Qualitative Research Coding: A Guide for Nursing Research Students

Want your nursing dissertation to retain its rigour? Whether you’re conducting a systematic review or analysing interviews, understanding qualitative coding is critical.

Why Themes Matter in Nursing Research
With over 200 undergraduate and master’s nursing students under my guidance, I’ve learned one key thing:
Most students prefer systematic reviews, but often struggle with how to generate themes from their qualitative data.
Yet, your qualitative coding and the final thematic analysis are what give your research meaning. They turn words into insights. And that’s exactly what your supervisor (and future employer) wants to see.

The Power of Qualitative Coding in Thematic Analysis
Qualitative research doesn’t calculate the mean—it calculates the meaning.
Qualitative coding is the process of labelling recurring patterns in your data. These codes build categories. Those categories then form themes, which support your final argument, theory, or recommendations.

Why qualitative coding is a must for nursing dissertations:
Turns messy data into clear categories
Builds a credible analytical process
Helps compare across multiple articles or interviews
Forms the foundation of thematic analysis
Essential for evidence-based nursing practice

From Data to Themes (Step-by-Step) (Braun and Clarke, 2006)
1. Familiarise yourself with your data: Read through interviews or article extracts line by line.
2. Generate initial codes: Label meaningful data segments with keywords (e.g., “burnout”, “mental health”).
3. Group into categories: Organise similar codes into broader categories.
4. Review and refine: Combine or discard overlapping or weak categories.
6. Name and define themes: Create clear, distinct, and insightful names for your themes.

Real Example:Data extract: “I felt anxious every time I had to perform a procedure in front of my mentor.” (xx,xxx)
Code: Performance anxiety
Category: Emotional stress during placements
Theme: Navigating confidence and anxiety in clinical practice

Types of Qualitative Coding: Choose Your Fit
Inductive: Themes emerge naturally from data (bottom-up)
Deductive: Categories guided by research questions (top-down)
Hybrid (Abductive): Mix of both approaches (common in systematic reviews)

What Should You Do Next?If you’re writing a nursing dissertation, especially a qualitative systematic review, your next step is to:
Start coding manually or using tools like NVivo
Organise your codes into categories
Use those categories to build meaningful, evidence-based themes

In my next post, I’ll walk you through line-by-line coding using real student research articles—perfect for those using 6–10 primary sources.