPA provides flexible guidelines for analysis that can be
formulate a concise phrase at a slightly higher level
adapted by researchers in accordance with their research
of abstraction that may refer to a more psychological
aims. Analysis in IPA is a complex, iterative, and multi-
conceptualization. At this stage, the researcher will
directional process, but for the purpose of illustrating
inevitably also be influenced by having already
the process, it is useful to describe distinct stages.
annotated the transcript as a whole. It is an iterative
The initial stage consists of becoming immersed
process and, in the movement of the hermeneutic
in the data through close reading of the transcript a
circle, the part is interpreted in relation to the whole
number of times. Each reading may provide some
and the whole is interpreted in relation to the part.
new insights. At this stage, the researcher may note
Exhibit 5.4 represents the emergent themes for the
observations and reflections about the interview
same extract from Alison, with the themes added in
experience or any other thoughts and comments of
the right-hand margin.
Copyright American Psychological Association. Not for further distribution.

potential significance. Notes and comments may


The next stage consists of looking for connec-
focus on content, language use (features such as
tions between the emerging themes, grouping them
metaphors and other figures of speech, repetition,
together according to conceptual similarities and
pauses), context, and initial interpretative com-
providing a label for each cluster. Sometimes some
ments. It is useful to highlight distinctive phrases
themes act like a magnet pulling other themes
and emotional responses. We illustrate this process
toward them. The emerging themes in this case
in Exhibit 5.3, which contains a short extract from
study can be grouped by different configurations of
an interview with Alison (name changed), one of
the relation between Alison and the world: focusing
the participants in the addiction rehabilitation
on self in relation to itself, self in relation to alcohol,
study, with the initial comments added in the left-
self in relation to others, and self in relation to
hand margin.
recovery. The process is iterative because it is
The next stage requires the researcher to
necessary to ensure that the clusters make sense in
transform the initial notes into emerging themes.

Exhibit 5.3
Initial Comments

Original transcript Exploratory comments


Probably on the way to getting drunk I enjoyed it but it was very short lived because   short-term enjoyment
I used to drink so much right at the start and I was sort of remembering falling
into this kind of lull of contentment, I suppose for a while, and suddenly feel, oh,   “lull”—metaphoric, indicates a
I feel better now, I feel alright I can actually talk and be sociable and be the person sense of foreboding, lull before the
everyone wants me to be and be happy and, you know, do all that, entertain storm? pleasing others
everyone, you know, and I’d start to kind of really entertain everyone being,
feeling very loving towards everyone and hugging everyone and stuff and then   change personality—acting out a
beyond that stage I never knew how I was, and it’s, I would like change personality character
almost and become like I’m I don’t know, like a showgirl, I suppose, so I would
start performing you know, sorts of props, hats, sticks, chairs, whatever I could
find, ahm, and just be very entertaining, I never upset anyone, ahm, you know,
I never got aggressive or anything like that at all, I just, it was just almost like
my body was taking over a character from vaudeville or something like that, you know,   embodying a character
[laughing] which of course everyone loved, you know, so the more I was like that it’s   feeling loved only when
hard talking about it actually [crying] [pause, recollects herself] so I was, I was that   acting out another character—self-
character everyone loved, that person, so I suppose I got caught in a trap of being like esteem issues?
that, and having to drink so much in order to get to that person I did not know sober.   “caught in a trap”—inevitability,
passivity, false promises

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Smith and Shinebourne

Exhibit 5.4
Developing Emergent Themes

Original transcript Emerging themes


probably on the way to getting drunk I enjoyed it but it was very short Escalating drinking
lived because I used to drink so much right at the start and I was
sort of remembering falling into this kind of lull of contentment,
I suppose for a while, and suddenly feel, oh, I feel better now, I Positive drinking experience
feel alright I can actually talk and be sociable and be the person
everyone wants me to be and be happy and, you know, do all
that, entertain everyone, you know, and I’d start to kind of really Pleasing others
entertain everyone being, feeling very loving towards everyone and
hugging everyone and stuff and then beyond that stage I never
Copyright American Psychological Association. Not for further distribution.

