Pen pals: correspondence as a method for data generation in qualitative research

The study aimed to understand the impact of chronic illness on the lives of midlife women and explore and share the ways in which women adapt to and/o r tolerate chronic illness in their lives. In 1998, 80 women participated i n a study in which data were generated by corresponding with the researcher . Guided by feminist principles of collaboration, reciprocity and disclosur e, we created rich stories about what it is like to live with a chronic ill ness. In this paper we will discuss the first phase of this inquiry which u tilized correspondence between the researcher and the women. The issues pos ed by the use of correspondence as an innovative data generation process wi ll be analysed. Correspondence, at first glance, may appear to be a rather impersonal communication medium. However, we are committed to this method o f data generation and believe we have unlocked the doors to a viable qualit ative research process. The literature to guide this process is scarce so w e are keen to share work in progress. We will describe the preparation phas e in setting up the study; discuss some practical issues, share some of the researcher's experiences in generating narratives from dialogues and hear from the women themselves what they consider to be significant about this r esearch process.