1 Chapter 7: Qualitative Data Analysis

Chapter 7: QUALITATIVE DATA ANALYSIS :

CONTENTS Chapter Chapter Chapter Chapter Chapter Chapter Chapter Chapter 1: 2: 3: 4: 5: 6: 7: 8: CHAPTER LEARNING OUTCOMES Introduction to Qualitative Research Qualitative have completed this Method When you Data Collection chapter you will be able to: Ethnography what is qualitative data analysis Define Action Research approaches in analysing qualitative data Compare Case Describe the stages involved in qualitative data analysis Study Qualitative Methods Other Code and develop categories in qualitative data analysis Qualitative Data Analysis Coding Qualitative Data

CHAPTER OVERVIEW
Preamble What is qualitative data? What is analysis? Stages in Qualitative Data Analysis a) Familiarisation b) Transcription c) Organisation Analysis) d) Coding - Analysis (Grounded Theory) - Analysis (Framework) e) Report writing Summary Key Terms Discussion Questions References

PREAMBLE

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This chapter focuses on the analysis of qualitative data beginning with defining what is qualitative data and what is analysis. The stages in the analysis of qualitative data is discussed. The coding stage is briefly discussed and will be discussed in greater detail in Chapter 8. Remember there are several approaches in analysing qualitative data and discussed here is one of the several approaches.

WHAT IS QUALITATIVE DATA? Generally, data is defined as information in raw or unorganised form which may be in the form of letters, words, numbers or symbols. Data refers to or represents a certain condition, phenomenon, idea or object. Data is limitless and is present all around us. Researchers have attempted to divide data into quantitative data and qualitative data. Quantitative Data is mostly in the form of numbers such as mathematics scores, personality scales, attitude scores, family income, export figures and so forth. Quantitative data is usually a mass of numbers that is processed, summarised and presented in the form of tables, charts and graphs.

Qualitative Data is mostly in the form of words, phrases, sentences and may include visual images, audio and video recordings. Qualitative data is a mass of words obtained from recordings of interviews, fieldnotes of observations, and analysis of documents as well as reflective notes of the researcher. This mass of information have to be organised, summarised, described and interpreted (Lacey & Luff, 2001).

WHAT IS ANALYSIS?

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Qualitative Data Analysis (QDA) is the range of processes and procedures whereby we move from the qualitative data that have been collected into some form of explanation, understanding or interpretation of the people and situations we are investigating (Lewins, A., Taylor, C. & Gibbs, 2005). QDA is usually based on an interpretative philosophy with the idea of giving meaning to the data collected. For example, when you analyse interview data, you are attempting to identify any or all of: Someone's interpretation of the world, Why they have that point of view, How they came to that view, What they have been doing, How they conveyed their view of their situation, How they identify or classify themselves and others in what they say,

There are many different ways of analysing qualitative data as there are qualitative researchers doing it. However, there is more agreement in the analysis of quantitative data but there is less agreement on how to analyse qualitative data. Different researchers have proposed different ways of analysing qualitative data. Fortunately, there are some common procedures in the analysis of qualitative data. Generally, since numbers are not used, the qualitative researcher looks for categories or themes from the raw data to describe and explain phenomena [We will discuss this in more detail later in this chapter]. He/she analyses the relationships and patterns between the categories or themes that have been identified. These categories or themes may be derived using two approaches: o Inductively whereby the categories or themes are allowed to emerge from the data gradually. This has been termed as grounded theory [we will discuss this im more detail later]. o Deductively whereby from the very beginning or half-way through you begin to identify the categories or themes and fit the data into the categories and themes which is later interpreted. Lets assume you are interested in how a group of teachers view the behaviour of their principal in staff meetings. Refer to an extract of an interview with a teacher and the key phrases extracted as show in the right margin. The Leadership Behaviour of a Principal as Perceived by Teachers in a School The following are probable qualitative data collection methods that could be used to investigate the above topic: - field notes from observations of staff meetings - focus groups interview transcripts - copies of diary entries teachers have been asked to complete each day - researcher memos and reflections - audio recordings

