Book excerpt: Are you new to qualitative research? Are you planning to do interviews or focus groups and wondering what on earth you′ll do with the data once it′s collected? Do you have a pile of transcripts staring at you right now and are you lost as to how to identify themes, code your data and work out what it all means? Fear not, help is here! In this brilliant new book, Jamie Harding breaks down the process of analysing qualitative data into simple, retraceable steps. After providing some top tips for designing your research and collecting your data, he takes you through the different stages of analysis, from the first reading of your transcripts, to presenting your findings in a report or dissertation. For each stage of the process there are demonstrations using real data and exercises for you to perform yourself. He unpicks what happens behind the scenes in qualitative data analysis - the bit that′s hard to learn without seeing it happen and trying it for yourself. While acknowledging that there are many different forms that qualitative data analysis can take, the book provides a series of ideas and examples that you will find invaluable when analysing your own data. This book is perfect for all social science students who are struggling with data analysis and are looking for someone to guide the way.