From: Enhancing transparency in reporting the synthesis of qualitative research: ENTREQ
Methodology | Critical interpretive synthesis | Grounded theory synthesis | Meta-ethnography | Meta-study | Thematic synthesis |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Key seminal methodology references | Dixon-woods et al. 2006 [4] | Paterson et al. 2001 [24] | Thomas and Harden 2008 [12] | ||
Philosophical positioning** | Subjective idealism – no single shared reality independent of multiple alterative human constructions | Objective idealism – a world of collectively shared understandings exists | Objective idealism – a world of collectively shared understandings exists | Subjective idealism – no single shared reality independent of multiple alterative human constructions | Critical realism – knowledge of reality is medicated by one’s beliefs and perspectives |
Literature search | Theoretical sampling | Theoretical sampling | Non-specified | Not-specified | Systematic, comprehensive |
Quality appraisal | The degree to which the research findings can inform theory development | Implicit judgement about the context, quality and usefulness of the study | Judgement based on relevance; CASP | Focuses on rigour and the epistemological soundness of the research methods | Criteria related to aims, context, rationale, methods and findings, reliability, validity, appropriateness of methods for ensuring findings are grounded in participant perspectives |
Analysis techniques and concepts | · Concurrent iteration of the research questions | · Concurrent data collection and analysis | · Reciprocal translational analysis (translation of concepts from individual studies – 1st/2nd order constructs) | · Analyse findings – meta-data-analysis | · Line by line coding of text from primary studies |
· Extract data and summarise papers | · Theory is derived inductively from the data | · Refutational synthesis (explore and explain contradictions between studies – 1st/2nd order constructs) | · Analyse methods – meta-method) | · Free codes organised into descriptive themes | |
· Define and apply codes | · Constant comparison of data | · Lines of argument (grounded theorising based on synthesising translations) | · Analyse theory – meta-theory | · Further interpretation to develop analytical themes | |
· Develop a critique, generate themes |  |  | · Bring together all three components of the analysis |  | |
Synthesis output | · New theoretical conceptualisation – synthetic construct | · Generation of a new, higher-level grounded theory | · New insights – 3rd order constructs | · Account for differences in research findings | · Analytical themes that offer a new interpretation that goes beyond the primary studies |
· New interpretation of phenomena studied | |||||
Topic areas and study references †| Access to healthcare by vulnerable groups [4], pain management [26] | Medicine-taking [3], patients’ help-seeking experiences in cancer presentation [6], palliative care [27] | Chronic illness experience [14], influences on shared decisions making [15], adolescent health [16] | Children’s experiences of health eating [12], chronic kidney disease [28], people’s understanding of cancer risk [29], organ transplantation [7], patient-physician relationships [30] |