It depends on the analytical framework you are using. There are a lot of them available from notable scholars.

@Manuel Caingcoy Thank you for your contribution. You are much appreciated 🙏

Agree with Manuel Caingcoy.

Then that implies that there is no one particular method that is regarded as best option for thematic analysis. However, manually coding the text data might yield a completely different result when compared to results generated from computer aided packages such Edwordle/wordle, for example. Really interesting.

I also agree that there are many different ways to analyze qualitative data, but the version of Thematic Analysis developed by Braun and Clarke (2006) is one of the most widely used.

Thank you

interesting question

Interesting

Magnificent theme.

There are multiple forms of qualitative analysis, and multiple forms of thematic analysis. The choice of method will depend on the researcher's philosophical beliefs and the research question. Thematic analysis in particular, often quoted from the Braun and Clarke 2006 paper, has had a re-boot as Thomas Owren

Article One size fits all? What counts as quality practice in (refle...

Dear Sarah, Many thanks for your magnificent anylysis.

Dear Sarah, Many thanks for your magnificent anylysis.

Without being a research theorist, I would like to note that qualitative research approaches always suffer from the fact that results based on them can be very different because meanings are perceived or interpreted subjectively. The researcher must therefore be aware of his subjectivity. Only in this way can rudimentary objective truths be uncovered. Therefore, it is important that the TA approach focuses on the subjectivity of the researcher. However, if it is possible to collect quantitative data as well, I would always advocate collecting qualitative and quantitative data and comparing the results obtained from each. If the results from the different research methods converge, this reinforces the conclusion. The combined analysis of data sets from quantitative and qualitative research is also known as triangulation. In such a research design, the results from different approaches can mutually validate each other. However, triangulation is now no longer just a strategy for validating results. The focus has increasingly shifted towards enriching and completing knowledge and exceeding the always limited knowledge possibilities of the individual methods (according to Uwe Flick, Qualitative Social Research).

Otmar Patzel Within the field of mixed methods research, there has been a great deal of confusion due to the shift in the meaning of triangulation from comparison of the results of different methods to the idea of "enriching and completing knowledge." This has reached the point that editors of the Journal of Mixed Methods Research have urged their authors to discontinue using the term triangulation.

David L Morgan With the multiple use of the term triangulation (dividing an area into triangles for the purpose of measurement, the triangular grafting in plant cultivation, the differentiated conversion of currencies, etc.) this can certainly cause confusion. The term mixed methods research certainly describes the issue better. Thanks for your hint.

Otmar Patzel The original source for triangulation was from navigation, based on using two separate sighting that converge on a location at the tip of a triangle. In mixed methods, that corresponds to a direct comparison of the results from the two methods. Much of the confusion in that field arose from the later interpretation of triangulation as "enrichment."

David L. Morgan Language invites confusion because it is often contradictory and also redundant. We also usually only recognize what we want to see or what we expect to see. Therefore, it is difficult to describe states or relationships exactly if they are not also recorded quantitatively. Here, it is important to keep systematic deviations and random scatter as low as possible.

Triangulation really has nothing to do with enrichment. On the contrary, the perception should be regarded as strongly clouded. As a poor researcher, one should hold on to every straw that can give one more certainty in the analysis or decision.

Otmar Patzel Manuel E. Caingcoy Sarah Combes David L Morgan Thomas Owren

I cannot thank you enough, everyone who has directly or indirectly contributed to this discussion. There is a wealth of knowledge in the contributions. Thank you very much.

Muhammad Aledeh Thank you so much for you too. I wish you all the best.

I miss in this debate the perspective that qualitative techniques / methods are not 2 + 2 = 4, as they are in quantitative ones. Then, when describing the method, it can, and almost should, be adjusted to the problem to be solved, and to the group, community or situation in which to intervene as facilitators-researchers. So another difference, as a consequence of the first, is that the analysis produces itself at the same time as the results, building the path, the discourse and finally the insights / findings, while the research progresses. So, for example, when we have applied thematic analyzes (rather, content analysis leading to categories and themes / themes), in groups, we try to refine those categories, as Neuman, Bryman and Ruiz Olabuénaga (Spanish), for example, recommended . To do this, we rely on the construction or analysis of speeches, and on the data obtained, etc. depending on the technique used.

Also, on the origin of the term "triangulation", it comes from a technique to measure distances among different points that are not in the same spatial plane (2D), and/or lacking of absolute references. For instance, the crossing between streets, a house plot for layout on site, or many other examples given in this debate.

What matters most is the objective of the research and the nature of the research question. There are different qualitative data analysis techniques (e,g., qualitative content analysis, discourse analysis, thematic analysis, narrative analysis, grounded theory and interpretive phenomenological analysis) each serving different purposes. Thematic analysis, as the name implies, aims to identify patterns of themes in the interview data.It is good choice when a researcher is interested in finding some common thing about views, opinions, knowledge, experience or values from a bulk of qualitative data in the form of interview transcripts, social media profiles or lengthy voice records. Content analysis can be done by being familiar to the data, coding, generating themes, reviewing themes, defining and naming themes and finally writing up. You may refer to various qualitative research books/articles for further understanding.

Abaineh Degaga Anato Thank you very much for your contribution.

Best regards,

Muhammad Aledeh

Teresa Cuerdo Thank you very much for contributing to this discussion. You are so much appreciated.

l agree with Abaineh Degaga Anato that it depends on your research objective and the nature of questions.

Thematic analysis is a qualitative data analysis method that involves reading through a data set (such as transcripts from in depth interviews or focus groups), and identifying patterns in meaning across the data.

https://www.researchgate.net/post/Correct-approach-to-conducting-thematic-analysis

A very important question in scientific research. I support the opinion of our distinguished colleague Faraed Salman. Thanks!

It completely depends on the analytical framework you are using in your research. Moreover, your expertise in using different qualitative software is also important.