A guide for Fieldworkers
Kathleen M. Dewalt and Billie R. Dewalt
Ch 9. Analyzing Field Notes
Analysis does 3 things:
- brings order to the data
- turns big piles into smaller piles
- permits discovery of patterns & themes to link with other patterns & themes
"...no substitute for reading and rereading..."
Process
- data reduction
- data display
- conclusion drawing and verification
These steps are iterative. Research design should include collection and management of data -- and a formal proposal allows the researcher to construct a coherent approach to a particular problem by making theoretical and design choices -- and allows others to judge if these decisions are feasible, justified, and will move the field forward.
Field notes are both a product of the research and data. Data reduction is part of the recording process.
indexing: ("etic") or a priori categories from initial framework.
coding: categories that emerge from the data ("emic") as a result of reviewing the data for inherent concepts and patterns. may be called themes.
searching by word does not "build theory"
