Helping the reader follow the evidence

When I used a line from a questionnaire response, I wanted a reader to be able to work back to the question that prompted it. Ben said the appendix was a suitable place for the questionnaire and supporting material. I used participant codes and question numbers so the link could be followed without making someone’s name part of the argument. Appendix A gives the prompts. The responses are organised separately under participant identifiers.

What the question number adds

The question can change what an answer means. For example, P01, Q3 describes a change to the boarding area. A reader can follow that reference to see the setting and how the comment sits within the answer. Q1 asks about independence more generally. I can use an answer from that prompt to think about how someone defines independence, while being careful about what it tells me about an airport. A prompt that invited people to imagine support without cost or technology limits needs its own context too. It gives me ideas to consider, with feasibility still open.

From the response to my interpretation

I used the themes table to make the steps clearer. The account gives the reader something a participant described. The theme records how I interpreted it alongside other accounts. The design proposition shows what I thought could be explored next. In the case of a boarding-area change, the proposition is clearer information about what changed and what to do next. Showing those steps lets a reader see where I have made a design judgement.

<aside>

Keeping the prompt and participant code with an example makes it easier to check both the wording and the interpretation I built from it.

</aside>

What belongs in the public journal

The appendix serves a reader assessing the report. For the journal I can explain the checking process using a code and prompt number. That gives an examiner a route through the evidence in the submitted material. I also needed to consider the original consent for quotations, how anonymity was recorded and what could identify someone when several details are put together. The part I want to make visible here is the decision about how to handle the evidence and the care needed when it moves between audiences.

A practical check for the report

I would start in the discussion and choose a reference such as P01, Q3. I would find the prompt in Appendix A, locate the response under P01 in Appendix B and check the wording against the account. Then I would go back to the paragraph and ask whether the claim still holds when I read the response in full. The same check works in the other direction. If a theme appears in Table 1, I can see which accounts illustrate it and which proposition I drew from it.