Data analysis

Data analysis

1. without analysis the dissertation is deemed useless

   • often left to the 'last minute'
   • if your results don't mean anything, you have wasted your time
   • don't report the results
     • common weakness of undergrad dissertation

2. type of analysis is important

   • wrong analysis = wrong conclusions

3. Qualitative Analysis

   • non-numeric
   • common examples are:
     • interview transcripts
     • field notes
     • video
     • audio recording
     • images
     • documents
   • descriptive data
     • peoples spoken/written words
   • normally open ended
   • be careful drawing conclusions from a small sample of people
     • wont be representative of overall population
     • don't assume that your findings are true of every person

4. quantitative data

   • descriptive stats
     • one variable
     • simplest method of analysis
     • general overview of results
     • percentages
     • frequency distribution
     • standard deviation
     • illustrated by
       • charts
       • tables
       • graphs
   • inferential stats
     • two or more variables
     • t-test
     • chi-squared
     • Spearman's correlation
     • Pearson's coefficient
     • formulate a hypothesis
       • state the null hypothesis
     • manual calculations
     • statistics software
       • include the formula
       • provide manual calculations as well