knew how I was, and it’s, I would like change personality almost Changing self through drink
and become like I’m I don’t know, like a showgirl, I suppose, so
I would start performing you know, sorts of props, hats, sticks,
chairs, whatever I could find, ahm, and just be very entertaining, Projection of self into another person
I never upset anyone, ahm, you know, I never got aggressive or
anything like that at all, I just, it was just almost like my body was
taking over a character from vaudeville or something like that, you The process of becoming the other self
know, [laughing] which of course everyone loved, you know, so
the more I was like that it’s hard talking about it actually [crying]
[pause, recollects herself] so I was, I was that character everyone
loved, that person, so I suppose I got caught in a trap of being like
that, and having to drink so much in order to get to that person I Low self-esteem
did not know sober. Ambivalence

relation to the original transcript. Exhibit 5.5 shows


a part of this process for Alison. Exhibit 5.5
Following this, the thematic relationship is pre- Initial Clustering of Themes (Extract)
sented graphically in a table of themes. Exhibit 5.6
shows the structure of major themes, themes, and Perception of self
subthemes and, for each theme or subtheme, it also   Low self-esteem
includes a relevant short extract from the transcript,   Moral judgments of self
  Positive appraisals of self
followed by the line number, so that it is possible to
  Metaphors expressing perception of self (e.g., mixture
return to the transcript and check the extract in con- of water and fire)
text. As Eatough and Smith (2006) wrote:   The self as a process of becoming
Relations with others
For the researcher, this table is the out-   Pleasing others
come of an iterative process in which   Dysfunctional relationships
  Fear of being rejected by others
she/he has moved back and forth   Family dynamics
between the various analytic stages   Support from others
ensuring that the integrity of what the Experience of self as drunk
participant said has been preserved as   Escalating drinking
far as possible. If the researcher has been   Positive drinking experience
successful, then it should be possible for   Harmful experience of being drunk
  Metaphoric expressions for the experience of being
someone else to track the analytic jour- drunk (wave, the sea)
ney from the raw data through to the end   The self-changing through drinking
table. (p. 120)

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Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis

We illustrate this process in Exhibit 5.6, which thereby influencing the analysis of the subsequent
shows the first superordinate theme, self in relation transcripts. Following from IPA’s idiographic com-
to alcohol, and the three interrelated themes com- mitment, however, it is important to keep an open
prising it. Exhibit 5.6 represents the analysis of a mind to allow new themes to emerge from each
case study of one participant. And one could pro- transcript. The process is iterative as earlier tran-
ceed from here to write up this case. More usually a scripts are reviewed in the light of new themes.
project involves more than one case. This involves Finally a table of themes for the study as a whole is
repeating the whole process for each participant and constructed. In this process, the individual tables are
constructing a table of themes for each transcript. reviewed and checked again with the transcripts. At
Inevitably, the analysis of the first case will become this stage, it may be possible to combine some
part of the hermeneutic circle of understanding, themes or to reduce the data, making decisions
Copyright American Psychological Association. Not for further distribution.

Exhibit 5.6
Superordinate Theme 1: Self in Relation to
Alcohol (Including Illustrative Extract for Each Theme and Line Numbers)

A. The experience of the self as drunk   I could feel myself changing 478
Metaphoric expressions of the experience of being drunk   I look very different 1161
  Big wave 449 Feeling the other self
  At sea 457   It feels a part of me but it does not really feel the whole
  Even if you were sitting on the beach . . . you’d get of me 1094–1095
caught back in 460   Feeling totally in my body 1052
Escalating drinking   It feels amazing to kind of connect immediately 1055–1056
  On the way to getting drunk I enjoyed it 28 The porous body
  It would just spiral and spiral 25   When you are drunk you are open to spirits visiting your
  Beyond that stage I never knew how I was 35 body 475
The harmful experience of being drunk   I feel like I am a vessel 477
  Completely out of control around alcohol 14   Things probably come through me 1106
  Having blackouts, memory loss 15 The self as a process of becoming
  I could have done myself in by accident 574   From one day to the next I really do change 1110
The high and the low of the drinking experience   Evolving now 1113
  Creative and energetic and interesting 498   There needs to be more like a centre to me 1108
  Feelings of like fun and excitement 495 C. Perception of the self
  Alcohol actually helps me with my general flow 846 Metaphors expressing perception of self
  Unlocking some sort of artistic feeling 496   Mixture of water and fire 809
  Washed up and deplete 502   A bit ground 818
  Very tearful and self-remorseful 503   I don’t have metal at all 822
Ambivalence and dilemmas Positive appraisals of self
  I feel too scared of the blackouts 75   I am caring towards hopefully everyone 169 Intuitive 170
  I am not completely giving up alcohol 3   Quiet and contemplative 66
  If only I could get to that without so much alcohol 488 Negative appraisals of self
B. I created such a character for myself   I can’t really assert myself 1015
The self-changing through drinking   No sense of self-worth 602
  Having to drink so much in order to get to this person 44–45   Not valuing myself 224
  I would change personality 35 Moral judgments of self
  I was that character everyone loved 43   Guilt and anxiety you have done something wrong 504
The process of becoming the other self   Feeling remorseful 149–150
  My body was taking over a character 40   I am like a bad person or I am wasting my life 392–393

