- Pronounced: cak-das
- Computer-Aided Qualitative-Analysis Software (CAQDAS)
- Upload transcripts and field notes → system coding (analysis) → formulate word trees or/ and word clouds 


Software (CAQDAS)

- As researchers are reading through data, annotate and highlight data to record researchers’ thought processes (memos)
- More common for grounded theory 


Journaling

Highlighted data is cut out physically or digitally, and the data is arranged into a meaningful group with a significant theme

Affinity-Diagramming Technique 

- Software (CAQDAS)
- Journaling
- Affinity Diagram Techniques 


University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

Claremont Graduate University

Affinity Diagramming refers to the process of organizing related facts, ideas, or observations into distinct categories.

Affinity Diagramming

Thematic analysis is a specialized nonstatistical technique used in qualitative research to analyze relatively unfiltered data by focusing on the prominent themes that emerge. Researchers use this method to deeply understand participant experiences rather than relying on numerical statistics.

Thematic Analysis

Rosala, M. (2019, September 29). How to Analyze Qualitative Data from UX Research: Thematic Analysis. https://www.nngroup.com/articles/thematic-analysis/

References: Thematic Analysis

- Before the meeting
- Generating sticky notes
- Organizing the sticky notes into groups

Steps in the Affinity Diagramming Process

- For ideation workshops, ideas will often be sorted by the team after they are generated, all within the same workshop
- For organizing research findings, team members can choose to sort the notes after each participant's interview/test session and again after all the sessions are done  

Variations in the Affinity Diagramming Process

Affinity diagramming is primarily used by teams for organizing:
- Observations or ideas from a research study
- Ideas that surface in design-ideation meetings
- Ideas about UX strategy and vision

Uses of Affinity Diagramming

3 Common Types of Data Analysis Methods

- 1) Data gathering 
- 2) Read data from beginning to the end 
- 3) New codes that represent a theme

- 4) Summarize codes into themes 
- 5) Break 
- 6) Evaluate if the themes were appropriate 
* Steps 4 to 6 need to be repeated


6 Steps for Thematic Analysis 

The goal of analysis is to see how insights gained could create opportunities for change - to reframe how we see the world and our place in it.

The Goal of Thematic Analysis

- Labeled chunk of text as a word or a phrase
- Used as a keyword for as body of text 
- Allows researchers to find similarities, differences, and relationships between texts, which can help researchers land major themes 
- Adding the description of a code is suggested if coding requires more than one person or coding is done overtime 


Code in Thematic Analysis

- Interviews
- Focus groups 
- Diary studies 
- Field studies 

Common Thematic Analysis Data Collection Types

- Description of beliefs, practices, and needs
- A content that arises from different participants or sources 


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