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Analysing data qualitatively - Explanation Building and testing

4 important questions on Analysing data qualitatively - Explanation Building and testing

What is the procedure of Analytic induction?

Data will need to be collected from an initial purposive case study, usually by exploratory interviews or observations. These data should be analysed to devise codes and themes, and to recognize relationships between them to develop an initial definition of a proposition that seeks to explain the phenomenon being studied. This initial proposition is then tested through the purposive selection of a second, related case study involving further exploratory interviews or observations.

Why may Analytic Induction be criticized?

Because of issues about its limited representativeness and generalizability.

Deductive Explanation Building =

It involves an incremental attempt to build an explanation by testing and refining a predetermined theoretical proposition. As with Analytic Induction, the process of collecting and analysing data to understand the research topic or phenomenon will be composed of a number of repeated steps to find a valid explanation.

The use of predicted explanations should mean that the pathway to an answer to your research question and objectives is reasonably defined. The extent to which this is the case will depend on two factors, which ones?

1. Your level of thoroughness in using existing theory to define clearly the theoretical propositions and conceptual framework that will guide your research project.
2. The appropriateness of these theoretical propositions and the conceptual framework for the data that you reveal