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The above is an example of a qualitative study investigating the leadership behaviour of a principal. Note the range of techniques employed to study the principal. At the end of study you will have large piles of field notes, audio recordings, documents (minutes of staff meetings), dairy entries and reflections sitting on your desk waiting to be analysed. How do you go about making some sense of qualitative ? STAGES IN QUALITATIVE ANALYSIS Earlier we discussed two common approaches in qualitative data analysis. While there are many other approaches, in this introductory course on qualitative research, we have confined ourselves to only these two approaches Grounded theory approach and Framework analysis approach. The stages in the analysis of qualitative data is shown in Figure 7.2 (Lacey and Luff, 2001). It usually begins with familiarisation of the data, transcription, organisation, coding, analysis (grounded theory or framework analysis) and reporting (though the order may vary). Phase 1. FAMILIARISATION The first phase of data analysis is familiarisation. You have massive amount of material and you may have to listen to tapes and watch video material, read and re-read the field notes, make memos and summaries before formal analysis begins. This is especially important when besides you, others are also involved in data collection. You have got to be familiar with the field notes they made (perhaps trying to decipher their handwriting!).

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Familiarisation

Transcription

Organisation

Analysis
Grounded theory Report Writing Analysis Framework analysis Coding

Figure 7.2 Stages in qualitative data analysis Phase 2. TRANSCRIPTION Almost all qualitative research studies involve some degree of transcription. What is transcription? Transcription is the process of converting audio recorded data or handwritten fieldnotes obtained from interviews and observations into verbatim form (i.e. written or printed) for easy reading (see Figure 7.2). Why do you have to do this? If you were to analyse direct from an audio recording or fieldnotes, there is the likelihood that you may include those sections that seem relevant or interesting to you and ignore others. With a transcript of everything that you observed and recorded (audio or fieldnotes), you get the whole picture of what happened and the chances of your analysis being biased is minimised. Fieldnotes Transcript

Interview

Figure 7.3 The transcription of an interview

6 Chapter 7: Qualitative Data Analysis You should not forget to include non-verbal cues in the transcript such as silence (which may indicate embarrassment or emotional distress), pause for thought (such as wellerI suppose.) laughter, gestures (which may add meaning to the spoken word) and so forth. If someone else is transcribing your material, make sure to tell him or her how much of this non-verbal information to include. If you have never transcribed material, it is a useful to do a little yourself [Try doing the Learning Activity below].

LEARNING ACTIVITY

Find a member of your family, or a friend or colleague and interview the person for about 10 minutes concerning What are the characteristics of a good teacher?. Try to probe what it is that makes a good teacher. Tape record the interview, then transcribe into a word processor in your own time, including as much non-verbal material as you can. 1. How long did the transcription take you, compared with the original interview? 2. Highlight the non-verbal communication you were able to include. What does it tell you, in addition to the words you have recorded? 3. Look at the questions you asked, and any comments you made. Had you at any point led the respondent in any way, or missed important clues given by the respondent. 4. Listen to the recording again, with the transcript in front of you. Did you change any of the words from the tape? Did you transcribe everything accurately? Your first attempt at transcribing! 1. How long did the transcription take you, compared with the original interview? Unless you are a very good at typing and have a clear recording device, it is likely that the you would take at least 4 times as long transcribing compared to the interview. You may take longer. You will realise that transcribing is time consuming but you will be familiar with data as you go along.

