ANALYSIS OF MODELS AND PATTERNS
Continually reflecting on and searching for patterns within the data even while the data collection process is still going on can help evaluators adjust and refocus their data collection to render useful information.
These general steps should guide the analysis of qualitative data:
- Review notes, and carefully reflect on the impressions they make.
- Recognize recurrent themes, and code them accordingly.
- Organize data according to identified themes.
- Look for potential relationships among the themes.
- Identify explanations, causal factors, potential impact, and so forth for each theme.
- Validate preliminary interpretations by triangulating data (using three or more sources) to support or disprove hypotheses. (This is ...