Toy Qualitative Data Project (Interview Transcripts)

Please be advised that this project is intended solely for instructional purposes and should not be used for actual research. This dataset is intended to complement the instructional material and provide a hands-on learning experience for the workshop: Handling and Sharing Qualitative Data Responsibly and Effectively.

This hypothetical research project is designed to demonstrate key concepts related to human subject qualitative data management and thematic analysis coding. It includes interview transcripts generated with ChatGPT 4.0 Mini for a fictional graduate student in Communication named Sarah, whose main research question is: How do content creators/digital influencers view their role in shaping their followers' consumer behavior, and what ethical dilemmas do they face when promoting products?

Given the novelty of this research topic and the limited academic literature available, Sarah hopes that the insights gained from this small-scale qualitative exploratory study will help identify key variables for a larger survey study with a representative sample of content creators/digital influencers across the U.S.

Sarah has previous experience with quantitative methods but is very new to qualitative research and could use our help for better handling the data. Having already conducted six short structured interviews with subjects from top revenue niches (i.e., Home Decor and DYI, Travel & Adventure, Fashion & Style, Health & Wellness, Finance & Investment, Beauty & Skincare) and planning to conduct a dozen more, Sarah is eager to begin engaging with the data she has collected so far and deciding how to best organize and interpret it. We’ll be walking her through this process, providing the necessary guidance and support for effective and responsible data management.

Interviews were conducted over Zoom and audio recorded with participants' consent. The interview included four main questions, which were consistent across all interviews:

Q1. Please tell me a little about your work as a content creator/digital influencer how it started, and how you have established yourself in your current niche.

Q2. In what ways do you believe content creators/digital influencers shape consumer behavior? Could you share any examples?

Q3. What strategies would you say content creators/digital influencers typically use to increase sales of sponsored products and services? Which ones have you used? What worked and what did not work for you? Why?

Q4. In your view, what are the essential ethical responsibilities that content creators and digital influencers should uphold? Can you share any personal experiences that illustrate these responsibilities in action?

Each interview generated approximately 15 minutes of audio recording, which Sarah manually transcribed. Sarah decided to keep the transcription true to the recordings and seek assistance to mitigate any risk of identification.