The use of concept mapping in data analysis: a phenomenology study of family members’ experiences in taking care of people with cancer^†

Abstract Objective To explain the use of concept mapping in a study about family members’ experiences in taking care of people with cancer. Methods This study used a phenomenological study design. In this study, we describe the analytical process of using concept mapping in our phenomenological studies about family members’ experiences in taking care of people with cancer. Results We developed several concept maps that aided us in analyzing our collected data from the interviews. Conclusions The use of concept mapping is suggested to researchers who intend to analyze their data in any qualitative studies, including those using a phenomenological design, because it is a time-efficient way of dealing with large amounts of qualitative data during the analytical process.