Thematic and Content Analysis
Analysis is the process of identifying patterns, themes, commonalities, and divergences within data.
The most common qualitative analysis approach within development work involves coding and (sometimes) counting. These processes are called thematic and content analysis.
Related Approaches
Learning Diaries
Life Histories
Participatory Rural Appraisal
Q-Methodology
Positive Deviance
Step 1. Select analysis unit
Identify the unit or volume of text, photos or notes that you wish to analyse. You may come back and change this at any time.
- Respondent
- Question
- Paragraph
- Sentence
- Phrase
- Word
Step 2. First round coding
- Read through the entire text before you start
- Slowly read through the text based on the unit selected in step 1.
- Attach codes (or hashtags, colours, emojis) to the units of text wherever they fit. You do not need to code each line.
- Add comments and notes in the margins as you go.
- Underline any good quotes to use later.
This can be done either in a group or individually. You can start with a codebook that defines the codes and expand theme as you go.
Step 3. Review codes
In this step, go back to your codebook and review each code in detail. Your codebook should include:
- Code name
- Brief definition
- Full definition
- When to use
- When not to use
- Example of use
Step 4. Second round coding
During the second round of coding, re-reread and check your coding. As you will make new codes as you go, you may need to adapt and iterate.
- Read through the entire text again before you start
- Slowly read through the text based on the unit selected in step 1.
- Check codes and update them as required.
- Add comments and notes in the margins as you go.
- Underline any good quotes to use later.
Travel Restricted Times
Thematic analysis can be easily adapted for remote situations. We have curated a set of tools that are usable remotely through a computer with internet access.
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Computer and internet access |
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Learn more on the digital tools page.
Analysis Templates
Note that during the workshops – we referred to the coding and counting processes only as ‘thematic analysis’.
Analysis Template
[google doc]
This document template allows teams to highlight and tag content with codes. Underline useful quotes and add notes as comments.
aAnalysis Template
[google slide]
This presentation-based tool allows for remote analysis of data using digital sticky-notes. Teams can move notes around and cluster them together using a slide canvas that simulates a whiteboard. Use the slide-master to create static backgrounds.
Analysis Template
[google sheet]
This spreadsheet-based template has built-in equations to conduct frequency counts. This tool is useful for larger volumes of data.
Analysis Tools and Video Training
Dovetail - Interview Analysis
From the design thinking world, Dovetail is an interview analysis software that can be linked to Zoom. It can automatically transcribe your interviews (in English) and makes sorting codes simple. It supports multi-users, is fully online and is less costly than traditional qualitative analysis software. The clean interface is easy to use.
Dedoose - Interview Analysis
Dedoose is an online, multi-user software system for qualitative analysis. It also includes an offline version of the tool. Researchers are only charged for the months they log-in and it is less costly than traditional qualitative analysis software. Dedoose supports text, photos, audio, videos and spreadsheet data.
Airtable - Database
Airtable is an online, multi-user database software that includes a wider-range of functionality than excel. Specifically, it allows entries to be linked across a variety of sheets and allows for multiple tags in a single column. It is free for basic users.
Voyant - Text Analysis
Voyant-tools is an online text-analysis platform. It helps to visualise large amounts of textual data by identifying common and co-occurring themes, topics and words in a visual manner. Voyant does store all imported data, but you can request to have it removed. Be safe by de-identifying everything first.
Integrity Checklist
DOCX | 970 KB
RawGraphs - Data Visualisation
RAW Graphs is a free data visualisation tool that can take complex data and codes and create simple graphics. This quick video shows how to make a circle packing diagram connecting Excel, Rawgraphs.io and PowerPoint.
Circle Packing
Alluvial Diagrams
Digital Tools
Thematic Analysis Webinar
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