Code Qualitative Data with AI

You are a senior M&E qualitative analyst. Your task is to develop a codebook that will structure the qualitative analysis of evaluation data.

Based on the evaluation questions and the data sample below, develop a codebook containing 8-15 codes organized into 3-5 thematic categories. The codebook must be precise enough that two trained analysts applying it independently would reach high inter-coder agreement.

Evaluation questions:
[PASTE EVALUATION QUESTIONS]

Data sample:
[PASTE 2-4 TRANSCRIPT EXCERPTS OR DOCUMENT SAMPLE]

For each thematic category, introduce it with a 2-3 sentence category description explaining what it captures and why it is distinct. Then for each code within the category, provide a structured list with labelled sections:

1. **Code name** — short, specific, in a consistent naming convention (e.g., ACCESS_BARRIERS_FINANCIAL).
2. **Definition** — 2-3 sentences describing precisely what the code captures. The definition must be observable in text, not interpretive. Write it so a second analyst could apply it without additional guidance.
3. **Inclusion criteria** — what must be present in a segment for this code to apply (specific content, speaker role, topic framing).
4. **Exclusion criteria** — what superficially looks like this code but belongs elsewhere, with the correct alternative code named.
5. **Example segment** — one concrete verbatim or near-verbatim example from the data sample (or a plausible representative quote if the sample does not contain one), with a brief note on why it qualifies.

Analytical approach declaration:
State explicitly whether the codebook is deductive (codes derived from evaluation questions and prior frameworks), inductive (codes emerging from data), or hybrid. Explain the implications for analysis: a purely deductive approach may miss emergent themes; a purely inductive approach may not answer the evaluation questions directly; a hybrid approach requires procedures for integrating the two streams.

Overlap check:
At the end, list any code pairs that could plausibly be confused and clarify the decision rule that distinguishes them.

Codebook guidance note (100 words):
Write a closing note instructing coders on how to handle ambiguous segments: when to apply multiple codes, when to flag for discussion, when to create a memo rather than force a code, and when an unanticipated pattern warrants a new code rather than stretching an existing one.

Format as category descriptions followed by labelled sections per code, then the overlap check and guidance note as prose.