CJUS 750-Last Discussion-Reply 2

Reply must be 250 words and include citations from at least 1 scholarly sources. Each thread and reply must follow current APA format.

Glesne, C. (2016) Becoming qualitative researchers: An introduction (5th ed.). New York, NY: Pearson.

**David**

Following the surveys and the interviews on the topic of choice, there comes a time when it must all come together into a completed research paper.  The process involves a thematic analysis of the data searching for patterns from the different respondents in an attempt to link the data into a combined view of the topic.  The analytic rigor comes in the coding of the data and is particularly common in ethnographic studies when the interview transcripts, field notes, and observation notes come together into the combined perspective through the process of coding (Wan, 2018).  Our text and other sources explain the coding process, but the thought process and explanation of the meaning of the noted similarities and differences become the source of coding made up of events, perceptions, methods, values, and noteworthy occurrences summed up into the authors unique code (Glesne, 2016).  The purpose of this discussion is to provide insight into the key benefits and strategies of coding and provide information on dangers to avoid while coding interviews.

Key Benefits and Strategies of Coding

 There are benefits and strategies for the coding process.  The coding process in quantitative research is a straight forward process enabling a count used in the statistical process; this is not so in qualitative research, as described previously.  The systematic process of coding entails identifying the categories, themes, and codes to determine how data ties together and makes sense (Glesne, 2016).  Making sense of information is a crucial benefit of coding, allowing for an inductive and deductive approach where inductive coding provides phrases or terms directly from the source, and deductive coding comes before the analysis from reviewing the literature and establishing a code before the information gathering takes place.  Another key benefit of coding comes from the systematic progression from data to theory providing detailed examples relating directly to the source information.  There are multiple strategies for coding, but using the deductive and inductive approach listed above provides an excellent way to tie the data into existing literary findings (Linneberg & Korsgaard, 2019).

Dangers to Avoid While Coding Interviews

With an understanding of the benefits and strategies of coding, this discussion will shift to the dangers to avoid while coding.  A criticism of coding and a danger to avoid while coding interviews is losing the holistic aspect central to qualitative analysis, but this danger is avoidable by keeping the overall understanding of the experiences applicable and related to the findings emerging from the source data.  Another danger comes from the subjectiveness of the coding process, but subjectiveness offsets itself by the vividness and detail obtained from qualitative research.  Another danger to avoid that falls in line with subjectiveness is not including others in the coding process.  Trustworthiness comes in, including others in the coding process, to establish reliability through collaboration.  A final danger comes if the researcher mistakes coding as a quick mechanical fix and de-contextualizes the data to the point it loses its realistic perspective where the count of occurrences replaces comprehensive narratives.  The researcher avoids this quick-fix danger by ensuring their results include the rich accounts of events sought after from qualitative research (Linneberg & Korsgaard, 2019).

Conclusion

 The purpose of this discussion was to provide insight into the key benefits and strategies of coding and provide information on dangers to avoid while coding interviews.  The benefits come from making sense of data and allowing for an inductive and deductive approach where inductive coding provides phrases or terms directly from the source, and deductive coding comes before the analysis from reviewing the literature and establishing a code before the information gathering takes place. The other benefit is the systematic progression from data to theory providing detailed examples relating directly to the source information.  The strategies associated with the deductive and inductive approach offer an excellent way to tie the data into existing literary findings.  The dangers come from losing the holistic aspect central to qualitative analysis, the subjectiveness of the coding process, and mistaking coding with a quick mechanical fix and de-contextualizing the data.  Researchers avoid these dangers by being true to the rich descriptiveness that comes from qualitative research.