Last updated on May 14th, 2026 at 08:27 am

Estimated reading time: 10 minutes

Thematic Analysis of Interviews in NVivo [Step-by-Step Guide]

Thematic analysis of qualitative interviews is one of the most common tasks PhD students come to me with — and NVivo is the tool I reach for every time. In this guide, I’ll walk you through exactly how I use the Braun and Clarke six-step framework to analyse semi-structured interview transcripts in NVivo 14, from raw data to a complete findings report.

I’ll use a real example throughout: a study on parental engagement in a primary school, with two interview transcripts as the dataset.

Thematic analysis is a qualitative research method for identifying, analysing, and reporting patterns of meaning — called themes — within a dataset. It was formally defined by Virginia Braun and Victoria Clarke in their widely cited 2006 paper in Qualitative Research in Psychology, and it remains the most widely used approach to analysing interview data in social science research.

If you want a broader overview of where thematic analysis fits within qualitative research, Scribbr’s guide to thematic analysis is a solid starting point.

Inductive Thematic Analysis

With the inductive approach, themes emerge from the data itself. You dive into your transcripts without a pre-existing framework and let the data tell you what matters. This is the approach I use when I want to stay close to the participants’ actual experiences.

Inductive thematic analysis: themes emerging from qualitative data without preconceptions

Deductive Thematic Analysis

The deductive approach works in reverse — you start with a predetermined codebook (drawn from theory or your research questions) and look for evidence of those themes in your data. For a full comparison with worked examples, see my post on Thematic Analysis Examples: Inductive and Deductive.

In this guide, I’m using the inductive approach.

What You Need Before You Start

Before you open NVivo, make sure you have:

• Your interview transcripts as Word (.docx) or PDF files
• A clear set of research objectives — these will guide your coding decisions
• NVivo installed — if you’re just getting started, check my NVivo Free Training for Beginners

The study I’m working with here has seven research objectives — determining what parental engagement means to teachers, identifying the most effective forms of engagement, and understanding the barriers schools face, among others.

How to Do Thematic Analysis of Interviews in NVivo (6 Steps)

I follow the Braun and Clarke six-step framework for this process. For a technical overview of how NVivo supports qualitative coding workflows, the NVivo documentation at Lumivero is worth bookmarking.

Step 1 – Familiarise Yourself with the Transcripts

Step 1 of Braun and Clarke thematic analysis: familiarising with interview transcripts

Before you touch NVivo, read your transcripts from start to finish. Don’t code yet — just read. You’re building an intuitive sense of what your participants are saying before you start breaking the data into fragments.

For this study, I read both transcripts in full before opening NVivo. During this read, I ask myself: what stands out? What keeps coming up? Are there moments that feel significant relative to my research questions?

Once you’ve done that initial read, import your transcript files into NVivo by going to Files > Import > Files.

Two interview transcripts imported into NVivo 14 for thematic analysis

Step 2 – Generate Initial Codes in NVivo

Step 2 of Braun and Clarke thematic analysis: generating initial codes in NVivo 14

Now the analytical work begins. Open your transcript in NVivo and start reading again — this time, highlighting meaningful segments of text and assigning codes to them.

In NVivo, you do this by:

1. Selecting a passage of text in your transcript
2. Dragging it to the Codes section in the left panel
3. Typing a code name that captures the meaning of that passage

For example, when one participant says “for me it means partnership between school and parents,” I create a code called partnership between school and parents. When they add “not just with the academic side of things but with all personal, social and health,” I create holistic partnership between school and parents.

The key rule: only code content that is relevant to your research objectives. Everything else stays behind.

As you work through both transcripts, you’ll build up a list of initial codes. I colour-code mine — red for the first question, blue for the second — to make grouping easier. For a deeper look at qualitative coding principles, SAGE Research Methods has an excellent overview.

A Section of a Transcript in Nvivo 14

Creating the inductive code ‘partnership between school and parents’ in NVivo 14

Transcript excerpt in NVivo 14 showing holistic view of parental engagement across academic and personal areas

Creating the inductive code ‘holistic partnership between school and parents’ in NVivo 14

Transcript excerpt in NVivo 14: participant describing school as the heart of the community

Creating the code ‘creating a community with the school at the centre’ in NVivo 14

Interview question in NVivo 14 about the most effective types of parental engagement

Creating the inductive code ‘social and community-based events’ in NVivo 14

Step 3 – Generate Initial Themes

Step 3 of Braun and Clarke thematic analysis: generating initial themes in NVivo 14

Once you have a set of codes, look for patterns of shared meaning between them. That shared meaning becomes a theme.

In NVivo, right-click in the Codes section and create a new code to represent the theme. Label it clearly so you know it’s a theme, not a code. Then drag the relevant codes into it as sub-nodes.

For my red-coded group (from the question “what does parental engagement mean to you?”), the shared meaning is about teachers’ personal definitions of engagement. I create a theme called participants’ subjective meaning of parental engagement and drop those codes inside it.

