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The aim of this study was to deepen the understanding of female adolescents' daily living with chronic arthritis. Taperecorded open interviews were conducted once with six teenage girls (14_17 years), who also wrote diaries for a 12-month period. In addition, 12 interviews of female adolescents diagnosed with chronic arthritis selected from another sample in an earlier study by the authors were included in the data. The Grounded Theory (GT) method was used for analysing the diaries and the transcribed interviews. A core category, labelled Fitting into the prevailing teenage culture, and four related categories labelled (1) mastering a body in pain; (2) living one day at time; (3) using social support; and (4) fighting for health emerged. The categories formed a substantive theory illuminating living with chronic arthritis during adolescence. The theory explains and provides a deeper understanding of the main concern of these female adolescents and their strategies in managing their situation. Key words: Adolescents, grounded theory, juvenile arthritis, pain, teenage culture

A fundamental aim of all qualitative studies is to take the perspective of others and therewith to experience meanings, situations and actions through the eyes of others. This demands data from relatively small strategically selected study groups, in addition to empathy, openness and sensitivity in the researchers. Most qualitative researchers strive to come further than just pure descriptions in their analyses they want to gain an in-depth understanding and explore meanings and processes of everyday life. Interpretation is therefore a basic tool included in all qualitative research. (Published: 6 March 2013) Citation: Int J Qualitative Stud Health Well-being 2013, 8 : 20647 - http://dx.doi.org/10.3402/qhw.v8i0.20647

The premier issue of International Journal of Qualitative Studies on Health and Well-being was launched in March 2006 and the rest, as they say, is history. Professor Karin Dahlberg and I were the initiators of the journal and Taylor & Francis the first publisher. Two years ago the journal was successfully transferred to the open access publication model and therewith to Co-Action Publishing. This change has contributed hugely to making the journal truly international. Not only is it now included in PubMed Central/PubMed and awaits its first Impact Factor but there has also been a considerable increase in the number of submissions from all over the world. This year, the journal website has so far (November 25, 2011) been visited almost 21,500 times by individuals in 137 countries, and nearly 80,000 full text articles have been downloaded. This is an incredible development - and immensely beneficial to both authors and readers. It also shows the difference open access can make. (Published: 15 November 2011) Citation: Int J Qualitative Stud Health Well-being 2011, 6 : 11289 - DOI: 10.3402/qhw.v6i4.11289

Health, well-being, quality of life, and lifestyle are central concepts within health science, although generally accepted definitions are still lacking. Lifestyle can either be seen as an independent variable and the cause of unhealthy behaviour or as a dependent variable, which is affected by conditions in the society. In the first case, the attention is directed on each individual case: maintaining or improving health requires changes in lifestyle and living habits. In this perspective, diet and physical activity are important features for health promotion. In the second case the attention is rather directed on structural conditions in society, for example the food industry, the lunches for children at school, and the ‘‘fast food’’ industry should be influenced to protect human health. The structural perspective has, so far, received restricted impact when it concerns prevention and promotion of health. Processes of individualisation in the society have to an increasing extent viewed health as an affair for the individual. The benefits of physical activity, healthy food and beverage, social support, and joy are documented scientifically. In general, the trend towards increasing responsibility for one’s lifestyle and health is positive, but might reinforce the inequality in health. With an even harder climate in society there might be a risk that individual health projects undermine the solidarity and the will to accept costs for medical treatment and care for people who risk their health through an unhealthy and risk-taking lifestyle. However, we argue that peoples’ well-being and quality of life presupposes a society that stands up for all people. Key words: Health, well-being, lifestyle, quality of life (Published: 20 May 2011) Citation: Int J Qualitative Stud Health Well-being 2011, 6 : 7137 - DOI: 10.3402/qhw.v6i2.7137

As I am sure most readers will know by now, the International Journal of Qualitative Studies on Health and Well-being (IJQHW) became an Open Access journal at the beginning of 2010. The transition also involved a change of publisher, from Informa Healthcare to Co-Action Publishing. All back volumes (2006-2009) were at the same time made accessible via the ‘‘Archive’’ on the journal’s new website www.ijqhw.net, giving readers and researchers free access to all content published in the journal from the start.(Published: 1 April 2011)Citation: Int J Qualitative Stud Health Well-being 2011, 6: 7090 - DOI: 10.3402/qhw.v6i2.7090

