Noise, doubt, empathy or surprise? A qualitative collective self-study exploring the phenomenon of disruption in clinical trials
The Norwegian partner, lead by post doc researcher Kjersti Johansson, developed a sub-project called Disruption in an RCT like Homeside. The study explored disruptions from a researcher’s perspective in a qualitative self-study of the researchers’ experiences. The data comprises qualitative interviews with the music therapy research team in the Norwegian partner institution of the trial. The interviews were analysed using a collaborative reflexive thematic analysis. Four themes, representing different types of disruption and qualities in our experiences of them, were identified: background noise, rejection, empathic disruption, and disruptive dissonance. These themes share the characteristics of being relational, sometimes ambiguous, and influencing each other, requiring interpretation in context. This complexity makes them challenging to define and navigate. The authors argue that continuous reflection on different disruptions and negotiation of their boundaries are vital to ensure high ethical research standards and to support researchers’ self-care.
Authors: Kjersti Johansson, Tone Kvamme, Kristi Stedje, Runa Bosnes Engen, Unni Johns, Solgunn E. Knardal, Anette Moltubak, Hanne Cecilie Webb Aamodt, Karette Annie Stensæth.