The Four Lenses — method shapes findings
The same student interview excerpt is analysed through four different qualitative methods. Each tab gives you the data, a workspace to have a go yourself, and a worked example to compare against. The comparative observation makes methodological differences experientially visible — the central pedagogical move from the talk.
Four lenses activity
📚 Four Analytical Approaches
Each of these methods will be covered in depth later in the unit. For now, note how they differ:
- Thematic Analysis: Identifies patterns/themes across data through open coding. Asks: "What common experiences or meanings are present?"
- Qualitative Content Analysis: Applies framework categories systematically. Asks: "How does this data map to existing conceptual categories?"
- Discourse Analysis: Examines how language constructs reality. Asks: "What discourses are operating? What's being accomplished through this talk?"
- Narrative Analysis: Focuses on story structure and identity work. Asks: "How is this person constructing their story? What identity work is being done?"
Try It: Same Data, Different Lenses
The best way to understand how method shapes findings is to experience it. Below is an excerpt from an interview with a student about their university experience. Try analysing it through each lens, then reveal the example analysis to compare your observations.
🔷 Lens 1: Thematic Analysis — Open Coding
“When I first arrived at university, I felt completely lost. Everyone else seemed to know what they were doing — they’d already made friends, knew how to navigate the system. I spent the first few weeks just trying to figure out where I was supposed to be.
Things changed when I joined the photography society. I wasn’t even that into photography, but my flatmate dragged me along. Suddenly I had people to sit with in lectures, people who’d text me about deadlines I’d missed. I became the one organising events, which was weird because at school I was always the quiet one.
Looking back, I think university forced me to become someone different. Not in a bad way — more like I discovered parts of myself that had always been there but never had space to come out. Though sometimes I wonder if the old me is still in there somewhere, or if she’s gone completely.”
Highlight some words, then tap a code. Codes can overlap; remove any code from the panel.
Example Thematic Analysis
Isolation / disconnection: "felt completely lost", "everyone else seemed to know what they were doing", "trying to figure out where I was supposed to be"
Belonging through community: "joined the photography society", "people to sit with in lectures", "people who'd text me about deadlines"
Identity development: "became the one organising events", "university forced me to become someone different", "discovered parts of myself"
Transition / change: "Things changed when I joined", "at school I was always the quiet one", and the contrast drawn between past and present self
📊 Lens 2: Qualitative Content Analysis — Framework Coding
Starting Categories (from Tinto's integration theory)
- Academic integration — engagement with studies, academic confidence, institutional navigation
- Social integration — peer relationships, belonging, extra-curricular involvement
- Identity and self-perception — how students see themselves, continuity/change
“When I first arrived at university, I felt completely lost. Everyone else seemed to know what they were doing — they’d already made friends, knew how to navigate the system. I spent the first few weeks just trying to figure out where I was supposed to be.
Things changed when I joined the photography society. I wasn’t even that into photography, but my flatmate dragged me along. Suddenly I had people to sit with in lectures, people who’d text me about deadlines I’d missed. I became the one organising events, which was weird because at school I was always the quiet one.
Looking back, I think university forced me to become someone different. Not in a bad way — more like I discovered parts of myself that had always been there but never had space to come out. Though sometimes I wonder if the old me is still in there somewhere, or if she’s gone completely.”
Highlight some words, then tap a category. Categories can overlap; remove any from the panel.
Example Qualitative Content Analysis
Social integration (5 refs): "felt completely lost" [isolation], "joined the photography society" [extra-curricular], "my flatmate dragged me along" [peer relationships], "people to sit with in lectures" [belonging], "the one organising events" [extra-curricular involvement]
Academic integration (3 refs): "navigate the system" [navigation], "figure out where I was supposed to be" [navigation], "text me about deadlines" [peer academic support]
Identity/self-perception (4 refs): "at school I was always the quiet one" [past self], "university forced me to become someone different" [change], "discovered parts of myself" [change], "wonder if the old me is still in there" [continuity concern]
💬 Lens 3: Discourse Analysis
📋 Student Interview Excerpt
"When I first arrived at university, I felt completely lost. Everyone else seemed to know what they were doing—they'd already made friends, knew how to navigate the system. I spent the first few weeks just trying to figure out where I was supposed to be.
