INFERRING AND

EXPLAINING PATTERNS
AND THEMES

Marilyn R. Roxas
Learning Competency:

◦CS_RS11-IVd-f-2
◦Infer and explain patterns and
themes from data.
Activity: Determine the next figure in
the sequence.
 What is INFERENCE?

Conclusions done in research are

based solely on empirical data. These
conclusions based on reasoning and
factual evidence are called
inference.
 What are PATTERNS and THEMES?

Patterns and themes are words or phrases that

collectively describe the experience or thoughts of
every participant. They represent broad categories
of information. In order to identify themes,
qualitative researchers use codes. These codes are
simply labels that help qualitative researchers
identify similar experiences or thoughts.
 What are PATTERNS and THEMES?

Codes that are grouped together are

themes. These are the words or phrases
that will manifest in the interview
transcript and researchers during analysis.
Qualitative researchers should be able to
identify and locate them.
 What is CODING?

Coding is the process of analyzing the data

and searching for essential information that
answers the research questions. In other words,
it is a process of filtering the data (Farber 2006).
These essential words are marked or labeled
(coded). Codes are words that represent themes
or patterns.
 What is CODING?

Types of codes in qualitative research

according to Taylor-Powell and Renner
(2003) :
1. Emergent codes are those that show up
during analysis
2. Preset codes are those that have been
identified prior to analysis.
 How to Analyze Data and
Use Codes or Categories
(Taylor-Powell and Renner 2003)

1. Get to know your data.

2. Focus the analysis.
3. Review the purpose and go back to the research
question.
4. Identify themes or patterns.
5. Ask teammates to analyze.
6.Organize themes into categories: preset or
emergent.
7. Identify patterns within and among categories.
Application:
o Form 4 groups.
o Gather informatin from 5 of your groupsmates
given the question:
How do you deal with bullies?
o Draw patterns and themes from the answer of
your participants. Follow the process in
coding in order to gather accurate results.