Critical Realism Essay

This chapter outlines the methodology and methods applied to answer the research question. In line with the objectives and the Medical Research Council’s (MRC) framework for the development and evaluation of complex interventions, there are two phases of this study: the design and development of the intervention and the feasibility testing of the intervention. These two phases will be described after a brief description of the philosophical approach taken, shaping the overall epistemology.

4.1.1. Critical Realism
Following a review of various philosophical stances, I chose critical realism as the philosophical foundation for this study as it aligns with my view about the nature of the world. Critical realism is a post positivist theory

The first phase, the development phase, is of great importance, as it can determine the success of the overall evaluation and implementation process. The second phase of the framework is concerned with the feasibility and pilot testing of the intervention. In order to address the feasibility, acceptability and practicality of a stigma protection intervention the designed intervention will be subjected to feasibility randomised controlled trial, which is believed to be the most suitable method to evaluate the preliminary evidence of effectiveness of an intervention (Lancaster et al., 2004). A feasibility study is a study designed to build the foundations for a planned intervention study (Tickle-Degnen, 2013). The purpose of most feasibility studies is to describe information and evidence related to the successful implementations and validity of a planned full trial and to reduce threats to the validity of these studies (Tickle-Degnen, 2013). The primary tests of the intervention effectiveness should occur in the main study, not in the studies that test feasibility (Teare et al. 2014). The analyses are therefore mainly descriptive and focus on confidence interval estimations and not on inferential testing (Lancaster et al., 2004; Lancaster, 2015, Leon, Davis and Kraemer, 2011). As the RCT is exploratory and aiming to inform the design of a future larger trial, the trial also includes a process evaluation. This involves a qualitative focus group with a sample of participants to explore their experiences of the intervention, and the acceptability of the outcomes