Table 1.

Types of qualitative methods and examples of their use in stewardship

Qualitative method	Description	Examples of AS research questions answerable by the method	Impact/contribution
Semi-structured interview	Asking a research participant a series of pre-planned open-ended questions around a common idea or set of ideas to learn more about opinions, beliefs, and experiences, incorporating follow-up questions to generate more nuanced understanding.112	How do prescribers think about the role of the ASP team in the management of their patients? How do these perceptions influence willingness to accept ASP recommendations?	Allows for a more complex understanding of how people think about or make meaning around a certain topic. Interviews can also be useful for understanding more about a topic that might be considered sensitive.
Focus groups	Facilitated group discussion using a series of pre-planned, open-ended questions to stimulate conversation amongst participants. Groups usually consist of individuals with shared experience or other similarities.113	How does the practice culture of outpatient paediatrics influence the management of parent demand for antibiotics?	Like interviews, focus groups result in a deeper understanding of meaning and meaning-making amongst participants. Focus groups are used when the collective experiences of a group, and the interactions of group participants with each other, is of empirical interest.
Ethnography	Data are gathered by a trained observer who seeks to understand the social and cultural norms of group behaviour through observations of naturally occurring interaction.114	How do ASP teams approach other professions during hospital rounds?	Provides insight into influences on interactions that might not be articulated by research participants using other methods.
Thematic content analysis of documents or artifacts	Examining documents, imagery and other artifacts to understand how events unfold and how groups of people communicate social norms and express what matters.	How is responsibility communicated through a hospital’s protocols and policies towards antibiotic stewardship? What has changed over time? How?	Can help triangulate information when used in conjunction with other sources. Provides information about what is occurring in an environment, helps with historical knowledge, or helps with background information.

ASP, AS programme.