7 Chapter 7: Qualitative Data Analysis 2. Highlight the non-verbal communication you were able to include. What does it tell you, in addition to the words you have recorded? It is likely that the person you interviewed will have few hmm, errr, oh that adds to the realism and credibility of your data. It also provides clues as to the feelings of your subject. If you had recorded laughter, asides, murmuring, you have made your data alive. 3. Look at the questions you asked, and any comments you made. Had you at any point led the respondent in any way, or missed important clues given by the respondent. You may have interrupted your subject or asked an irrelevant or inappropriate question. From the transcript you will be able to identify your own interview techniques. 4. Listen to the recording again, with the transcript in front of you. Did you change any of the words from the tape? Did you transcribe everything accurately? You do not need to change words or phrases to make them grammatically correct. Because if you do, you have changed the sense of what was said. If the subject used slang, or colloquialism or unusual words, you can explain it later when you write the report. Phase 3. ORGANISATION After transcription, it is necessary to organise your data into sections that is easy to retrieve. What does this mean? Say for example, in your study you interviewed 10 teachers (30 minutes each) on their opinion about the leadership style of their principal. It is advisable that you give each teacher a pseudonym (e.g. Elvis, Michael, Dina not their real name) or referred to by a code number (e.g. T1, T2..T10). You need to keep a file that links the pseudonym or code number to the original informants which should be kept confidential and destroyed after completion of the research. Names and other identifiable material should be removed from the transcripts.

8 Chapter 7: Qualitative Data Analysis The narrative data you obtained from the 10 teachers needs to be numbered depending on your unit of analysis. In other words, you have to determine whether you intend to analyse at the word level, sentence level of paragraph level and they have to be numbered accordingly. Make sure that the unit of text you use can be traced back to its original context. For example, one teacher described his principal as a person who walks the factory floor. You should be able to trace who said it and the transcript from which the phrase was taken from. Remember, you will so much data and if not properly organised you may be drowned in the mass of information which can very very frustrating! Phase 4. CODING Coding is the process of examining the raw qualitative data in the transcripts and extracting sections of text units (words, phrases, sentences or paragraphs) and assigning different codes or labels so that they can easily be retrieved at a later stage for further comparison and analysis, and the identification of any patterns. Codes can be based on: Themes, Topics Ideas, Concepts Terms, Phrases Keywords

found in the data. Usually it is passages of text that are coded but it can be sections of an audio or video recording or parts of images which may be a numerical reference, symbol, descriptive words or category words. All passages and chunks that are coded the same way that is given the same label have been judged (by the researcher) to be about the same topic, theme, concept etc. The codes are given meaningful names that gives an indication of the idea or concept that underpins the theme or category. Any parts of the data that relate to a code topic are coded with the appropriate label. This process of coding (associating labels with the text, images etc) involves close reading of the text (or close inspection of the video or images). If a theme is identified from the data that does not quite fit the codes that are already existing then a new code is created. As the researcher reads through their data set the number of codes they have will evolve and grow as more topics or themes become apparent. EXAMPLE: Strauss and Corbin (1998) suggest what is called open coding. Open coding is where you sweep through the data and marking the text. It is a good idea to leave a column at the side of your data so you can write your codes next to the segments you are coding. The following is an example of an interview with a teacher describing the behaviour of his principal at staff meetings with teachers in the school (see Table 7.1).

R: How long have you been a teacher in this school? T: For about 10 years. Chapter 7: principle, how would you describe him? R: Your Qualitative Data Analysis T: Quite a hot-tempered guy. R. What do you mean hot-tempered? T: Well, in the last staff meeting, I objected to his idea of cutting down the number of fieldtrips for students. He argued that that it was too much of a responsibility for the school. Also, it was getting more and more expensive for the school. R: What happened than? T: Before I could say anything, he lost his cool and came for me. He refused to listen to what I had to say.he just went on and on. R: What do you think? T: Personally, I think it was not fair of him to scold me. After all this is a democracy and he should at least listen to what I had to say. It was very unpleasant and many of my colleagues were very disturbed over the incident. R: How do the others feel? T. Many of us prefer to keep quite and suffer in silence. You know, he is quite close with the higher-ups. Anyone who questions his decisions are ridiculed You know he determines whether we get promoted or not. You know, its the usual thing! R: How often does this happen? T: Almost always..all meetings becomes a one man show its all talk.talk.

