Journal Article

Perspective Mapping: Tutorial for Collecting Quantifiable Qualitative Interview Data

Mammen, Jennifer, Tyo, Mirinda, Seshadri, Sandhya

2025

Overview

Mixed methods research is essential to development of patient-reported outcome measures, digital technology, and endpoint selection for clinical drug trials and to advance clinical care when complex health-related experiences cannot be fully understood by quantitative or qualitative approaches alone. New technology and opportunities for remote data collection have changed the ways in which qualitative and quantitative data can be collected, enabling researchers to capture human experiences in ways not previously possible. This paper describes Perspective Mapping, a new online interviewing technique that uses mind mapping software to capture in-depth qualitative data inside a quantitative measurement framework to understand and measure individual experiences. The objective of this tutorial is to review the theoretical underpinnings, present instructions for study design and implementation, and address strengths, limitations, and potential applications of this technique in health and behavioral sciences. During videoconferencing interviews, mind-mapping software is used to visually depict experiences. Structured concept maps are cocreated in real time with participants, focusing on building detailed narrative descriptions about experiences and categorizing these within a predefined quantitative framework, such as the relative importance of different experiences relevant to a phenomenon. The approach combines semistructured interviewing with technology-enhanced card-sorting techniques, allowing participants to define and prioritize what matters most. This method ensures narrative richness alongside structured data collection, facilitating deeper understanding of phenomena. Perspective Mapping emphasizes participant engagement in data generation and analysis and enables the simultaneous collection of qualitative narratives and quantitative assessment of key concepts. The variations of the technique have been successfully applied in research on chronic illness, symptom burden, and digital health technology. Advantages of the approach include systematic collection of qualitative data, transparent and structured data outputs, real-time data validation, and the ability to return maps to participants as a form of reciprocity. Feasibility factors, such as interviewer capabilities, participant literacy, interview duration, and technology resources must be considered. Perspective Mapping offers an innovative and engaging way to gather complementary qualitative and quantitative data remotely. By blending qualitative depth with quantitative structure, the technique supports richer, more actionable insights for health research, policy, and beyond. This technique holds promise for applications in health, psychology, education, and other social sciences where comprehensive understanding of experiences is essential.

• Publisher: Journal of Medical Internet Research,JMIR Publications
• Subject: Analysis / Chronic diseases / Data entry / Design, Usability, and Evaluation of Research Instruments, Scales, and Measures / Electronic/Mobile Data Capture, Internet-based Survey & Research Methodology / Focus Groups and Qualitative Research for Human Factors Research / Mapping software / Research Instruments, Questionnaires, and Tools / Tutorial