Setting
Phase 2 of the study took place over a 12-month period on
a neurological unit m a 350-bed children's hospital in the
north-eastern part of the United States of America
Participant observation and in-depth interviewing
methods were employed Participant observation is especially
applicable for exploratory and descriptive studies that
examine processes, relationships among people, continuities
and patterns over time, and the immediate sociocultural
context within which daily experience is grounded A
holistic examination of the phenomenon is stressed as well
as the importance of the context, setting and participants'
frame of reference (Keith 1988, Lofland & Lofland 1984