Extraction of key phrases hottempered

lost his cool refused to listen just went on and on

not fair scold ridiculed for questioning one man show

Table 7.1 Interview with a teacher about the behaviour his principal at staff meetings You have uncovered eight descriptions of the principals behaviour in staff meetings and the following codes are assigned. B1 hot tempered; B2 lost his cool B3 refused to listen B4 just went on and on B6 scolds B7 ridiculed for questioning B8 one man show Next you may want to recode the eight descriptions into one or two categories. In other words, the category emerges from the data. You may have to assign a name for the category. In this example, B3 and B8 could be recoded to A1 and assigned the category

10 Chapter 7: Qualitative Data Analysis or theme autocratic. You go on doing this until you have exhausted the data in terms of developing any new codes. Coding Techniques The following are two techniques to help you with the practicalities of coding: Cut and Paste you can literally cut your transcripts into smaller unit of analysis which could be individual words, phrases, sentences or paragraphs. You could paste these text units on to cards which you could sort and re-sort easily. Keep in mind that each text unit needs to be traceable to its original context. Sometimes, a text unit may have to be sorted into two different categories or theme. So you will need to make several copies of a text unit to be sorted into two or more categories.

Colour Code you could also use highlighting pens to highlight text units or coloured pens to underline units of text. There could be a problem when there are hundreds of text units and you will need hundreds of colours which could pose a problem differentiating the colours. The advantage of using coloured pens or highlighters is that you do not need to cut up the transcripts. Colour coding would be the choice if you do not have too many categories or text units.

11 Chapter 7: Qualitative Data Analysis Combination perhaps a preferred technique would be to use a combination of cut and paste and colour coding.

[CODING is discussed in more detail in Chapter 8] Step 5. ANALYSIS

A) Grounded Theory Inductive Approach

If you are interested in generating theory and not sure what to expect, the grounded theory approach would a logical choice. The grounded theory approach offers a rigorous approach in generating theory from qualitative data. It is particularly well suited for exploratory studies where little is known. Grounded theory evolved from the work of sociologists Glaser and Strauss (1967). Grounded theory is an inductive approach in the analysis of qualitative data in which theory is systematically generated from data. However, many studies in education, business, management, medicine, public health and in nursing), the grounded theory approach has been widely adopted as a procedure for conceptualising and analysing data. The appeal of grounded theory analysis is that it allows for the theory to emerge from the data through a process of rigorous analysis (see Figure 7.2). The word theory is used to mean the relationships that exist among concepts that comes from the data and helps us understand our social world more clearly (Strauss and Corbin, 1998). The grounded theory approach is different from the framework approach [discussed later] in analysing qualitative data. The grounded theory approach emphasises on theory as the final output of research (Strauss and Corbin, 1998). The framework approach in data analysis may stop at the level of description or simple interpretation. The aim of grounded theory is theoretical development. Researchers who adopt the grounded theory approach, define grounded theory as the plausible (likely or probable) relationships between sets of categories which have emerged from data analysed. So, theory is a statement about possible relationships among categories about a phenomenon that helps one understand his or her social world. Note that a theory is not an absolute truth but rather a tentative explanation of a phenomenon (for example, adolescents damage public property in an effort to seek attention because of low self-esteem).

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THEORY EMERGES SHOWING RELATIONSHIPS AMONG THE CATEGORIES

CATEGORIES EMERGE FROM THE DATA Category #1 Identify and Categorise Data Category #2 Category #3

R A W DAT A

Word Phrase

Phrase Word

Word Word Phrase

Phrase

Figure 7.1 Graphical Description of The Grounded Theory Approach in Qualitative Data Analysis The main feature of the grounded theory procedure is the use of the constant comparison technique. Using this technique, categories or concepts that emerge from one stage of analysis are compared with categories or concepts that emerge from the previous stage. The researcher continues with this technique until what is called theoretical saturation is reached or no new significant categories or concepts emerge. The grounded theory procedure is cyclical involving frequent revisiting of data in the light of emergence of new categories or concepts as data analysis progresses. The theory that develops is best seen as provisional until proven by the data and validation from others.

