Introduction/Overview

Highly useful and practical course… I am feeling very enthusiastic about applying learning and finding out more about qualitative / mixed methods software tools . Thank you!

Christina is extremely good at teaching the software. Thank you so much. I am light years ahead of where I would be on my own.

This practical course focuses on how analysis tools can be used to undertake evaluations that include some qualitative materials as data (e.g. interview/focus-groups, reports, and/or open-ended survey responses) as well as quantitative data. Relevant to different types of evaluation, including program evaluations, process evaluations, impact evaluations and meta-evaluations, the course focuses on using data management, analytic and visualisation tools that are useful at different stages of an evaluation. This includes the systematic use of tools to facilitate both qualitative and quantitative assessments.

Different tools are contrasted and the common tasks undertaken when doing evaluations are discussed. You will be guided through practical hands-on exercises using sample data and be provided with an example process that you can adapt for your own evaluation. You will learn about the different options for putting an evaluation into practice and experience how flexible these analysis tools are for qualitative and quantitative evaluations. This will allow you to plan creatively for your own use of tools. For the purposes of this course we focus on the use of MAXQDA, but the topics covered and tasks are relevant and transferable to other analysis tools. The free trial version of MAXQDA is sufficient for the purposes of attending this course and you will receive an extended trial as part of the course.

Learning outcomes

By the end of the workshop, participants will:

• understand the role and relative strengths of using qualitative software for undertaking qualitative and mixed-methods evaluations
• be familiar with and have experience in using core software tools for undertaking different types of evaluation
• be able to plan and implement the use and analysis of qualitative data in an evaluation using the tools provided by MAXQDA
• be able to transfer the principles and practices of undertaking qualitative and mixed-methods evaluations, if using different software

Topics

The course covers:

• Planning an evaluation in the context of qualitative software use
• Overview of MAXQDA components for undertaking qualitative and mixed-methods evaluations
• Importing and organising qualitative and mixed data
• Familiarising and exploring materials (searching, annotating and coding)
• Organising factual characteristics about materials for quantitative evaluations
• Organising the conceptual ideas withing materials for qualitative evaluations
• Interrogating patterns and relationships across materials using MAXQDA query tools
• Generating output reports and representing results using MAXQDA visual tools

Who will benefit

Researchers, research commissioners, and evaluators in need of a refresher or who are new to the use of dedicated software for undertaking evaluations

Course tutor

Christina Silver, PhD, is a researcher and teacher of qualitative data analysis methods and software, specializing in all the major tools, including ATLAS.ti, Dedoose, Discovertext, f4analyse, MAXQDA, QDA Miner, Qualrus, NVivo, and Transana. She manages the CAQDAS Networking Project, University of Surrey, providing information, advice, training, and ongoing support in software for qualitative and mixed-methods analysis. Christina also undertakes research, training, and consultancy via QDA Services Ltd. and is co-author of Using Software in Qualitative Research: A Step-by-Step Guide (SAGE 2014), and Qualitative Analysis Using MAXQDA: The Five-Level QDA® Method (Routledge 2018). Christina has trained many thousands of researchers and students in qualitative methods/software since 1998.

  This course contributes 6 hours to the MRS CPD programme

n.b. This course runs over two consecutive afternoons:

Part 1 - 6 March - 1.00 pm to 5.00 pm

Part 2 - 7 March - 1.00 pm to 5.00 pm