Answering FAQs about Braun and Clarke's thematic analysis, that's what this video's all about!

Braun and Clarke's six step thematic analysis or TA is one of the most popular qualitative approaches in social sciences, but there are a lot of misunderstandings and misinterpretations of it. So, let's set the record straight on the FAQs I get asked about Braun and Clarke's TA.

First up, I'm tackling the paradigm stuff where does this approach sit paradigmatically? Are you "allowed" to use Braun and Clarke's TA if you're not an interpretivist? What if you're a positivist?

Secondly, we're exploring reflexive thematic analysis. What exactly does "reflexive" mean? I'm going to give you some examples so you can see what a reflexive thematic analysis might look like.

Thirdly, we're onto the quality question how do you enhance the quality of your thematic analysis? How do you go beyond the superficial, surface level and generate meaningful insights into what's actually going on? Again we have examples for this yay so you can see the difference between a rigorous, in depth analysis and one that's a bit flaky!

Lastly, the theory question. Where does theory come into thematic analysis? So many people criticise Braun and Clarke's thematic analysis, saying that it completely lacks any theory. Not true! Braun and Clarke's approach is a theory dream because you get to weave your own theory into it as you go. What's not to love? And yes, there are two more examples in this part, so you can see how particular types of theory would be integrated into an analysis of work life balance.

I hope you find this useful! If you have further questions, drop them in the comments, I'd love to hear from you!

Chapters
0:00 1:02 Introduction and the frequently asked questions
1:03 1:32 Recap of Braun and Clarke's thematic analysis
1:33 3:48 Question 1 What paradigm does Braun and Clarke's thematic analysis sit within?
3:49 6:13 Question 2 What is reflexive thematic analysis?
6:14 9:15 Question 3 How do I go deeper in my analysis?
9:16 13:00 Question 4 What about theory?
13:01 13:11 Conclusion

// Other helpful videos //
How to do thematic analysis Part 1 of this series    • Thematic analysis in qualitative rese...  
Interpretivism a simple explanation    • What is interpretivism? A simple expl...  
Research paradigms explained    • Paradigms of research for graduate Ph...  
Reflexive vs reflective what's the difference?    • What's the difference between reflect...  
Writing up qualitative data    • Qualitative Research Findings | 7 tip...  
Qualitative research the basics    • Qualitative research the basics, a si...  

// Further reading referenced in the video //
Boyatzis, R. E. (1998). Transforming qualitative information: Thematic analysis and code development. London: Sage.
Braun, V., Clarke, V. (2021). Thematic Analysis: A Practical Guide. London: Sage.
Braun, V., Clarke, V., & Hayfield, N. (2022). ‘A starting point for your journey, not a map’: Nikki Hayfield in conversation with Virginia Braun and Victoria Clarke about thematic analysis. Qualitative research in psychology, 19(2), 424445.

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