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Using thematic analysis in psychology 79

tions explicit (Holloway and Todres, 2003). So in Virginia’s example, if she was inter-
Qualitative psychologists need to be clear ested in how ‘sexual pleasure’ was talked
about what they are doing and why, and to about, her data set would consist of all
include the often-omitted ‘how’ they did instances across the entire data corpus that
their analysis in their reports (Attride- had some relevance to sexual pleasure.
Stirling, 2001). These two approaches might sometimes
In this paper we outline: what thematic be combined to produce the data set. Data
analysis is; a 6-phase guide to performing item is used to refer to each individual
thematic analysis; potential pitfalls to piece of data collected, which together
avoid when doing thematic analysis; what make up the data set or corpus. A data
makes good thematic analysis; and advan- item in this instance would be an indivi-
tages and disadvantages of thematic analy- dual surgeon interview, a television docu-
sis. Throughout, we provide exam- mentary, or one particular website. Finally,
ples from the research literature, and our data extract refers to an individual coded
own research. By providing examples, we chunk of data, which has been identified
show the types of research questions and within, and extracted from, a data item.
topics that thematic analysis can be used to There will be many of these, taken from
study. throughout the entire data set, and only a
Before we begin, we need to define a few selection of these extracts will feature in
of the terms used throughout the paper. the final analysis.
Data corpus refers to all data collected for
a particular research project, while data set
refers to all the data from the corpus that What is thematic analysis?
are being used for a particular analysis.
There are two main ways of choosing the Thematic analysis is a method for identify-
data set (which approach you take depends ing, analysing and reporting patterns
on whether you are coming to the data
(themes) within data. It minimally orga-
with a specific question or not / see ‘A nizes and describes your data set in (rich)
number of decisions’ below). First, the data detail. However, frequently if goes further
set may consist of many, or all, individual than this, and interprets various aspects of
data items within your data corpus. So, for the research topic (Boyatzis, 1998). The
example, in a project on female genital range of different possible thematic ana-
cosmetic surgery, Virginia’s data corpus lyses will further be highlighted in relation
consists of interviews with surgeons, to a number of decisions regarding it as a
media items on the topic, and surgeon method (see below).
websites. For any particular analysis, her Thematic analysis is widely used, but
data set might just be the surgeon inter- there is no clear agreement about what
views, just the websites (Braun, 2005b), or thematic analysis is and how you go about
it might combine surgeon data with some doing it (see Attride-Stirling, 2001; Boyat-
media data (eg, Braun, 2005a). Second, the zis, 1998; Tuckett, 2005, for other exam-
data set might be identified by a particular ples). It can be seen as a very poorly
analytic interest in some topic in the data, ‘branded’ method, in that it does not appear
and the data set then becomes all instances to exist as a ‘named’ analysis in the same
in the corpus where that topic is referred. way that other methods do (eg, narrative