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B) Framework Analysis Deductive Approach

Another approach to qualitative data analysis is called framework analysis (Ritchie and Spencer, 1994). In contrast to the grounded theory procedure, framework analysis was explicitly developed for applied research. In applied research, the findings and recommendations of research need to obtained with a short period to be adopted. The general approach of framework analysis shares many of the common features with the grounded theory approach discussed earlier. This approach to qualitative data analysis allows the researcher to set the categories and themes from the beginning of the study. However, this approach also allows for categories and themes that may emerge during data analysis which the researcher had not stated at the beginning of the study. Once the categories or themes have been pre-determined, specific pieces of data are identified which correspond to the different themes or categories. Let us take an example from medicine. You may want to know, for instance, about how people who had had a heart attack conceptualise the causes of the attack. From existing literature, you may know that these can be divided into physical causes, psychological causes, ideas of luck, genetic inheritance and so forth. You interview people who have had a heart attack and from the interview transcript you search the data for material that could be coded under these headings. Using the headings, you can create charts of your data so that you can easily read across the whole dataset. Charts can be either thematic for each theme or category across all respondents (cases) or by case for each respondent across all themes (see below). Thematic Chart THEME Psychological cause Case 2 The stress at office is too much. Got to work late Case 3 Business was bad. Had to close shop

Case Chart Theme 1 Genetic inheritance My younger brother and father died of a heart attack Theme 2 Physical cause I hardly do any exercise. I too busy to do any exercise

CASE 1

14 Chapter 7: Qualitative Data Analysis In the chart boxes, you could put line and page references to relevant passages in the interview transcript. You might also want to include some text; e.g. key words or quotations as a reminder of what is being referred to (see the charts above). For example, under the theme Psychological Causes, Case 2 talked about stress in the workplace while Case 3 talked about business failure. Step 6: REPORT WRITING a) Introducing your Study o Begin with something interesting, e.g., a quote or story, to capture the reader's interest. o Introduce you question or curiosity. What is it that you want to know or understand? How did you get interested in the topic? o Tell why there's a need for the study. Cite relevant literature that calls for the need for the research in this area, or demonstrates the lack of attention to the topic. In your own words, describe how you think this study will be useful. o Describe the intended audience for your research (e.g., the public, family therapists). b) Research Method o Identify and generally describe your research method (e.g., ethnographic field study, single case study), and your research procedures (e.g., long interviews, observation). o Cite the major authors who have described your research method. o Explain how you will selected your subjects and gained entry into the research context (if relevant). o Describe the procedures you took to protect the rights of your subjecs (e.g., informed consent, human subjects approval, debriefing). o Describe the kind of relationship you had with the subjects. Will you be neutral, collaborative, objective? o Describe the kind of data you collected (e.g., field notes from memory, audio tapes, video tapes, transcripts of conversations, examination of existing documents, etc.). o Describe the procedures used in data collection. If interviews were used, list your question(s) or attach as an appendix. Describe any equipment used. o Describe the procedures you used to keep track of the research process. i.e. your audit trail. i. Process notes: Day to day activities, methodological notes, decision making procedures. ii. Materials relating to intentions and reactions: personal notes about motivations, experiences with informants, etc.

15 Chapter 7: Qualitative Data Analysis iii. Instrument development information: revisions of interview questions, etc. Describe your data analysis procedures (coding, sorting, etc.)? i. Data reduction: Write-ups of field notes, transcription procedures and conventions, computer programs used, etc. ii. Data reconstruction: development of categories, findings, conclusions, connections to existing literature, integration of concepts. Describe how you ensure "reliability" and "validity." For mention whether you used triangulation, member checking, peer debriefing, auditing. Summarise and reference all of the relevant literature that you have reviewed. Describe how you reviewed the literature and how it has influenced the way you approached the research. Discuss how your previous experience with your topic has influenced the way you have conceptualized this research. Summarise relevant personal an professional experiences, if you have not done so in the Introduction.

