Explore the vast range of titles available.

Background Q-methodology is an approach to studying complex issues of human ‘subjectivity’. Although this approach was developed in the early twentieth century, the value of Q-methodology in healthcare was not recognised until relatively recently. The aim of this review was to scope the empirical healthcare literature to examine the extent to which Q-methodology has been utilised in healthcare over time, including how it has been used and for what purposes. Methods A search of three electronic databases (Scopus, EBSCO-CINAHL Complete, Medline) was conducted. No date restriction was applied. A title and abstract review, followed by a full-text review, was conducted by a team of five reviewers. Included articles were English-language, peer-reviewed journal articles that used Q-methodology (both Q-sorting and inverted factor analysis) in healthcare settings. The following data items were extracted into a purpose-designed Excel spreadsheet: study details (e.g., setting, country, year), reasons for using Q-methodology, healthcare topic area, participants (type and number), materials (e.g., ranking anchors and Q-set), methods (e.g., development of the Q-set, analysis), study results, and study implications. Data synthesis was descriptive in nature and involved frequency counting, open coding and the organisation by data items. Results Of the 2,302 articles identified by the search, 289 studies were included in this review. We found evidence of increased use of Q-methodology in healthcare, particularly over the last 5 years. However, this research remains diffuse, spread across a large number of journals and topic areas. In a number of studies, we identified limitations in the reporting of methods, such as insufficient information on how authors derived their Q-set, what types of analyses they performed, and the amount of variance explained. Conclusions Although Q-methodology is increasingly being adopted in healthcare research, it still appears to be relatively novel. This review highlight commonalities in how the method has been used, areas of application, and the potential value of the approach. To facilitate reporting of Q-methodological studies, we present a checklist of details that should be included for publication.

Background Jordan is a low-to-middle income country in the Middle East that reports one of the highest smoking rates among males globally, with 90% of males initiating smoking by the age of 24. However, little is known about the in-depth viewpoints of young males surrounding their smoking initiation and interest in cessation. This study sought to identify the perceptions of young Jordanian adult males who smoke and generate relevant statements that can inform future psychosocial measurement tools and studies involving young male adult smokers in Jordan and the Middle Eastern Region. Methods A Q-methodology study design was used. An initial set of statements was developed by reviewing the published literature and then piloted. Each statement was rated based on its clarity and relevance to the experiences of a small group of young Jordanian smokers. Piloting resulted in the refinement of statements. The final Q-sample (Q-statements) was composed of 94 statements related to smoking and cessation perspectives. 35 male smokers completed the Q-sorting exercise. Findings Three factors were extracted: the in-control viewpoint, the health-conscious viewpoint, and the emotional/affect regulation viewpoint. Conclusion Our findings offer insights regarding smoking initiation and continuation in a group of smokers driving the highest rates of smoking in Jordan.

This meta-analysis provides an extensive and organized summary of intervention studies in education that are grounded in motivation theory. We identified 74 published and unpublished papers that experimentally manipulated an independent variable and measured an authentic educational outcome within an ecologically valid educational context. Our analyses included 92 independent effect sizes with 38,377 participants. Our results indicated that interventions were generally effective, with an average mean effect size of d = 0.49 (95% confidence interval = [0.43, 0.56]). Although there were descriptive differences in the effect sizes across several moderator variables considered in our analyses, the only significant difference found was for the type of experimental design, with randomized designs having smaller effect sizes than quasi-experimental designs. This work illustrates the extent to which interventions and accompanying theories have been tested via experimental methods and provides information about appropriate next steps in developing and testing effective motivation interventions in education.

Environmental justice is an important component of sustainable tourism, but stakeholder perspectives related to environmental justice may vary. Using Q-methodology, we investigated different stakeholder perceptions related to environmental justice within the context of tourism and ecological restoration. Specifically, in the Erhai Lake basin, China, we explore perspectives around an ecological restoration effort that included the government mandated closure of 1900 establishments (inns and restaurants) in response to environmental degradation. We identify and explore four environmental justice perspectives: the togetherness, protection, operator loss, and local loss perspectives. These four perspectives are contextualized within three dimensions of environmental justice (i.e., distribution, recognition, and participation). Our findings highlight differing views related to who is affected most by the inn closures (e.g., future generations, local residents, inn owners), and general consensus related to the outcomes of the process being more important than the process itself. Finally, we discuss potential reasons for these differing perspectives and recommend ways to improve environmental justice among different stakeholders. This research can facilitate sustainable development of tourism by highlighting the facets of ecological restoration policy implementation most important to stakeholders, including recognition of diverse stakeholder concerns and identities, clear and well supported rationale for policy design, and increased equity in the distribution of costs and benefits of policies.

The concept of subjectivity has long been controversially discussed in academic contexts without ever reaching consensus. As the main approach for a science of subjectivity, we applied Q methodology to investigate subjective perspectives about ‘subjectivity’. The purpose of this work was therefore to contribute with clarity about what is meant with this central concept and in what way the understanding might differ among Q researchers and beyond. Forty-six participants from different disciplinary backgrounds and geographical locations sorted 39 statements related to subjectivity. Factor analysis yielded five different perspectives. Employing a team approach, the factors were carefully and holistically interpreted in an iterative manner. Preliminary factor interpretations were then discussed with prominent experts in the field of Q methodology. These interviewees were selected due to their clear representation by a specific factor and led to a further enrichment of the narratives presented. Despite some underlying consensus concerning subjectivity’s dynamic and complex structure and being used as individuals’ internal point of view, perspectives differ with regard to the measurability of subjectivity and the role context plays for their construction. In light of the wide range of characterisations, we suggest the presented perspectives to be used as a springboard for future Q studies and urge researchers, within and beyond the Q community, to be more specific regarding their application of the concept. Furthermore, we discuss the importance of attempting to deeply understand research participants in order to truly contribute to a science of subjectivity.

