What Does the Data Say?
The first task in data analysis is to classify and summarize your key findings. If your data collection methods were both quantitative and qualitative, you will have both kinds of data to analyze. Quantitative data is usually depicted numerically as frequencies, percentages, or other measures of proportion, as in how many survey respondents said X or Y. Analyzing this data involves determining what the numbers really mean. If 80 percent of survey respondents said X, and 20 percent said Y, what does that mean (not what should be done about it; that’s the recommendation part!)?
Qualitative data is usually narrative in form: anecdotes, stories, survey essay questions. Analyzing these kinds of data involves identifying themes, ...
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