Note. This is an expanded version of a table that first appeared in “Alcohol and the Self: An Interpretative
Phenomenological Analysis of the Experience of Addiction and Its Impact on the Sense of Self and Identity,” by
P. Shinebourne and J. A. Smith, 2009, Addiction Research and Theory, 17, p. 167. Copyright 2009 by Informa.
Adapted with permission.

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Smith and Shinebourne

based not only on the prevalence of data but also on eral levels of interpretation (see Larkin, Watts, &
the pertinence of the themes and their capacity to Clifton, 2006; Smith et al., 2009), which may gener-
illuminate the account as a whole. ate new insights. The narrative account contains rel-
evant extracts in the participants’ own words, which
not only enables the reader to assess the pertinence
Writing Up
of the interpretations but also retains the voice of the
Next one turns to writing a narrative account of the participants’ personal experience. Smith et al.
study. Typically this entails taking the themes estab- (2009) suggested that one way of looking at the nar-
lished in the final table and writing them up one by rative account is to consider the extracts from par-
one. Each theme needs to be introduced and then ticipants as representing the P in IPA, and the
illustrated with extracts from the participant, which accompanying analysis as representing the I. In a
are in turn followed by analytic comments from typical IPA project, the narrative account is followed
the authors. The narrative account may engage sev- by a discussion section that considers the themes
Copyright American Psychological Association. Not for further distribution.

Exhibit 5.7
Example of Write-Up: Dynamics of Relationships in the Family

The enduring impact of childhood families and relations on their predicament as adults constituted a prevailing theme in
all participants’ accounts. As discussed, Julia attributed her tendency to suppress emotions to a controlled father in a
family where it was not acceptable to express anger. Susie describes her parents as “very strict, quite Victorians” and she
suggests that her addictive and obsessive behaviors might have been learned in childhood:
It helps me to understand my family with, how we were brought up ‘cause I know today, both my parents are long long
dead, but they both were workaholics and perfectionist, both died of heart attacks very young, so and my brothers and
sisters were all very much the same even those who don’t drink and take drugs still got this you know, um there’s no
sense of balance, um so I know it’s something also that, I could have learnt or picked up on that, to be loved or to have
self-esteem I need to prove myself.
Susie recounts that she had to follow everything her parents prescribed for her and, as the oldest daughter, had to take on
responsibility at a young age for looking after her younger siblings. Leaving home and forming intimate relationships meant
freedom in defiance of her parents:
I did everything my parents wanted but that’s when I went, I left home you know I really started drinking and taking,
cannabis mainly, cocaine came later at work um, it was freedom, you know[ ] the way I gave myself permission to be
naughty was through my drinking and taking drugs [ ] Got in to a relationship, completely against my parents wishes,
and he is, he was a drug, a cannabis user.
Similarly, Claire describes how in retrospect she came to understand her upbringing as problematic, although she says she
used to believe that “nothing major has ever happened to me”:
My childhood wasn’t as functional as I thought, you know I had a very, yeah my dad was an alcoholic but I didn’t really
see him as one because he was a functional and sociable one you know, good job it was all of that kind of thing, he
wasn’t there a lot so my home life was kind of like that erm and then he left erm so it was just me and my mum and my
sister so it’s been very much like that ever since it’s always been the three of us so it’s always been this very intense
thing that no men can never penetrate us three, do you know what I mean, we’ve always been very close like that and I
suppose I find it quite hard to trust people.
This extract illustrates, as noted, the significance of the intense bond between Claire and her mother. Elsewhere in the interview
she describes her relations with her mother as “codependency,” like “a mirror thing when I see my mum doing stuff . . .
then I see myself doing it as well.” This extract from Claire also points toward possible problematic relations with men
(“no men can never penetrate us”), as confirmed when Claire says she had “disastrous relationship with men all my life,
you know there’s always been like my father” (see the next extract). Mother and sister were also the key figures providing
support and bearing the brunt of her addiction:
It would always be my mum would stay and look after me she, she would clear up my flat try and get me to the doctor’s
and those kind of things but in turn I would then ring them [mother or sister] at three o’clock in the morning drunk,
abusive not remembering always threatening to kill myself you know and then coming round.

