Data analysis takes the raw data and interprets it. Data analysis is not only used in the hard sciences, but can be used in any field.  The  material analysed could be text, numerical data, photographs, audio or video material.

Before you begin dissertation writing, you will be collecting original data for your research or perhaps revisiting someone else’s data and re-analysing it if you believe their conclusions were faulty.  Collecting the data  correctly takes a great deal of work, but then you need to critically analyse the material in order to draw conclusions and to (hopefully) prove your hypothesis.  This is where data analysis comes in.

Dissertation data collection

Before data analysis can begin, the accuracy of the data collected is a concern.  When the material you are analysing is verbal (for example, gathered during interviews) there are a range of factors that can have an impact on the data.  The act of recording the person’s speech can make them alter their behaviour (perhaps they do not want to express controversial views, so they water down their opinions).  The interviewee may like or dislike the interviewer and this can impact on how much they want to share.

Once the material has been collected, data analysis can be planned and carried out.  Data analysis is typically of two kinds: qualitative or quantitative, so your first task is to decide which method to use.  The type of data will dictate the method of analysis.

Qualitative dissertation research

In qualitative research, any non-numerical data can be the focus of analysis.  Text or individual words are analysed to see whether the data is reliable.  There are a number of software programmes which have been designed to help the researcher carry out qualitative research (for instance CAQDAS software), but software cannot do the analysis for the researcher.  The researcher still has to be the one to come up with the correct interpretation!

Quantitative dissertation analysis

Quantitative methods are used to translate numerical data. In some cases quantitative analysis can help ‘prove’ qualitative conclusions.  Quantitative analysis focuses on measurement of the data and can use statistics to help reveal results and conclusions.  The results are numerical.  Again, there is software to assist the researcher with this type of analysis.

Are you starting to collect data for your dissertation?  Have you looked at a dissertation example to see how other researchers have used data analysis tools?  Let us know your thoughts.