Researcher X used a conventional approach to content analysis in her study
(Table 1). Conventional content analysis is generally used with a study design
whose aim is to describe a phenomenon, in this case the emotional reactions of hos
-
pice patients. This type of design is usually appropriate when existing theory or
research literature on a phenomenon is limited. Researchers avoid using precon
-
ceived categories (Kondracki & Wellman, 2002), instead allowing the categories
and names for categories to flow from the data. Researchers immerse themselves in
the data to allow new insights to emerge (Kondracki & Wellman, 2002), also
described as inductive category development (Mayring, 2000). Many qualitative
methods share this initial approach to study design and analysis.