Coding qualitative data: what a code is

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Quick Questions

Shade in the A or B circle for each question.

1. What is a code in qualitative data analysis?

A A secret password that locks the survey file

B A short label or number given to a response so similar responses can be grouped

2. A student comment says 'The app is easy to use.' Which code fits best?

A Positive comment (1)

B Python script (1)

3. Which is an example of a code that uses a number as a label?

A Ava, Liam, Mia, Noah

B 1 = positive, 2 = neutral, 3 = negative

4. Why do we give codes to responses?

A So similar responses can be grouped, counted and compared

B So every response is exactly the same

5. Three comments: 'Too slow', 'Takes ages to load', 'Lags a lot'. How should they be coded?

A All with the same code, such as 'slow speed'

B Each with a different, unrelated code

Match the Pairs

Draw a line connecting each item on the left to its match on the right.

Left column		Right column
11 = positive, 2 = neutral, 3 = negative		ACode 1 = Positive
2Comment: "Too slow to load" → Code: SPEED		BCode: PRICE (for comments about cost)
3A code can be a number that stands for a category of response, such as 1 for a positive comment		CA short text code that labels a comment so it can be grouped with other comments about the same thing
4A code can be a short word label that groups similar comments into one category		DThe same code is given to comments from different categories, so the codes no longer group similar responses. Each category needs its own code, for example ease of use, price and design.
5Comment: "Great app!" → Code: "Great app!"		EA set of numeric codes where each number is a label for a category of comment
6"Easy to use" → 1, "Too expensive" → 1, "Love the design" → 1		FThe code just repeats the whole comment instead of being a short label, so it cannot group similar responses. It should be a short category such as 1 = positive.

Definitions

code

Fill in the Blanks

Complete each line of code by filling in the missing parts.

IF comment = "Love it" THEN ____ ← 1 END IF

IF comment = "Too slow" ____ code ← 2

=__(B2="Love it",1,2)

IF code _ 1 THEN category ← "positive"

IF comment = "Love it" THEN code ← 1 ____ code ← 2

Spot the Error

Shade in the letter of the line that contains an error.

Question 1

A Coding frame: feedback

B 1 = positive comment

C 2 = negative comment

D 1 = neutral comment

Question 2

A Code 1 = "Great, loved it!"

B Code 2 = negative comment

C Code 3 = neutral comment

Question 3

A 1 = positive, 2 = negative

B Too crowded and loud -> 1

C Great teacher, so helpful -> 1

Question 4

A Comment: Too expensive

B Category: wait time

C Code: 2 (price)

Question 5

A Code 1 = price

B Code 2 = quality

C Code 3 = wait time

D Queue took ages -> 1

Answer Key

Coding qualitative data: what a code is

Section A: Quick Questions

B — A short label or number given to a response so similar responses can be grouped

A — Positive comment (1)

B — 1 = positive, 2 = neutral, 3 = negative

A — So similar responses can be grouped, counted and compared

A — All with the same code, such as 'slow speed'

Section B: Match the Pairs

1 = positive, 2 = neutral, 3 = negative → A set of numeric codes where each number is a label for a category of comment

Comment: "Too slow to load" → Code: SPEED → A short text code that labels a comment so it can be grouped with other comments about the same thing

A code can be a number that stands for a category of response, such as 1 for a positive comment → Code 1 = Positive

A code can be a short word label that groups similar comments into one category → Code: PRICE (for comments about cost)

Comment: "Great app!" → Code: "Great app!" → The code just repeats the whole comment instead of being a short label, so it cannot group similar responses. It should be a short category such as 1 = positive.

"Easy to use" → 1, "Too expensive" → 1, "Love the design" → 1 → The same code is given to comments from different categories, so the codes no longer group similar responses. Each category needs its own code, for example ease of use, price and design.

Section C: Definitions

code — A short label or number given to each qualitative response, such as 1 = positive comment, so that similar responses can be grouped, counted and compared.

Section D: Fill in the Blanks

IF comment = "Love it" THEN
    code ← 1
END IF

IF comment = "Too slow" THEN code ← 2

=IF(B2="Love it",1,2)

IF code = 1 THEN category ← "positive"

IF comment = "Love it" THEN code ← 1
ELSE code ← 2

Section E: Spot the Error

D — Each category needs its own code. Code 1 is already used for positive comments, so neutral comments should be 3.

A — A code stands for a whole category of similar responses. It should be a label such as 'positive comment', not one person's exact words.

B — 'Too crowded and loud' is a negative comment, so it should get code 2 according to the frame. Code 1 is for positive comments.

B — 'Too expensive' is about price, so the category must be price. The code on the next line is for price, so the two lines would not match.

D — A long queue is about wait time, which is code 3 in the frame. Code 1 is for price.