Academic Book (Qualitative Research / Research Methods), 2021, SAGE.
I decided to do some research into some useful methods of analysing qualitive data for when my data collecting is complete. At the moment i still have a week until i will have all the interviews done so this is in preporation for then.
Braun and Clarke’s Thematic Analysis: A Practical Guide develops their approach to reflexive thematic analysis, a method for identifying and interpreting patterns of meaning across qualitative data. The book builds on their original 2006 paper and focuses on familiarisation, coding, developing themes, interpretation and writing up qualitative findings.
I chose to explore this method because I now have a growing collection of qualitative interview responses from autistic adults. Rather than simply selecting interesting quotes or counting repeated answers, I need a consistent method for understanding what the responses collectively reveal.
What I find most useful about reflexive thematic analysis is that it allows me to look for patterns across participants while still recognising individual experiences.
This feels appropriate for my project because autistic experiences of travel are highly varied. I do not want to suggest that every participant experiences the same barriers, but I do want to understand whether shared patterns are beginning to emerge. Braun and Clarke also emphasise that the researcher plays an active role in interpreting the data. My themes will therefore not simply “appear” from the interviews; I will make analytical decisions about what is relevant to my research question and reflect on how my own perspective influences those decisions.
Braun and Clarke describe six flexible phases for reflexive thematic analysis. These are not intended to be followed as rigid rules, and the researcher may move backwards and forwards between stages.
Read and re-read all interview responses and make notes about anything that appears significant.
Give short labels to meaningful pieces of data that relate to the research question.
For example:
“Security can be very overwhelming.”
Possible codes could include:
airport security / overwhelm / anxiety
Begin grouping related codes together to identify wider patterns of meaning.