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Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis

identified in the analysis in relation to existing liter- acquired during a quantitative training, and by effort
ature. The write-up of the case Study of Alison can directed at honing those skills and making them
be seen in Shinebourne and Smith (2009). manifest in interviews. Transparency is addressed by
Exhibit 5.7 shows an extended example from the providing a clear presentation, within the con-
write-up of Study 2 of the addiction rehabilitation straints of word length set by publishing outlets, of
project. This involved interviews with six women as what was done in the study, step by step.
described earlier. The analysis generated a number Smith’s (2011) review offered a set of more spe-
of themes and this exhibit presents how part of the cific criteria for assessing IPA papers and offered
theme “dynamics of relationships in the family” is detailed summaries of those papers graded well in a
presented in the results section. critical evaluation of a clearly defined subset of the
This extended section from the write-up shows corpus. Hopefully, this will be helpful both to
how the table of themes opens up into a persuasive researchers wishing to improve their skills in IPA
account that explains to the reader the important and to those required to review IPA work.
Copyright American Psychological Association. Not for further distribution.

experiential things that have been found during the


process of analysis. It also shows how each claim is
substantiated with verbatim extracts from partici-
References
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and examples of research, see Smith et al. (2009). case study of masculine identity and health-related
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Where IPA Is and Where It Is Going
Dilthey, W. (1976). Selected writings. Cambridge,
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paper describing it was by Smith (1996). Since then Eatough, V., & Smith, J. A. (2006). I feel like a scrambled
egg in my head: An idiographic case study of mean-
it has been picked up enthusiastically, particularly
ing making and anger using interpretative phenom-
in health, clinical, and counseling psychology and enological analysis. Psychology and Psychotherapy:
increasingly in cognate areas (e.g., education, sports Theory, Research, and Practice, 79, 115–135.
science, health research). What does the current Flowers, P., Knussen, C., & Duncan, B. (2001).
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ducted a review of the IPA literature (Smith, 2011). The impact of new HIV treatments. Journal of Health
Psychology, 6, 665–678. doi:10.1177/135910
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in journals tagged in three major databases (Web of
Frost, N. (Ed.). (2011). Qualitative research methods in
Science, MEDLINE®, PsycINFO®). psychology: Combining core approaches. Maidenhead,
The existence of a substantial corpus now Berkshire, England: Open University Press.
enables us to begin to consider the quality of IPA Giorgi, A., & Giorgi, B. (2008). Phenomenology. In
studies. Smith et al. (2009) used Yardley’s (2000) Qualitative psychology: A practical guide to methods
criteria for evaluating qualitative research to con- (2nd ed., pp. 26–52). London, England: Sage.
sider how an IPA study can meet these criteria. For Heidegger, M. (1962). Being and time. Oxford, England:
Blackwell.
example, Smith et al. (2009) argued that sensitivity
is shown in a good IPA study by sensitivity to the Larkin, M., Watts, S., & Clifton, E. (2006). Giving voice
and making sense in interpretative phenomenologi-
data. Extensive extracts from participants are cal analysis. Qualitative Research in Psychology, 3,
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with evidence from the interview corpus. Commit- Merleau-Ponty, M. (1962). Phenomenology of perception.
ment to IPA is shown by a recognition that experi- London, England: Routledge & Kegan Paul.
ential qualitative psychology is demanding, Moran, D. (2000). Introduction to phenomenology.
requiring a range of skills different from those London, England: Routledge.

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