Basic analysis of "qualitative" information
(respondents' verbal answers
in interviews, focus groups, or written commentary on questionnaires):
Read through all the data.
Organize comments into similar categories, e.g., concerns, suggestions,
strengths, weaknesses, similar experiences, program inputs, recommendations,
outputs, outcome indicators, etc.
Label the categories or themes, e.g., concerns, suggestions, etc.
Attempt to identify patterns, or associations and causal relationships in
the themes, e.g., all people who attended programs in the evening had similar
concerns, most people came from the same geographic area, most people were in
the same salary range, what processes or events respondents experience during
the program, etc.
Keep all commentary for several years after completion in case needed for
future reference.