Using Realist Evaluation to Understand Process Outcomes in a COVID-19-Impacted Yoga Intervention Trial: A Worked...

Area of Science:

• Health Services Research
• Methodology
• Program Evaluation

Background:

• Realist evaluation is increasingly used alongside intervention trials to understand and improve interventions.
• A clear philosophical foundation, pragmatic mixed methods, and theory-driven approach characterize realist evaluation.
• Detailed methods for data analysis and presentation in realist studies are often lacking.

Purpose of the Study:

• To illustrate an applied process for data analysis and presentation in realist evaluation.
• To provide a practical guide for researchers conducting realist evaluations.
• To address the gap in well-described methods for analyzing and presenting realist evaluation data.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a worked example from a realist process evaluation of the SAGE yoga trial.
• Drew upon existing realist studies for analytical and presentation ideas.
• Detailed six key tasks for conducting a realist process evaluation, including data coding and results structuring.

Main Results:

• Presented a practical, step-by-step process for realist evaluation data analysis and findings presentation.
• Illustrated the application of these methods using the SAGE yoga trial data.
• Shared insights on strategies that were effective and those that were rejected, with rationale.

Conclusions:

• The described methods offer a practical and informed starting point for researchers undertaking realist evaluations.
• Clearer methods for data analysis and presentation can enhance the rigor and utility of realist evaluations.
• This methodological paper contributes to the development of standardized practices in realist evaluation research.