qualitative data analysis Flashcards
what is qualitative analysis?
textual or other data transformed into findings
what is qualitative research good for?
relativism - focuses on context, assumes multiple truths exist
what are the strengths of qualitative research?
- holistic
- provides comprehensive understanding
- compliments quantitative data by providing explantions
what kinds of data can be analysed?
- interviews/focus groups transcripts
- field notes
- newspaper articles
- blogs
- parliamentary debates
- policy docs
- public consultations
- mass observation responses
- pictures/images
- paintings
- TV ads/youtube vids
what is qualitative data analysis?
bringing order to data, organising into patterns, categories and looking for relationships between them (Brewer)
what are the different kinds of qualitative data analysis?
- discourse analysis
- ethnographic
- critical discourse
- thematic
- grounded theory
- matrix of displays
- content
- conversation
- argumentation
- foucauldian/freudian
- multimodal
what is thematic analysis?
meaning of a topic to a person/group can be broken down into a set of themes
what is content analysis?
frequency of content is informative about how a topic is covered
what is ethnographic analysis?
characterise a set of cultural practices, we interpret what people say and do in light of their context
what is discourse analysis?
discourse (language/knowledge) has power and produces social effects, interpretation of texts can show us how
what are the two types of qualitative data analysis?
- bottom up (inductive, data driven)
- top down (deductive, theory driven)
what is purely inductive data analysis?
- participant experiences drive analysis
- develop codes
- group codes into larger/broader themes
- may deploy constant comparisons
- limits possibilites of researchers forcing a preconceived results
what are the key principles of qualitative analysis?
- directed and focused (‘purposive’): provides and answer to the research question
- systematic: analytic strategy or procedure with steps to be followed
- transparent and traceable: provide a clear account of assumptions, procedures, steps
- interpretive: beyond simply describing what’s in the data, synthesising interpretation of the data, links back to existing theory
what is discourse?
a form of social practice that uses language [symbolic resources] to produce knowledge and subjectivity
what is textual dimension?
naming, modality, cohesion
what is discursive dimension?
intertextuality (quoted speech), genres
what is societal dimension?
post-modern culture, public sphere, imagined communities, reflexive modernity, neo-liberal, globalisation
what power does discourse have?
- to establish the forms of action that are made possible in social contexts
- to impose certain representations of the world as legitimate and authoritative
- to establish the relationships between social identities
what is discourse as social action?
language as a ritual of communication where knowledge is co-constructed between two or more people
what is language as a neutral tool?
language as a code of transmission where knowledge is passed on from one person to another
what is coding?
process of categorising data in to chunks that are alike
how to present thematic analysis?
visual summary in the thematic map
write up