Things changed when I joined the photography society. I wasn't even that into photography, but my flatmate dragged me along. Suddenly I had people to sit with in lectures, people who'd text me about deadlines I'd missed. I became the one organising events, which was weird because at school I was always the quiet one.
Looking back, I think university forced me to become someone different. Not in a bad way—more like I discovered parts of myself that had always been there but never had space to come out. Though sometimes I wonder if the old me is still in there somewhere, or if she's gone completely."
Example Discourse Analysis
Normative discourse: "Everyone else seemed to know what they were doing" draws on a discourse of university-readiness as normal. Struggle is constructed as individual deficit ("I felt completely lost") rather than institutional failure.
Self-improvement discourse: "University forced me to become someone different" and "discovered parts of myself" invoke therapeutic/developmental discourse where institutions facilitate authentic self-discovery.
Subject positions: Student positioned initially as deficient (lost, behind), then as transformed subject. Others ("everyone else") constructed as naturally competent, reinforcing individual responsibility for belonging.
What's absent: No critique of institutional structures. Loneliness framed as personal journey rather than systemic issue. The role of chance ("flatmate dragged me along") is noted but not problematised—what about students without such luck?
📖 Lens 4: Narrative Analysis
📋 Student Interview Excerpt
"When I first arrived at university, I felt completely lost. Everyone else seemed to know what they were doing—they'd already made friends, knew how to navigate the system. I spent the first few weeks just trying to figure out where I was supposed to be.
Things changed when I joined the photography society. I wasn't even that into photography, but my flatmate dragged me along. Suddenly I had people to sit with in lectures, people who'd text me about deadlines I'd missed. I became the one organising events, which was weird because at school I was always the quiet one.
Looking back, I think university forced me to become someone different. Not in a bad way—more like I discovered parts of myself that had always been there but never had space to come out. Though sometimes I wonder if the old me is still in there somewhere, or if she's gone completely."
Example Narrative Analysis
Narrative structure: Classic transformation story with three acts—disorientation ("completely lost"), turning point ("Things changed when"), resolution/reflection ("Looking back")
Self-positioning: Past self as passive ("dragged me along," "quiet one") vs. present self as agentic ("I became the one organising"). The student constructs growth as movement from object to subject.
Identity work: The final paragraph does complex identity negotiation—claiming transformation while questioning whether it's authentic ("wonder if the old me is still in there")
Rhetorical function: Story legitimises current identity while maintaining connection to past self. The ambivalence ("not in a bad way—more like") manages potential criticism of "losing oneself"
Comparing the Four Lenses
| Aspect | Thematic | Content | Discourse | Narrative |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| What is the data? | Source of patterns and meanings | Content to be categorised | Language constructing reality | A story performing identity work |
| Primary focus | Common themes across data | How data maps to framework | Discourses operating; what's accomplished | Story structure; self-positioning |
| Coding approach | Inductive (codes emerge) | Deductive then inductive | Identify discursive strategies | Narrative elements and functions |
| Key finding here | Themes of isolation, belonging, identity change | Social integration dominant (5 refs) | Individualising discourse; what's absent | Transformation narrative; identity negotiation |
| Type of claim | "Students commonly experience..." | "67% of references were..." | "The discourse positions..." | "The narrative constructs..." |
💡 Key Insight: Same Data, Different Findings
The method shapes what you can see and say. The thematic analysis identified common experiences through open coding. The qualitative content analysis systematically applied framework categories. The discourse analysis revealed ideological assumptions. The narrative analysis examined how storytelling constructs identity.
None of these is the "right" analysis—each answers different questions and makes different contributions. Your choice of method should follow from what you want to know, which flows from your research question and paradigmatic stance.