Class Notes

Qualitative Research - 10.8.2013

Saldana's coding manual is much more geared toward being reference, whereas Tracy's work is concerned with an overall understanding of qualitative research. The coding manual also advocates for using methods only as long as they are useful. We should allow for the fact that some coding schemes are going to be emergent-- the first coding is never final.

The multiple interpretations that can come out in coding a text make the conflict in mixed methods apparent. If a single text can have multiple interpretations, then it can't have an objective, measurable truth.

There are two types of coding: reductionistic and rhizomatic. The rhizomatic model is emergent-- it has offshoots and breakaways. It enlarges the thing you're looking at. Reductionistic uses codes that stand for other things. It concentrates the thing you're looking at.

We need to be careful when we're coding-- we shouldn't use ad hoc abbreviations because we'll likely forget them or misinterpret them later.

We begin with the problem. The more specific we can be with our problem statement, the more directive we can be with our research. Working with NVivo, the more specific problem statement leads to early classification schemes, whereas more iterative work means that your classifications in NVivo might change or multiply.

There are source and node classifications. The source classifications can have sub-categories. It is done when you bring in the source. If we are going to classify a lot of items as the same thing, we can set that designation as a default. Source nodes are used for coding that accommodates the entire source. In other words, they are designations that apply to the whole of the source, rather than a coding that would get used within the source.

After deciding on a problem, we need to choose our texts. We need to presort these texts, then classify them in NVivo.

My most recent save file for NVivo is here.