Mapping the Landscape of Qualitative Analysis: Thematic Analysis, Colaizzi's and Giorgi Models

Abstract : Qualitative research offers rich means for exploring human experience, meaning, and interpretation. A central step in qualitative inquiry is data analysis—turning interviews, texts, or observations into interpreted findings. Over the decades, scholars have proposed multiple structured models to guide the analytic process. This article reviews and compares several influential qualitative data analysis models: general thematic analysis (and its variants), the Braun & Clarke reflexive thematic analysis, descriptive phenomenological methods of Giorgi and Colaizzi (and variants), and related phenomenological approaches (e.g. van Kaam, Moustakas). For each method, description of its philosophical underpinnings, procedural steps, strengths/limitations, and illustrate by citing published empirical applications.