Grounded discourse analysis: A hybrid methodology

Abstract

This article introduces grounded discourse analysis (GDA) as a hybrid methodology for the investigation of language use and meaning-making in a range of social contexts. It demonstrates that grounded theory and discourse analysis can be fruitful methodological companions, with grounded theory offering strategies for research design and theory development that are rooted in social context, and discourse analysis providing an extensive toolkit for close analysis of the relationship between text, action and broader social structures. The article introduces three foundational principles for GDA projects: 1) inductive design, 2) socially situated theory-building, and 3) researcher reflexivity. Further, it sets out six flexible phases that guide the research from data construction to micro-level discourse analysis. In order to demonstrate how GDA can work in practice, the article draws on three empirical case studies from the author’s research in which grounded theory and discourse analysis are combined in pursuit of rich qualitative insights around the relationship between everyday parenting, gendered and familial structures, and social media practices. In each of these studies, a grounded discourse analytical approach produces rich, theory-driven analyses that are rooted in deep understanding of the research context and its related social phenomena, participants and practices.