Horn: Researching and Writing Dissertations – Tutor notes
CHAPTER 9
Data Analysis and Representation
Chapter overview
This is the main chapter that describes how to take raw data, analyse it, and display the
outputs of that analysis. The first half of the chapter focuses on quantitative data and the
second half on qualitative data. One of the main weaknesses of most dissertations is that
students are unable to present a clear and precise message about their findings. The chapter
focuses on selecting and analysing the collected data, and presenting the issues arising from
that data accurately and in a totally comprehensible manner.
What is covered in this chapter?
 The nature of analysis: how to break down and explain
 How to describe quantitative data
 How to explore trends, distributions and proportions in data
 How to explore relationships in data
 How to represent data in tables, graphs and other forms
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The nature of qualitative data
Techniques for analysing qualitative data
The links between data analysis and theory
Headline chapter points
9.2 ANALYSIS AND EXPLAINING: AN OVERVIEW
9.3 DESCRIBING QUANTITATIVE DATA
THE AVE R AG E
THE M EDI AN
THE M O DE

THE R ANG E
The inter-quartile range
THE S T AN D AR D DE VI ATI O N
9.4 TRENDS, DISTRIBUTIONS AND PROPORTIONS IN
QUANTITATIVE DATA
FREQUENCY TABLES
CREATING CATEGORIES FROM DATA
TRENDS

Scatter-graphs
CROSS-TABULATIONS
9.5 INFERENTIAL STATISTICS
PRO B ABI LI TY
CO NFI DENC E
HYPO THE SES AN D SI G NI FI C AN CE

Correlation
9.7 QUALITATIVE DATA ANALYSIS
CO NTEN T AN AL Y SI S
TEM P L ATE AN AL Y SI S
C ASE S TUD Y AN AL YSI S
REPE R TO RY G RI D TE CH N I Q UE
CRI TI C AL I NCI DE N T AN AL Y SI S
G RO UNDED TH EO RY
9.8 LINKING ANALYSIS TO THEORY
Feedback on Activities
None that requires feedback in this chapter
But there IS an activity that seems to pose a
question – and a question needs an answer . . .
Feedback on Case study
Work–life balance in retail stores
To think about ...
1 From what you have read, how thought-out and grounded in the
literature was the method that Kash used?
2 What difficulties do you think Kash will have with analysing this data?
3 Advise Kash on the best qualitative method to analyse her data. Justify
your selected method with a sound argument.
4 She will need categories of data for the analysis. Where will these
categories come from?
5 What sort of categories do you think Kash will eventually use to analyse
the data?
6 If you were carrying out this research, what would you do differently?
Feedback:
1
Kash has clearly done some thinking about the problem and the research method. However,
the approach is not very well developed or grounded in the literature. She should address at
least the following areas:
 a critical analysis of studies that also looked at work–life balance from an employee
perspective
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
whether any part of the published literature provides a grounding for this research – this
requires elaboration
the need for better clarification of the method and for more accuracy in describing the
population and the sample.
2
Kash has produced some rich and diverse qualitative data. At the moment of collection she
has not given much thought to how it will be analysed. The interview transcripts are a useful
if raw starting point. She will have to decide how to approach the analysis using one of the
methods detailed in the chapter. She may well consider using software to assist in the analysis
– Nvivo would be suitable.
3
Use the chapter arguments to assist in this section. Methods that should work are:
 content analysis or template analysis
 grounded theory, although this method is normally developed as the data collection
proceeds.
4
The data categories can either be pre-existing from previous research or can emerge from the
data analysis. It is more likely that categories will be emergent from the data as the analysis
proceeds.
5
Kash’s categories are likely, at the top level, to be:
 work-related issues
 home-related issues
 frustration issues caused by expectations of a company policy that may not deliver on the
promise.
6
There are many possible answers to this question. Not by any means a comprehensive list, the
following things are among those that could have been done differently:
 Ground the method more precisely in the existing literature.
 Devise the question structure in a manner that reflects the theory guiding the research.
 Consider at a much earlier stage the techniques of analysis.
 Develop a clearer rationale for the choice of participants.
 Involve a wider range of stakeholders.
Suggested pedagogical approach
See lesson plan below
Lesson plan
Three-hour (180-minute) teaching session, including one 15-minute break
Total class time thus 165 minutes
0–10 minutes
10–60 minutes
LECTURE: Brief introduction to quantitative analysis
EXPERIENTIAL ACTIVITY: Provide simple data sets and require
descriptive analysis of the data. Then select interesting aspects of the
anslyis for inclusion in the write-up. Suggest the development of
visual images to display the interesting data.
60–80 minutes
FEEDBACK: Each group member or group presents their interesting
findings
90–140 minutes
EXPERIENTIAL ACTIVITY: Provide simple interview transcripts and
require data analysis using content analysis
140–160 minutes
FEEDBACK: Each group member or group feeds back their interesting
outcomes
160–165 minutes
SUMMARY AND ACTIONS: Summary of what has been covered, and
action plans
ACTION PLAN ITEMS
Further and more complex data analysis exercises in quantitative and
qualitative techniques