Table 1: Step-by-Step process of analysis.
| Activity | Data analysis |
| Listen to the interviews | Become immersed in and becoming familiar with the data |
| Relisten to the recordings | Make sense of the data |
| Quality check the translations | Obtain a true and real picture of the participants' views |
| Read the reflective notes and transcripts | Get an overall picture of the data |
Map the coding scheme (using ATLAS.ti (qualitative analysis software) |
Make and refine the code list: First attempt ≈ 1441 quotation for 282 codes Remove duplicates, revise, replace and remove codes Merge quotations to combine the codes Code list 1 ≈ 240 codes Code list 2 ≈ 200 codes Code list 3 ≈ 18 codes Final ≈ 148 codes (e.g., despondency (despair emotions) merged with despair/grief) |
Create families or categories (Move from description to interpretation) |
Identify similar codes, develop categories and linkages Questions: What is happening here? What am I learning about this? Why is this here? Develop family narratives and graphic representations for each family |
| Make comparisons Conceptualise the data |
Compare participants' views on codes to move from description to interpretation (e.g., different views on health teaching in the hospital) Examine the similarities and differences in themes and patterns Explore the relationships and patterns among the data sources; concept mapping might be useful |
| Use a flip flop technique Conceptualise the data | Turn the concept inside out: Obtain different perspectives on the same word (e.g., the participants used the phrases "trying hard" and "difficult to change diet", which we explored to identify the factors that facilitate (trying hard) and the barriers (difficult to change diet) to following dietary regime |
Identify similarities and differences Conceptualise the data |
Compare opposite views (e.g., some participants adopted a healthy diet because they were hopeful and wanted to live for others, whereas other participants were not hopeful and did not adopt a healthy diet because life for them is not important) Form themes and patterns |
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Validate the analysis Clarify issues (if required) Conduct additional interviews (if required) |
Consult the members (experts) Go back to the participants Conduct more interviews with the same or other participants Consult the literature regarding the themes and patterns |
| Move in and out of the data and follow the above steps in an ongoing, nonlinear (circular) fashion | Identify a range of alternatives to gain the essence of the phenomenon under study for the final analysis |
| Refine themes and develop meaningful descriptions of the contextual and individual factors that influence the participants' food choices and consumption of a healthy diet as a final product | |