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CHAPTER 8: Analyzing and Interpreting Qualitative Data

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CHAPTER 8: Analyzing and Interpreting Qualitative Data

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CONTENTS:
1.  Six Steps in the Process of Analyzing and Interpreting Qualitative Data
2.  Prepare and Organize the Data for Analysis
3.  Explore and Code the Data
4.  Coding to Build Description and Themes
5.  Represent and Report Qualitative Findings
6.  Interpret the Findings
7.  Validate the Accuracy of the Findings

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1. What are the six steps in analyzing and interpreting qualitative data?

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1. What are the six steps in analyzing and interpreting qualitative data?

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1. Preparing and organizing the data for analysis.
2. Engaging in an initial exploration of the data through the process of coding it.
3. Using the codes to develop a more general picture of the data— descriptions and themes.
4. Representing the findings through narratives and visuals.
5. Making an interpretation of the meaning of the results by reflecting personally on the impact of the findings and on the literature that might inform the findings.
6. Conducting strategies to validate the accuracy of the findings.

* These steps are not always taken in sequence.

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1. What are the six steps in analyzing and interpreting qualitative data? 

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1. What are the six steps in analyzing and interpreting qualitative data? 

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Characteristics:

It is inductive in form, going from the particular or the detailed data to the general codes and themes.

It involves a simultaneous process of analyzing while you are also collecting data. In qualitative research, the data collection and analysis are simultaneous activities.

The phases are also iterative, meaning you cycle back and forth between data collection and analysis.

Qualitative researchers analyze their data by reading it several times and conducting an analysis each time.

There is no single, accepted approach to analyzing qualitative data, although several guidelines exist for this process. It is an eclectic process.

Qualitative research is “interpretive” research, in which you make a personal assessment as to a description that fits the situation or themes that capture the major categories of information.

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2. How do you prepare and organize the data for analysis?

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2. How do you prepare and organize the data for analysis?

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Organize data

Developing a matrix or a table of sources that can be used to help organize the material

Organizing the materials by type: all interviews, all observations, all documents, and all photographs or other visual materials or organizing the materials by participant, site, location, or some combination of these approaches

Keeping duplicate copies of all forms of data

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2. How do you prepare and organize the data for analysis?

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2. How do you prepare and organize the data for analysis?

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2. Transcribe data

The most complete procedure, however, is to have all interviews and all observational notes transcribed.

Tips for transcribing:

Create 2-inch margins on each side of the text document so that you can jot down notes in the margins during data analysis.

Leave extra space on the page between the interviewer’s comments and the interviewee’s comments. This enables you to distinguish clearly between speakers during data analysis.

Highlight or mark in some way the questions asked by the interviewer.

Use complete, detailed headers that contain information about the interview or observational session.

Transcribe all words, and type the word “[ pause]” to indicate when interviewees take a lengthy break in their comments. These pauses may provide useful information about times when interviewees cannot or will not respond to a question. You can also record other actions occurring during an interview.

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Coding is the process of segmenting and labeling text to form descriptions and broad themes in the data.

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2. How do you prepare and organize the data for analysis? Analyze by hand or computer

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2. How do you prepare and organize the data for analysis? Analyze by hand or computer

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Making the decision to analyze the data by hand or by computer. Several good software programs are available for computer analysis.

Qualitative computer programs do not analyze the data for you. However, they do provide several convenient features that facilitate your data analysis. Stores data, organizes your data, enables you to assign labels or codes to your data, and facilitates searching through your data and locating specific text or words.

Atlas.ti ( www.atlasti.com).

HyperRESEARCH ( www.researchware.com).

MAXQDA ( www.maxqda.com).

NVivo ( www.qsrinternational.com).

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4. Coding to build description and themes

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4. Coding to build description and themes

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There are two approches to analyze the data.

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5. How do you represent and report findings?

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5. How do you represent and report findings?

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The primary form is a narrative discussion, a written and detailed summary of the analysis of the findings. The author provides 7 hints to take into account while creating the narrative:

-  Include dialogue that provides support for themes
-  State the dialogue in the participants’ native language or in the regional or ethnic dialect
-  Use metaphors and analogies
-  Report quotes from interview data or from observations of individuals (to capture feelings, POVs, etc.)
-  Report multiple perspectives and contrary evidence (from different individuals, sources of information, etc.)
- Write in vivid detail (good descriptions)
-  Specify tensions and contradictions in individual experiences

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6. How do you validate the accuracy of your findings? 

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6. How do you validate the accuracy of your findings? 

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The researcher has to choose a strategy to determine the accuracy or credibility of the findings.
Three of these strategies are:
1. Triangulation: The researcher corroborates the evidences from different "places". These "places" are the individuals, the types of data and the methods of data collection. This gives credibility due to the fact that the information draws on multiple sources of information, individuals or processes.
2. Member checking: The researcher asks some of the participants to check if there's accuracy in the findings.
3. Auditing: The researcher has to find an external person who carefully reviews the study and gives a written report back highlighting the strenghts and weaknesses of the project. The auditor would review different aspects of the research

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Qualitative research is interpretative research. Here the researcher goes back forming meanings regarding the phenomenon which is based on personal views or comparisons with past studies or even both.
The interpretation often is in a final section of a study under headings such as "conclusion", "discussion", etc.
A typical way to begin a discussion section is giving a general recap of the major findings. Usually each research question is stated again providing findings for each of them.
Interpretations are personal reflections abouth the meaning of the data. In a research study the interpretations can be expressed with the same words of the participants or through an interpretative comentary.
Finally, interpretations may be based on previous literature. The researcher interprets the findings to see if there are contradictions or support. Here social and personal realities may be seen under the eye of educational and/or social sciences