Table 3.
Themes, sub-themes and categories
| Theme | Sub-themes | Category/Spiritual | Category/Psychosocial |
|---|---|---|---|
| Personal experience of the meeting | The experience of speaking | experience of review (meaning/purpose) experience of being open (deepening of relationship which goes beyond social engagement) | topics covered/inhibitors to openness/experience of being open/value of speaking in group (communication, social well-being) |
| How they felt | perceived feelings/getting realistic (emotional wellbeing) | ||
| New understandings | of self/family members/family unit (deepening of relationship which goes beyond social engagement) | of self/family members/family unit (communication, social well-being) | |
| Personal outcomes | Freedom to speak | said things would not have said/freer (deepening of relationship which goes beyond social engagement) | said things would not have said/freer (communication) |
| Personal changes | specific changes eg faith, closure past hurts & guilt (relationship to higher power, meaning) | Talking more openly with a child (communication) | |
| Make a contribution | help research/other families/self/own family (finding meaning & purpose) | ||
| Observations of others' experience | Openness | conservative but loosened up/courage to be open/as open as they could be (for some deepening of relationship which goes beyond social engagement) | conservative but loosened up/courage to be open/as open as they could be (communication & social well-being) |
| Feelings | comfortable/emotional/painful (emotional well-being) | ||
| New understanding | they understand better/learnt a lot (for some deepening of relationship which goes beyond social engagement) | they understand better/learnt a lot (social well-being) | |
| Other comment | definite benefit/initially sceptical (social well-being) | ||
| Observations of experience & out-comes for family unit | Impact on speaking together in future | reminded of the value of speaking more openly (for some deepening of relationship which goes beyond social engagement) | reminded of the value of this/broke the ice/sense of achievement/no change (social well-being) |
| Impact on relationships | new ways of being together/new awareness/understanding (for some deepening of relationship which goes beyond social engagement) | strengthened family bond/new ways of being together/new awareness/understanding/reunion (social well-being) | |
| Impact on feelings | more comfortable together/overall felt better (emotional well-being) | ||
| Impact on grieving process | may make it easier/give a different focus (meaning) | may make it easier/give a different focus (emotional well-being) | |
| Meeting facilitation | Experience of facilitation | how they felt about it/impact of facilitation (social & emotional well-being) | |
| Qualities needed for facilitation | general qualities/handling problems/'outsider' (for some deepening of relationship which goes beyond social engagement) | general qualities/handling problems/'outsider' (social & emotional well-being) | |
| How it could have been different | Who was present | Number/other family members/children (potential impact) | Number/other family members/children (potential impact) |
| More meetings | Yes/doubtful (potential impact) | Yes/doubtful (potential impact) | |
| Meeting timing | Earlier/later/just right (potential impact) | Earlier/later/just right (potential impact) | |
| Needs not met by meeting | Need to talk 1 on 1/things couldn't say at meeting (potential impact) | Need to talk 1 on 1/things couldn't say at meeting (potential impact) | |
| Other meeting aspects | Place/style/hear more from others (potential impact) | Place/style/hear more from others (potential impact) | |
| General applicability of the family meeting | Who would benefit | everyone/only in special circumstances/not for all (potential impact) | everyone/only in special circumstances/not for all (potential impact) |
| Promoting it | general comments/specific means (potential impact) | general comments/specific means (potential impact) | |