6 Evidence Appraisal: Research 119descriptive phenomenology and interpretive phenomenology, two methods that
differ in their emphasis on either describing or interpreting and understanding an
experience (Polit & Beck, 2017).
Example: Qualitative Phenomenology Design
MacWilliams, Hughes, Aston, Field, and Wight Moffatt (2016) used interpretive
phenomenology to describe what women who are having a miscarriage experience
when they arrive at the emergency department. The study included interviews with
eight women, and findings described that all participants experienced a loss and
emotional burden following miscarriage. Participants felt that their experiences
were different from others seeking care in the emergency department because
they had experienced loss, and were not ill. The researchers concluded that
nurses in the emergency department caring for women experiencing miscarriage
acknowledge the loss and emotions the women may feel and prepare the
women for the experiences they may have after discharge from the emergency
department.Narrative inquiry, or narrative analysis, is a methodology in qualitative research
where the researcher examines the story a participant tells, and it may be an ap-
propriate methodology for researching sensitive topics. Although, like phenom-
enology, it has roots in philosophy, narrative inquiry acknowledges the research-
er’s subjectivity, compared to the objective nature of phenomenology (Chunfeng
Wang & Geale, 2015). Narrative inquiry is dependent on the researcher-
participant relationship, and the trust between the two allows the researcher to
uncover details in the participant’s story (Chunfeng Wang & Geale, 2015).
Example: Qualitative Narrative Inquiry Design
Reed, Rowe, and Barnes (2015) used narrative inquiry to explore midwifery
practice during an uncomplicated birth. The research included in-depth interviews
with ten midwives and ten mothers who were asked to tell their stories. Instead
of being asked interview questions, the midwives were asked to tell a story about
a birth and what they had done, and the mothers were asked to tell their birth
stories. The researchers found two themes in the participants’ stories—rites of
passage and rites of protection—and concluded that birth is a liminal state within
a ritual and that the midwife was the ritual companion.