In a conventional quantitative study, the aim of the literature review mainly is to refine the research question, determine gaps in earlier research and identify a suitable design, and data collection method for a planned study. In qualitative research the literature search—when and how—is of a more ambiguous character. Grounded theory (GT), one qualitative method among many others, is described as a “general inductive method possessed by no discipline or theoretical perspective or data type” (Glaser, 2005, p. 141). In a GT-study, concepts are generated from empirical data rather than from existing literature. Like a detective who strives to explain what is actually happening, the GT-researcher strives to explain the main concern of participants in a specific situation/area and to find out how they resolve or process this main concern. The emerging result is presented either as a hypothesis, a model or as an abstract conceptual theory. The theory is built up around a core category and related categories. In Glaser's words, the aim of GT is to “generate a theory that accounts for a pattern of behavior which is relevant and significant for those involved” (Glaser, 1978, p. 93). Conceptualisation is a core process in GT, which thereby is a theory-generating rather than a descriptive method. Generating theory demands creative and conceptual thinking. Barney Glaser, the originator of the classical GT methodology, has stressed the importance of that a GT-researcher avoids preconceptions and remains open-minded to what actually appears in the research field. He encourages GT-researchers to “just get on and do it.” However, when a hypothesis, model or theory can be discerned in the data, a relevant literature search should be conducted and interwoven into the emerging theory. Glaser argues that an early reading of the literature (i.e., before conducting the study) is problematic. This includes that the researcher is encouraged to ignore the existing literature before entering the research field. This approach rests on the opinion that what is important in the research area will show itself repeatedly, or in other words, what is important will emerge without the “neutral” researcher is doing nothing but listen and look with an open mind. In order to understand the participants’ viewpoint, the researcher must put aside his/her personal perspective and, of course, have knowledge and competence in how to conceptualise data. Unfortunately, many researchers lack competence in conceptualisation. Any researcher has acquired considerable knowledge in the professional and disciplinary literature. To think conceptually requires that the researcher continually follows the cross-disciplinary literature, i.e., they are reading a lot. It is not easy for the researcher to put this knowledge aside when starting a new study but the point is, as I see it, not to be consciously directed by earlier theories and concepts in interpretations and conclusions of the data. One way to stay open and do good GT-studies is to maintain theoretical sensitivity through constant comparisons (e.g., constantly comparing incidents to incidents, incidents to concepts, and concept to concept) and continuous memo writing. There is a fine line between avoiding the use of literature before a study begins and being informed so that a study is focused enough. In my opinion, it is necessary to conduct an early literature review to find out if the planned study, or something similar as the planned study, has been published before. This literature review may also give a background to and motivate the interest for the particular research area. Such a literature review will also be requested by authorities when researchers apply for research grants and/or ethical permission to conduct a study or when a presumptive doctoral student applies for acceptance as a PhD candidate. At least a presumptive researcher has to demonstrate that a problem worthy of research really exists and that he/she has the necessary skill to conduct such a study. This is in line with the view of Glaser (1998) when advocating GT-researchers to do some preliminary reading before the study begins in order to put the study into a context.

Epidemiological research has so far failed to explain the high incidence of occupational disorders among home care workers (HCWs) and the great differences in organizational incidence rate. A qualitative approach may contribute to a deeper understanding of work group reasoning and handling in a more contextual manner. The aim of this grounded theory study was to gain a deeper understanding of the main concern in the processes of recognizing, communicating and reporting occupational disorders among HCWs. Focus group interviews were conducted with 40 HCWs in 9 focus groups. The selected municipalities represented variations in municipality type and incidence rate of occupational disorders. Making it work in the frontline was identified as the core category explaining that the perceived work situation in home care work was the main concern but interacted with work-group socialising processes as well as with the communicability and derivability of the occupational disorder when defining and reporting occupational disorders. Complex problems could be reformulated and agreed within the workgroup to increase communicability. Described significances for reporting/non-reporting were related to financial compensation, to a part of organizational political game or to an existential uncertainty, i.e. questioning if it belonged to their chosen work and life. Our conclusion is that working situation and work group attitudes have importance for reporting of occupational disorders. To support work-related health for HCWs, integrating communication should be developed about work-related challenges in work situation, as well as about attitudes, culture and efficiency within work-group. Key words: Work injury, social environment, home care, social support, collective coping, focus group, grounded theory