o o o o o

Analysing qualitative data is not a simple or quick task. Done properly, it is systematic and rigorous, and therefore labour-intensive and time-consuming. The major element of qualitative analysis is to find, build, clarify, illustrate and explain an argument or issue. The analysis should take the form of a research essay containing certain expected elements: How you introduce them and sequence the elements must be logical and help readers to get it. An adequate research report not only explains but also persuades. Being persuasive is very much an issue of good clear writing. The way you write should help readers to see for themselves what you claims to find in and make of the data. The evidence is the data you collected and from which you choose carefully an excerpt or excerpts to illustrate points in your report. It must be the right and sufficient data to illustrate clearly and logically what is being claimed. Also, the relevant evidence must be presented within a description that displays in narrative form the point being made. Successful qualitative analysis tells a good, absorbing, understandable, story. It story makes sense because you have made an effort to do so and you have communicated this to your reader. The bottom line is credibility. It refers to the accuracy of your description as show in your report.. It should be remembered that words are all you have to describe phenomenon unlike quantitative research which uses number to describe phenomenon. If you want to convince your reader that the findings you obtained are credible (or accurate) you need to state precisely the parameters of the study. What is meant by parameters? Parameters involves who was studied, where and when, and methods used. If you are able to state these aspects clearly, you enhance the credibility of the study.

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SUMMARY

Qualitative data is a mass of words obtained from recordings of interviews, fieldnotes of observations, and analysis of documents as well as reflective notes of the researcher. Familiarisation is when you listen to tapes and watch video material, reading and re-reading the field notes, making memos and summaries before formal analysis begins. Transcription is the process of converting audio or video-recorded data obtained from interviews and focus groups as well as handwritten fieldnotes into verbatim form. After transcription, it is necessary to organise your data into sections that is easy to retrieve. Coding is the process of examining the raw qualitative data in the transcripts and extracting sections of text units (words, phrases, sentences or paragraphs) and assigning different codes. Grounded theory is a method and approach in doing qualitative research. It is an inductive method of qualitative research in which theory is systematically generated from data. The Framework analysis approach allows the researcher to set the categories and themes from the beginning of the study.

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KEY WORDS Framework analysis approach Thematic chart Case chart Grounded theory approach Qualitative data Analysis Familiarisation Organisation Coding

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS: DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

When would you us the grounded theory approach instead of the framework When would you us the grounded theory approach instead of the framework analysis approach when analysing qualitative data? analysis approach when analysing qualitative data? What are some of the elements should you include when writing a qualitative What are some of the elements should you include when writing a qualitative research report? research report? Conduct a 20 minute observation of a classroom (primary or secondary) and Conduct a 20 minute observation of a classroom (primary or secondary) and jot down in a notebook whatever you see. Analyse the data using either the jot down in a notebook whatever you see. Analyse the data using either the grounded theory approach or the framework analysis approach. grounded theory approach or the framework analysis approach.

18 Chapter 7: Qualitative Data Analysis REFERENCES Glaser, B. and Strauss, A. (1967). The discovery of grounded theory. London: Weidenfield & Nicolson. Lacey, A. & Luff, D. (2001). Trent focus for research and development in primary health care: An introduction to qualitative analysis. London: Trent Focus. Lewins, A., Taylor, C. & Gibbs, G. (2005). What is qualitative data analysis? School of Human & Health Sciences, University of Huddersfield. United Kingdome. Strauss, A. (1987). Qualitative analysis for social scientists. New York: Cambridge University Press. Strauss, A. and Corbin, J. (1990). Basics of qualitative research: Grounded theory procedures and techniques. London: Sage Internet Resources: 1. Russell Bernard (1996) Qualitative Data, Quantitative Analysis. Cultural Anthropology Methods Journal, Vol. 8 no. 1, 9-11. http://web.missouri.edu/~anthgr/papers/Bernardqualquant.htm 2. Chapter 15: Qualitative Data Analysis http://www.southalabama.edu/coe/bset/johnson/dr_johnson/lectures/lec17.pdf 3. Lindee Morgan. Module: Qualitative Data Analysis http://comm2.fsu.edu/programs/commdis/ddseminar/QualitativeAnalysis.htm 4. Donald Ratcliff. 15 Methods of Data Analysis in Qualitative Research http://www.vanguard.edu/uploadedFiles/faculty/dratcliff/qualresources/15methods.pdf 5. John Carney and Joseph Joiner. Categorising, Coding and Manipulating Qualitative Data Using the WordPerfect Word Processor. The Qualitative Report. 1997. 3(2). http://www.nova.edu/sss/QR/QR3-1/carney.html