Using Online Self-Management Diaries for Qualitative Research

Abstract

Diaries are an underutilized tool in qualitative research addressing self-management. The “real time” data offered by the diaries provide an opportunity to capture details of self-management that otherwise may be missed during an interview. The purpose of this study is to describe the feasibility of using diaries for capturing self-management of post-treatment cancer survivors. The research questions are (1) how did participants engage with the diary? (2) what were participants’ evaluations of the self-management diary? and (3) how did the use of self-management diaries affect qualitative interviews and the interview data collected? We conducted a qualitative descriptive study, which comprised diary and semi-structured interview components to explore cancer survivors’ self-management activities. Participants were individuals diagnosed with head and neck or colorectal cancers at ages ≥18 years old who had completed primary treatment between 2–10 years prior. The diary instructions directed participants to document their self-management activities daily for 1 week before a scheduled interview. Data were analyzed using thematic analysis. The results showed (1) fifteen participants completed the diary and n = 9 completed all 7 days with detailed information regarding self-management. (2) A majority of the participants ( n = 13) found the diary easy to use. A few participants ( n = 3) shared individual-level challenges including preferring to document over several months, difficulty finding time to document, and difficulty putting thoughts into words. Suggestions to promote diary completion in future research included allowing participants to either document for only 1 day or allowing them to provide a summary of their weekly routine activities, sending reminders, and having more specific prompts. (3) For participants who completed the diary, we were able to customize the interview questions, which enhanced the richness of the interview data and captured greater complexity of self-management activities over time. Using diaries can promote the customization of interview questions and facilitate capturing rich interview data.