The aim of the study was to explore the perceived health consequences of workplace bullying. Open interviews were conducted with 22 informants; 20 bully victims and two persons working with bullying prevention. Data was assessed and analysed simultaneously in line with grounded theory methodology. A conceptual model was grounded in data, describing experiences of deteriorating psychological and physical health following bullying and efforts of returning to a "normal" life. The core category, "remaining marked for life", illuminates the manner in which bullying was perceived as a psychic trauma or a traumatic life event causing the bullied person to be marked forever. The model includes five additional categories: "feeling guilt, shame and diminishing self-esteem", "developing symptoms and reactions", "getting limited space of action", "working through the course of events" and "trying to obtain redress". Bullying included the spreading of rumours and repeated insults aimed at changing the image of the victim and resulting in feelings of guilt, shame and diminishing selfesteem. Physical and psychosomatic symptoms gradually emerge and medical treatment and sick listing follow. The longer the bullying continues, the more limited the possibility to change the situation and the victim has a more limited space of action. Returning to a "normal" life was possible, but presupposed that the victim had worked through of the course of events. The bullied person also tried to obtain redress, such as through monetary compensation or professional confirmation. Despite this, bullying left an internal scar: the bully victim was marked for life. Key words: Workplace, adult bullying, grounded theory, health, self-esteem

Approximately 40 years ago, Barney Glaser and Anselm Strauss and their joint research approach, the constant comparative method of grounded theory, were at the forefront of what can be called a qualitative revolution. The publication of their book, The discovery of grounded theory (1967), was a breakthrough because of the systematic procedures for qualitative research that were presented. Prior to this publication, qualitative research methodology was traditionally most often taught orally. Through their book, Glaser and Strauss defended the method of qualitative research and countered the prevailing opinion that quantitative research provided the one and only approach to scientific inquiry. They argued that qualitative research is a field of inquiry in its own right, not merely to be used for pre-studies to "real" statistically based studies. The grounded theory method fits in with lifeworld research, because the emphasis is on individuals as unique living wholes and the researcher focuses on the world as it is experienced by the individual. The researcher does not formulate any hypothesis in advance and tries to approach the research area with as few preconceptions as possible. Preconceptions, taken-for-granted assumptions, and interpretations must be handled by reflexive strategies in line with what Dahlberg (2006) has labelled "bridling". Grounded theory offers the researcher a set of guidelines for building conceptual frameworks that specify the relationships among categories. The guidelines should be used as flexible tools rather than being seen as rigid rules. Grounded theory is a broad method with distinct procedures that work in practice and that are suitable to pragmatic researchers. The "core category" in grounded theory is, as I see it, the constant comparative method. The grounded theory method has been modified by the era within which it exists and by new ideas encountered in the world of inquiry (Annells, 1997). Varying views of what reality is and how it can be known affect the modes of the grounded theory method. Key words: Grounded theory, qualitative method, symbolic interactionism, ontology, epistemology

The burden of diabetes and obesity is increasing worldwide, indicating a need to find the best standard for diabetes care. The aim of this study was to generate a theory grounded in empirical data derived from a deeper understanding of health care professionals’ main concerns when they consult with individuals with diabetes and obesity and how they handle these concerns. Tape-recorded interviews were conducted with seven groups and three individual members of a diabetes team in an area of western Sweden. The grounded theory (GT) method was used to analyse the transcribed interviews. A core category, labelled Balancing coaching and caution and three categories (Coaching and supporting, Ambivalence and uncertainty, and Adjusting intentions) emerged. The core category and the three categories formed a substantive theory that explained and illuminated how health care professionals manage their main concern; their ambition to give professional individualised care; and find the right strategy for each individual with diabetes and obesity. The theory generated by this study can improve our understanding of how a lack of workable strategies limits caregivers’ abilities to reach their goals. It also helps identify the factors that contribute to the complexity of meetings between caregivers and individuals with diabetes. Key words: Care meeting, coaching, diabetes Type 2, grounded theory, health care professional, obesity (Published: 29 June 2011) Citation: Int J Qualitative Stud Health Well-being 2011, 6 : 7129 - DOI: 10.3402/qhw.v6i2.7129