Codes colour-coded red in NVivo 14 to group them before generating themes

Creating the theme ‘subjective meaning of parental engagement’ in NVivo 14

Codes colour-coded blue in NVivo 14 representing effective types of parental engagement

For the blue-coded group (effective types of engagement), the codes — social and community-based events, phone calls, informal in-person chats — all point to one theme: effective types of parental engagement.

Creating the theme ‘effective types of parental engagement’ in NVivo 14

Dragging and dropping codes into the effective types of parental engagement theme in NVivo 14

These are preliminary themes. Expect them to change.

Step 4 – Review and Revise Your Themes

Step 4 of Braun and Clarke thematic analysis: revising and reviewing themes in NVivo 14

Ask yourself: do the codes inside each theme genuinely belong together? Does the theme name accurately represent what those codes are saying?

In my example, I rename “subjective meaning of parental engagement according to participants” to “participants’ subjective meaning of parental engagement” — a small but cleaner change. The effective types theme holds up well as-is.

Theme ‘participants’ subjective meaning of parental engagement’ with its codes in NVivo 14

Renaming a theme during the review stage of thematic analysis in NVivo 14

Step 5 – Define and Name Your Themes

Step 5 of Braun and Clarke thematic analysis: defining and naming themes in NVivo 14

 For each theme, write a short definition. In NVivo, right-click a theme node, go to Code Properties, and type a description. For example:

Effective types of parental engagement — “This theme represents the strategies that participants identified as most effective in practice.”

Participants’ subjective meaning of parental engagement — “This theme captures teachers’ own definitions of parental engagement and how they personally understand the concept.”

Theme description for ‘participants’ subjective meaning of parental engagement’ in NVivo 14 Code Properties

Theme description for ‘effective types of parental engagement’ in NVivo 14 Code Properties

These descriptions become the foundation of your write-up and act as a quality check — if you can’t define what a theme is about, it needs more work.

Step 6 – Write Your Findings Report

Step 6 of Braun and Clarke thematic analysis: writing the findings report from NVivo analysis

The final step is producing a written report that communicates your themes, sub-themes, and codes through a coherent narrative.

A good findings report includes:

1. A brief description of your data analysis process (name the Braun and Clarke framework, describe how you applied it)
2. A summary table showing themes, sub-themes, and representative codes
3. A narrative section for each theme, with direct participant quotes as evidence
4. Visual representations — a mind map or thematic hierarchy diagram works well in NVivo

Section of a thematic analysis findings report showing themes and participant quotes

Findings report section describing the Braun and Clarke thematic analysis process used

Summary table in a thematic analysis findings report showing themes, sub-themes, and codes

Mind map in a thematic analysis findings report visualising themes and codes from NVivo

Five themes that emerged from inductive thematic analysis of parental engagement interviews in NVivo

By the end of this study, I had five main themes. For ideas on how to present your analysis visually, see my post on how to analyse interview transcripts in qualitative research

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I use NVivo for inductive thematic analysis?

Yes. NVivo’s Codes section lets you create, rename, and restructure codes and themes freely as your analysis develops — which is exactly what the inductive process requires.

How many themes should I have after thematic analysis?

There is no fixed number. Most studies end up with three to seven main themes, but this depends on your dataset and research questions. Braun and Clarke advise against forcing a specific count — let the data guide you.

What is the difference between a code and a theme in NVivo?

A code labels a specific segment of data — it captures what a single passage is about. A theme is broader, representing a pattern of shared meaning across multiple codes. In NVivo, both live in the Codes panel; the distinction is conceptual, not technical.

Do I need to transcribe my interviews before using NVivo?

Yes — NVivo works with text files. If your interviews are audio recordings, you’ll need transcripts first. See my post on the best tools for transcribing interviews for options.

What is the Braun and Clarke six-step framework?

It is the most widely used process for conducting thematic analysis. The six steps are: (1) familiarise yourself with the data, (2) generate initial codes, (3) search for themes, (4) review themes, (5) define and name themes, and (6) produce the report. It was introduced in Braun and Clarke’s 2006 paper and remains the standard reference for thematic analysis in qualitative research.

Key Takeaways

• Thematic analysis of interviews in NVivo follows the Braun and Clarke six-step framework: familiarise, generate codes, generate themes, review themes, define themes, write your report.
• The inductive approach means themes emerge from the data — you bring no predetermined framework to the analysis.
• NVivo’s Codes section handles both codes and themes. Colour-coding your codes makes it much easier to group them visually before building themes.
• Always verify the spelling of “Braun and Clarke” before publishing — it signals credibility to your academic audience.

Need Help with Your Thematic Analysis?

If you’re working through interview data and need a second pair of eyes — or you’d rather have the analysis done for you — I offer done-for-you NVivo analysis and one-on-one consulting sessions.