ABSTRACT
In this chapter we will consider projective techniques as these may be used in research into health and well-being. Projective research techniques are an extremely flexible approach to research that may be adapted to meet the requirements of a particular study. By asking partakers to respond to ambiguous stimuli, projective approaches attempt to go beyond or deeper than the self-reported information that is gathered in surveys or interviews. In delving deeper, projective techniques attempt to access not only the conscious understandings that the participant holds, but also their uncensored subconscious-level motivations. In this chapter, we will first review some of the many techniques for data gathering that fall under this heading. These typically fall under four types: text-based, visual-based, verbal-based, or imaginative. However, projective techniques may draw on more than one of these categories and all are vehicles for facilitating open conversations with participants. Having considered as research approaches, we will then go on to delve more deeply into the use of projective techniques in healthcare research settings. We will also consider the strengths and weaknesses of these approaches and the type of information that the healthcare researcher can expect to gather, as well as the types of answers using these techniques presented.
