FSS – Interpreting Qualitative Data

The central task in qualitative analysis is finding ways to interpret the data that has been collected. This involves making sense of the data as well as connecting it to the researcher’s specific questions and to the broader social, theoretical, or methodological issues in which the research is embedded. Attention is usually given to the collection of qualitative data and to how this data should be transcribed and ordered (often with the help of computer programs like Atlas, CAQDAS, Kwalitan). This leaves unaddressed how to interpret the material once it has been collected. This course addresses that lacuna. 

In the most hands-on way possible, we will be analyzing the participants’ own qualitative data. This material can include interview transcripts, focus group discussions, ethnographic field notes, media texts or policy reports. Each participant will present an interpretative problem like, for example: How do I get started? What is happening in this interview? What does a particular sequence in a text or interview of group discussion mean? How do I decide between different interpretations and how do I link them to my theoretical framework? In each session we will analyze the work of two participants of the class. 

In addition to providing their own interpretative problem for discussion in the group, each participant is expected to actively participate in all the sessions because this is how the ‘art of interpretation’ can be learned and developed. The course will not be offered online so it is important that participants are able to attend all sessions in person. At the outset, some readings will be assigned primarily as a source of inspiration. However, in the course of the class, additional readings may be assigned to elaborate the work being done in the group.  Finally, participants will write a short essay (between 1500 and 2500 words) using their own research material to demonstrate what they have learned about qualitative analysis and interpretation. 

Literature

Required: 

Riemann, G. (1987). Some notes on a student research workshop on "Biography analysis, interaction analysis, and analysis of social worlds". Biography and Society : Newsletter of the International Sociological Association Research Committee 38 (8): 54-70. https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:0168-ssoa-7299. 

Redi Koobak (2014) “Six Impossible Things before Breakfast: How I Came across My Research Topic and What Happened Next.” In: Writing Academic Texts Differently, ed. N. Lykke. 95-110. New York: Routledge. 

Kathy Davis (2022) “The Shamefulness of Boredom: Are Good Researchers Allowed to be Bored?” In: Silences, Neglected Feeling, and Blind-spots in Research Practice, eds. K. Davis and J. Irvine. 91-104. London: Routledge. 

Optional: 

Clive Seale, Giampietro Gobo, Jaber F. Gubrium, and David Silverman (eds.) (2004) Qualitative Research Practice. London: Sage Publications.