Qualitative Data Analysis: An Introduction: Carol Grbich Narrative Analysis

Qualitative Data Analysis:
An introduction
Carol Grbich
Chapter 17 :
Narrative analysis
Narrative analysis
 There are two main versions of narrative analysis:
 socio-linguistic which focuses on ‘plots’ or the

structure of narratives and how they convey
meaning
 socio-cultural which looks at the broader

interpretive frameworks that people use to make
sense of particular incidents in individual’s lives
Narrative analysis
 When to use: when you are collecting stories from
participants
 Type of research questions: those that explore

either the structure of narratives or the specific
experiences of particular events,.
 Strengths: gives insight into how individuals

structure communication for effect and how they
construct meaning from their life experiences.
 Weaknesses: when only one approach (socio-

linguistic/socio-cultural) is used the perspective is
limited
Socio-linguistic approach: process
 Abstract - an initial clause that reports or summarises the entire
sequence of events of the narrative
 Orientation clauses - the time, place and events of the narrative
 Complicating action clauses - these clauses form the main body of

the story and provide the next sequential event to respond to the
question ‘and what happened then?’
 Evaluation – interpretation of the significance of events and

meanings and also the importance of the narrator’s situation,
socialisation, experience and views
 Result or resolution – the final outcome of the narrative
 Coda (often missing) - ties narrator and audience back to the present
(adapted from Labov and Walensky, 1967, Labov, 1972 : 370, Labov,
1997)
Example: socio linguistic analysis
 She gave birth after a long labour (orientation)
 She went into labour on Thursday (complicating action)
 On Friday they said she would have to have a Caesar

(complicating action)
 I think they should have let her have a normal birth, but
these Gynaecologists won’t work weekends (evaluation)
 And she had a lovely baby girl (result)
 They’re all fine now (coda)

Criticisms of the sociolinguistic approach
 The focus is the text and the sequence of events and what is missing is
the interaction between the actor and the audience; the power relations;
the shifts in meaning; the outcomes in terms of impact on the listener;
and the development of shared understandings.
 The assumption that language represents reality does not take into
account the arguments that language is power laden, embedded in
culture and socialisation contexts, and actually constitutes and
constructs reality.
 Narratives are complex constructions of meaning linking personal lives,

community and culture and should be preserved intact, not fractured
 The context is completely omitted and the impact of the issues of race,
class, gender and hierarchy are not considered.
 Narratives may not follow a chronological sequence in a linear way

through time, they may be linked by themes which are not necessarily
sequential.
Socio-cultural approaches
3 Narrative approaches:
structural where the focus is primarily on what has been said and
the classification of this into a particular typology or narrative
type which can be named.
performative with a focus on the how of the story in particular how

it has been constructed in the dialogical process between
interviewer and interviewee and how it has been communicated
and interpreted both between the two and between the writer
and the audience.
autoethnography where both the what and the how of the narrative
come in to play as the researcher crafts and shapes their own
story for the audience as they move inward to share often very
personal aspects of their lives and then step outside to pursue
another more distant but critically self-interpretive view.
(Cassandra Phoenix et al. 2010)
Socio-cultural approach: Process
 Identify the boundaries of the narrative segments in the
interview transcript. These may be entire life stories or specific
life episodes recorded in interactive talk or interviews
 Explore the content and context of the story.

How do people make sense of events?
What emotions and feelings are displayed?
 Compare different peoples stories
 Link stories to relevant political structures and cultural locations
 Interpret stories being aware of your own positions and

reactions and how these shape the final text
Socio-cultural analysis (Greg, 2006)
 Divide the text into episodes which comprise the

plot/sequence of the story
 Eliminate material irrelevant to the plot (often facts)
 Identify the stanzas in each episode which comprise a

single theme or embedded story
 Identify contrasts, binary oppositions and mediating

terms (a blend of the shared features) within and
across each episode
Socio-cultural, reducing narratives to their
elements
Scene 1
 Well mum thought I was being taken for a ride by an older woman
when she first found out I was going to be a father.
 Her first reaction was that I wasn’t a virgin, which shows where
her thinking lay.
Scene 2
 She’s now good, she’s come round a lot.
 She gets on very well with Dan (his partner’s child by another
relationship),
 and she gets on well with Jen (partner).
 Once she got over the problem of Jen being a terrible woman
– a single mother who wanted someone to hang her bloody hat
with –
they got on very well,
 so that’s been a substantial change.

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Qualitative Data Analysis:

 socio-linguistic which focuses on ‘plots’ or the

 socio-cultural which looks at the broader

 Type of research questions: those that explore

 Strengths: gives insight into how individuals

 Weaknesses: when only one approach (socio-

 Orientation clauses - the time, place and events of the narrative

 Complicating action clauses - these clauses form the main body of

 Evaluation – interpretation of the significance of events and

 Result or resolution – the final outcome of the narrative

 She went into labour on Thursday (complicating action)

 On Friday they said she would have to have a Caesar

 And she had a lovely baby girl (result)

 They’re all fine now (coda)

 Narratives are complex constructions of meaning linking personal lives,

 Narratives may not follow a chronological sequence in a linear way

performative with a focus on the how of the story in particular how

 Explore the content and context of the story.

 Compare different peoples stories

 Link stories to relevant political structures and cultural locations

 Interpret stories being aware of your own positions and

 Divide the text into episodes which comprise the

 Eliminate material irrelevant to the plot (often facts)

 Identify the stanzas in each episode which comprise a

 Identify contrasts, binary oppositions and mediating

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