This study aimed to explore the key dimensions of school principals’ science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) leadership capabilities in Qatari government schools. The study employed Q methodology research guided by a theoretical framework that identifies five critical dimensions of STEM leadership, namely STEM knowledge and practices, contexts, dispositions, tools and critical orientation. A purposive sampling technique was used to select 26 principals. Data collection was conducted between November 2024 and February 2025 from principals in government schools across Qatar. Ensuring diversity in terms of school level, experience, gender and geographic location. Data was collected through Q sorting activities, where participants rank-ordered a set of 40 statements representing STEM leadership capabilities, followed by post-sorting interviews to gather qualitative insights. Q factor analysis identified 3 viewpoints among participants, namely assessment innovation through collaborative learning, contextually grounded student-centered leadership, and resource-enabled STEM implementation. This study is limited to government schools in Qatar and reflects principals’ self-reported perspectives at one point in time. The study contributes to existing knowledge on effective STEM education leadership and provides valuable insights, with implications for future research, policy development and leadership preparation programs.

Background Active patient involvement in treatment decisions is seen as a feature of patient‐centred care that will ultimately lead to better healthcare services and patient outcomes. Although many factors have been identified that influence patient involvement in treatment decisions, little is known about the different views that patients have on which factors are most important. Objective This study explores the views of patients with a chronic condition on factors influencing their involvement in treatment decisions. Design Q‐methodology was used to study the views of patients. Respondents were asked to rank a set of 42 statements from the least important to the most important for active patient involvement in treatment decision‐making. The set of 42 statements was developed based on a literature search and a pilot in which two external researchers, 15 patients and four healthcare professionals participated. A total of 136 patients with one of three major chronic conditions were included: diabetes types 1 and 2, respiratory disease (i.e., chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and asthma) and cancer (i.e., breast cancer and prostate cancer). Data were collected in a face‐to‐face interview setting in the Netherlands. Results Four distinct views on the factors influencing active patient involvement were identified among patients with a chronic condition. (1) Enabled involvement: the extent to which patients are facilitated and empowered to participate will lead to patient involvement. (2) Relationship‐driven involvement: the relationship between patients and healthcare professionals drives patient involvement. (3) Disease impact‐driven involvement: the severity of disease drives patient involvement. (4) Cognition‐driven involvement: knowledge and information drive patient involvement. Discussion and Conclusion From the patients' perspective, this study shows that there is no one‐size‐fits‐all approach to involving patients more actively in their healthcare journey. Strategies aiming to enhance active patient involvement among patients with a chronic condition should consider this diversity in perspectives among these patients. Patient Contribution Patients are the respondents as this study researches their perspective on factors influencing patient involvement. In addition, patients were involved in pilot‐testing the statement set.

Forest restoration/creation is a policy focus worldwide, with initiatives pledging to plant billions of trees. While there is an emphasis on providing “the right tree in the right place,” we need to understand for whom the trees are right. Such social dimensions are frequently overlooked, despite being critical to successful forest restoration/creation. We used Q‐methodology to examine what forest biodiversity attributes (e.g., functions, behaviors, colors, smells) people (N = 194) relate to and how in Britain. We found that shared public perspectives on biodiversity attributes are multifaceted, influenced by personal experience and vary across taxa. This heterogeneity highlights the importance of gaining a richer understanding of human–nature relationships, as restoration/creation initiatives need to deliver biodiverse forests to accommodate the plurality of preferences brought to bear upon them. Based on our findings, emphasizing biodiversity in forest restoration/creation should contribute to greater use of, comfort in, and meaningful engagement with, forests in the future by a wider set of publics.

The Varimax and manual rotations are commonly used for factor rotation in Q-methodology; however, their effects on the results may not be well known. In this article we investigate the impact of different factor rotation techniques in Q-methodology, specifically how the factors and their distinguishing statements might be affected. We applied three factor rotation techniques including Varimax, Equamax, and Quartimax rotations on two exemplary datasets and compared the results based on the number of Q-sorts loaded on each factor, number of distinguishing statements for each factor, and changes in the number of distinguishing statements. We also estimated the Pearson correlation between the extracted factors based on rotation techniques. This analysis shows that factors can change substantially from one rotation to another. For instance, there was only 3 common distinguishing statements between Factor 1 of no-rotation of Dataset 1 and its matched factor from Varimax rotation. Even for 3 common statements, the factor scores were quite different from no-rotation to Varimax rotation. This analysis shows that the effects of factor rotation on emerging factors are complex. The changes are usually substantial such that the rotated factors might be quite different from the original factors.

We investigate the research question: Why are there very few social enterprises in China? Our findings unpack four types of institutional challenges to social entrepreneurship, as perceived by social entrepreneurs: norms of a strong role for government; misunderstood or unknown role for social enterprises; non-supportive rules and regulations; and lack of sociocultural values and beliefs in support of social goals. We contribute to the literature on social enterprises by showing how an institutional environment may be \"non-munificent,\" i.e., non-supportive for the existence of social enterprises and their goals, and we thus address the need for more attention to the institutional environment in which social entrepreneurship takes place. Further, by using Q-methodology on 42 social entrepreneurs along with illustrative qualitative data from interviews, we address the need to go beyond anecdotal case studies and introduce methodological plurality in social entrepreneurship research. Finally, our findings on institutional challenges provide us with an opportunity to discuss how social entrepreneurs may engage with purposive activities to overcome such challenges, leading us to initiate a conversation between the social entrepreneurship and institutional work literatures.