Data Analysis

I began an iterative process of qualitative data analysis (O’Leary, 2014) shortly after I returned

from my fieldwork to New Zealand on the 24th _{December 2014. At this point I began to} establish the conceptual research lens based on development ethics. As discussed in Chapter 4, this conceptual lens is premised on human wellbeing, human rights, and inclusive development as being three key ethics of development. As explained within the previous

chapter, these development ethics were selected because they connect to the distributional and structural dimensions of social justice.

The data analysis process can be broken down into three key stages, as follows:

Stage One - Establish an analytical research lens and organise the raw data.

Between January 2015 to April 2015 I established the basis of the conceptual development ethics research lens applied to this research. During this time I was also simultaneously engaged in the process of interview transcription. Using‘Transcribe’, a form of transcription

software29_{, I transcribed all my recorded fieldwork interviews. For data analysis purposes,} following each interview transcription I also noted key impressions and points that I felt were particularly important within each individual interview. Once all my interviews were transcribed, I reviewed the broader collection of textual documentation collected over the four

month period fieldwork process, and familiarised myself with the breadth of information collected. At this point I also saved the transcribed interviews into NVivo, which is a qualitative data analysis software programme.

Stage Two - Undertake inductive and deductive forms of inquiry.

I then began an iterative analysis of the research data, working between inductive and deductive modes of inquiry. By the term ‘inductive’ inquiry I refer to a form of empirical

investigation that involves mining the research data ‘from the ground up’, without any predetermined theory (O’Leary, 2014, p305). In contrast, ‘deductive’ inquiry involves mining the research data ‘for predetermined categories of exploration’, essentially building a research

theory through the process of ‘progressive verification’ (O’Leary, 2014, p305).

The three-part development ethics conceptual lens established during stage 1 of the data analysis process acted as a foundation for the coding of my research data. During this early

stage of the research analysis process, I initially conceptualised ‘inclusive development’ as ‘participatory development’. Nevertheless, I eventually decided ‘inclusive development’ was more appropriate as it incorporated the consideration of the various aspects of participation in development, but was also more broadly concerned about the equity and fairness distribution connected to the process of development. I subsequently used NVivo to assist with the manual coding of my research data into research themes relative to wellbeing, human rights,

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and inclusive development30_{. As required by the NVivo software system these research} themes were established as research ‘nodes’. A node can broadly understood as “… a collection of references about a specific theme, place, person or other area of interest”

(Bryman, 2012, p. 596). NVivo was also used to manage my interview data, to search for key terms, and to connect varying conceptual ideas relative to the three primary thematic nodes (see Appendix 5 for an overview of the NVivo nodes used).

After establishing the three development ethics as research nodes, I then applied an inductive process of analysis to understand and conceptualise the meaning of wellbeing relative to the research context. I also developed sub-nodes (or child nodes) to signal secondary research themes helpful for sorting of the research data. The outputs of this stage of the data analysis process in turn allowed me to apply the resulting wellbeing insights to locally contextualise international theorising on human rights within the research context. In doing so, this enabled me to reconcile locally significant wellbeing and development values with international development theorising (as discussed in Chapter 9), and to consider local level experiences of mining company development intervention through the ethical lens of inclusive development (as discussed in Chapter 10).

Stage Three - Interpreting meaning from the data:

As noted above, through the process of data analysis I interpreted meaning from the data. To do this I used the process of triangulation to cross-check my research data. As explained by

Silverman, “[t]riangulation usually refers to combing multiple theories, methods, observations and empirical materials to provide a more accurate comprehensive and objective

representation of the object study” (2014, p. 91). Although the process of triangulation inherently suggests that there is one ultimate correct source of truth, as in the case of this research where multiple realities and perceptions of truth have the potential to exist, the

process of triangulation can act to validate data sources, as well as to “… provide evidence

about different (or similar) perceptions of the same phenomena…” (Gomm, 2009, p. 367). The use of document analysis complemented my field observations and interviews, helping me to interpret meaning from the varying data sources. A brief three day return visit to Lihir Island in March 2016 was additionally useful, giving me the opportunity to further reflect on earlier observations and preliminary research findings (as discussed in more detail in Chapter 10).

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5.5 Conclusion

In summary, the pragmatic case study methodology adopted within this research is participatory, evaluative and emancipatory in orientation. While I, as the researcher, assumed the role of interpreting knowledge and meaning generated through research participant engagement and analysis of written documents, research legitimacy was enhanced as a result of empirically established community-based narratives that inform the analysis of the research data. Through these narratives, the voices and perspectives of landowners living with mining emerge alongside voices and perspectives of mining company staff. This holistic research methodology helped me to better understand the complexities of delivering meaningful development on Simberi and Lihir islands. The following chapter goes on to explore local understandings of wellbeing and development within the research context.