Negative Case Analysis
Deliberately searching for data that contradict an emerging pattern and revising the analysis to account for those cases.
Negative case analysis is the deliberate search for data that do not fit an emerging finding. Instead of setting contradictory cases aside, the researcher examines them closely and revises codes, themes, or the developing theory until the exceptions are accounted for or the claim is appropriately qualified. The result is an interpretation tested against the full range of the data rather than built only from confirming examples.
In a thesis, reporting negative cases strengthens your findings chapter. Showing that you sought disconfirming evidence, and explaining how specific contrary cases refined a theme, counters the suspicion of cherry-picking that qualitative work can attract. It also gives you honest material for the limitations section when some cases resist explanation.
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