Interpretive Description (ID) is a qualitative research framework developed to address the limitations in other qualitative methods that are not epistemologically able to take applied fields, such as clinical professions, into consideration. This framework, often described as a method, has been applied to health and social care research since the late 1990s and allows clinical researchers to bring their clinical disciplines perspective to their work. The aim of this scoping review was to understand: 1) to what extent and in what ways ID has been used as a methodological framework for primary research in the field of speech and language therapy; and (2) what features of ID are most salient in the speech and language therapy studies that have used this framework to date. The authors’ searches identified 19 publications from Australia, New Zealand, USA and Canada that used Interpretive Description in the context of analysing surveys, interviews, clinical measures and focus groups. Most studies had been published in the last five years and were predominantly focused on stroke or aphasia and research focusing on intervention or service delivery. The study authors conclude that Interpretive Description is an emerging research framework. Given that this new method allows the researcher to take into account the theoretical perspectives of the speech and language profession, it seems that the approach could also more quickly facilitate clinical impact.
Hot off the press: new clinically relevant research methodologies for speech and language therapy
Top Of Page
Accreditations
Pinpoint Scotland Ltd (Registered in Scotland No. SC068684) | © 2025 - Website by Gecko Agency