Interpreting the Data

Abstract

AbstractOnce the data (or part of it) is coded it becomes possible to move on to the next step, which is to interpret the data in view of answering research questions. Interpreting the data is a crucial step in the qualitative research process—it is core to qualitative data analysis. Hence, the volume dedicates a whole chapter to it. This Chapter presents key methodological steps and strategies to interpret the data for the purpose of individual studies for peer-reviewed articles. It covers practical steps such as exporting code reports from Atlas.ti and reviewing them in a collaborative fashion. It also includes methodological steps, such as the review of epistemological reflections pertaining to interpreting qualitative data. The chapter further digs into the specificities of interpreting frames and discourses from coded qualitative data, but also interpreting formal and informal practices from ‘text’ and, finally, extracting information about the parliamentary policy processes. The chapter provides a guide to conducting qualitative analysis driven by research questions that are inherently constructivist, interpretivist and/or post-structuralist. In particular, we explore how qualitative data can be interpreted in a way that sheds light on the power dynamics, genderedness and informality of parliamentary work.