Writing Your Doctoral Dissertation

or Thesis FasterA Proven Map to Success

by E. Alana James and Tracesea Slater

Chapter 11: Are You Ready to Write Up Your Qualitative Data?

The Main Challenges Advisors See With Qualitative Work

• Data dump vs. analysis• Reflect on meaning of data and also your biases in relation to

it• Sort and resort data across research questions, looking for

new possibilities

Linear Qualitative Analysis

Table 11.1 Linear outline of qualitative data (Williams, 2012)

• Map interview questions and answers back to your research question

• Can be a good first step but is not generally going to provide you with your ultimate answers

Nonlinear Qualitative Analysis • Open coding – for items of interest, such as:

• full or partial answers to the research questions, • interesting or provocative ideas, • agreement or disagreement with previous research literature,

and • discussions that lead to a deeper understanding of the

interrelatedness among the variables associated with this issue.

• Selective coding - go back over data multiple times to find items that fit in the themes uncovered by open coding

Figure 11.1 Open coding is when researchers look over their data to find themes. Source: iStockphoto.com/DrAfter123.

The Importance of Reflection and Reflexion

• Reflection - the internal process whereby researchers make meaning of what they have discovered or done and then come to a conscious conclusion about what they want to do next.

• Reflexion –based on the idea that we are never completely neutral when we interact with another person.

Figure 11.2 Reflexion involves looking carefully at ourselves to see how our background, experiences, and beliefs might affect our research. Source: Medioimages/Photodisc/Photodisc/Thinkstock

Results and Findings

• Difference between results and findings• Development of findings• Having enough data• Laying out findings and

results• Outstanding qualitative

discussionsFigure 11.4 More is sometimes better; in award-winning qualitative dissertations we found more data and longer analysis sections.

Source: ©iStockphoto.com/artefy

Building a Qualitative Argument

• Argumentation • Claim• Evidence• Warrant• Backing

Figure 11.5 Make sure there is a strong clear link between your evidence and your claim.

Source: Stockbyte/Stockbyte/Thinkstock

Qualitative Research Tips: Do…• Be clear on the difference between your results and your findings. • Tell your reader at the beginning of each section how the results and findings will be presented

and then follow that order. • Superimpose a routine on your explanation of results, repeating that routine throughout your

argumentation in order for your reader to understand the sequence of thoughts and how they develop.

• Consistently report your findings. • Use graphic organizers, different coding tools, concept maps, or new technologies. • Analyze the coherence of your data, findings, and discussion or conclusion and cross-check with

participants, if at all possible, for the validity of your findings. • Include a substantive conversation about how these data were analyzed, categorized, sorted, and

resorted to arrive at the findings. • Conclude with a summary through which the reader is convinced that you completely understand

your whole population, where they agreed and disagreed, and the mechanisms that influenced that variety.

Qualitative Research Tips: Don’t…

• Focus on your participants, unless required by your methodology, such as case studies or narrative inquiry. • Forget to consider the validity of your findings,

discussion or conclusions, and arguments as well as credibility and reliability, in your final discussion.

Where Should I Go to Dig Deeper? Suggested Resources to Consider

• Bloomberg, L. D., & Volpe, M. (2012). Completing your qualitative dissertation: A road map from beginning to end (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Contains a fabulous checklist for presentations of findings, analysis, and synthesis of findings to discussion or conclusions and final dissertation or thesis closure.

• Creswell, J. W. (2009). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches (3rd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage; Maxwell, J. A. (2013). Qualitative research design: An interactive approach (3rd ed.). Thousand Oaks: Sage. This updated version of a qualitative classic text has a great chapter (6 on page 121) dealing with issues of qualitative validity. It is also a very readable discussion of all the basic considerations.

• Ortlipp, M. (2008). Keeping and using reflective journals in the qualitative research process. The Qualitative Report, 13(4), 695–705. This is a useful discussion on how to use reflective journaling to enhance your qualitative analysis.

• Piantanida, M., & Garman, N. B. (1999). The qualitative dissertation: A guide for students and faculty. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press. These authors have excellent chapters on the details of analysis through portrayals and deliberation. While outside of the purview of this text these topics should be understood and considered by all qualitative researchers.

• Rubin, H. J., & Rubin, I. (2012). Qualitative interviewing: The art of hearing data (3rd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Not only does this text help the research get the most out of qualitative data collection, its final discussion on writing is well worth looking into.

• Yin, R. K. (2011). Qualitative Research from Start to Finish. New York: The Gilford Press. This book is excellent for two reasons: (1) it offers vignettes throughout to help researchers clarify some of the more subtle aspects they might encounter, and (2) trustworthiness and validity are discussed from many angles, helping researchers sort out the pros and cons of the choices they make.