Analysing interview and survey responses to find needs

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Date:

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Quick Questions

Shade in the A or B circle for each question.

1. A survey has 40 free-text comments about the school canteen. What is the best first step to find user needs?

A Group similar comments into themes such as 'long queues' or 'healthy options'

B Pick the single most interesting comment and build a solution for it

2. Once comments are sorted into themes, what do you do next?

A Delete the themes that have more than one response

B Count how many responses fall into each theme

3. Of 30 students surveyed, 18 mention slow Wi-Fi and 3 mention the colour of the login screen. Which is more likely to become a key user need?

A Faster Wi-Fi, because it is the most common problem

B The login screen colour, because it is easier to fix

4. A student says, 'I need to check my timetable quickly.' Another says, 'I'd love a dark mode.' Which comment shows a need?

A Checking the timetable quickly, because the app can't do its job without it

B Dark mode, because the student said 'love'

5. Which statement correctly separates a need from a want in analysis?

A A need is anything a user says; a want is anything they don't say

B A need is essential to solve the problem; a want is a nice-to-have extra

Match the Pairs

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

Left column		Right column
1Theme: Hard to find books \| Count: 12 of 30		ASimilar responses were put into three different themes instead of one, so the count for each theme looks small and the real problem is hidden.
2Need: Search by title \| Want: Dark mode		BSeparates a need that fixes the main problem from a want that is nice to have but not essential.
3Similar comments are grouped under one theme label so they can be counted together		CStudents: Need quick login \| Teachers: Need secure login
4Stakeholders can have conflicting needs that must be spotted and recorded during analysis		DThe theme was treated as the top need even though only one response mentioned it. Counting shows it is rare, so it is not the most common need.
5Only 1 of 30 students said "Needs dark mode" -> Top user need: Dark mode		EA theme label with a count shows how many responses mention the same problem, so the most common problems stand out.
6"Slow" -> Theme: Speed \| "Slow to load" -> Theme: Loading \| "Takes ages" -> Theme: Time		F"Too slow" + "Takes ages to load" -> Theme: Speed

Definitions

thematic analysis

Fill in the Blanks

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

Step 1: Sort similar comments into ______

Step 2: _____ how often each theme appears

Theme: Cannot log in (18 of 30) -> ____

Parents want less screen time Teens want more -> ___________ needs

IF count __ 10 THEN mark as user need

Spot the Error

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

Question 1

A comment <- 'Too slow to load'

B theme <- 'Colour'

C ADD comment TO theme

Question 2

A speed <- 0

B FOR comment IN speed_list

C speed <- 1

D PRINT speed

Question 3

A NEED: Purple colour theme

B NEED: Works without wifi

C Build NEEDs before WANTs

Question 4

A Speed: 14 responses

B Price: 6 responses

C Colour: 2 responses

D Top need <- Colour

Question 5

A Parent NEED: see all grades

B Student NEED: private grades

C CONFLICT: none, needs agree

D Next: discuss with both groups

Answer Key

Analysing interview and survey responses to find needs

Section A: Quick Questions

A — Group similar comments into themes such as 'long queues' or 'healthy options'

B — Count how many responses fall into each theme

A — Faster Wi-Fi, because it is the most common problem

A — Checking the timetable quickly, because the app can't do its job without it

B — A need is essential to solve the problem; a want is a nice-to-have extra

Section B: Match the Pairs

Theme: Hard to find books | Count: 12 of 30 → A theme label with a count shows how many responses mention the same problem, so the most common problems stand out.

Need: Search by title | Want: Dark mode → Separates a need that fixes the main problem from a want that is nice to have but not essential.

Similar comments are grouped under one theme label so they can be counted together → "Too slow" + "Takes ages to load" -> Theme: Speed

Stakeholders can have conflicting needs that must be spotted and recorded during analysis → Students: Need quick login | Teachers: Need secure login

Only 1 of 30 students said "Needs dark mode" -> Top user need: Dark mode → The theme was treated as the top need even though only one response mentioned it. Counting shows it is rare, so it is not the most common need.

"Slow" -> Theme: Speed | "Slow to load" -> Theme: Loading | "Takes ages" -> Theme: Time → Similar responses were put into three different themes instead of one, so the count for each theme looks small and the real problem is hidden.

Section C: Definitions

thematic analysis — Sorting similar interview and survey responses into themes, then counting how often each appears, so the most common problems and wishes become the user needs.

Section D: Fill in the Blanks

Step 1: Sort similar comments into themes

Step 2: Count how often each theme appears

Theme: Cannot log in (18 of 30) -> need

Parents want less screen time
Teens want more -> conflicting needs

IF count >= 10 THEN mark as user need

Section E: Spot the Error

B — A comment about slow loading belongs in the Speed theme, not Colour. Similar comments must be grouped together. It should be theme <- 'Speed'.

C — Setting speed to 1 each time overwrites the count instead of adding to it. It should be speed <- speed + 1 so every response is counted.

A — A colour theme is nice to have but the app still works without it, so it is a want. It should be labelled WANT.

D — The top need is the theme with the highest count. Speed has 14 responses, so it should be Top need <- Speed.

C — Parents want to see all grades while students want them private, so the needs conflict. It should say CONFLICT: yes, needs clash.