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As governmental processes and judgments become increasingly digital, the transparency of digital systems that implement the processes of government becomes increasingly important. Open code is a necessary but not sufficient prerequisite for maintaining transparency as democracy becomes digitized, and complete openness of process is not appropriate for every domain. This chapter explores some of the complexities in the relationship between openness of code and democratic government. Computer code controls and enables the actions of users, and for users to have true autonomy they must be able to examine, alter, and redistribute the code. A key issue for transparency is the degree to which this observation applies to the activities of government that are embedded in computer code. Free software creates a fundamentally different market structure than closed code. The philosophy of free software argues that the inability to view code that implements governance suggests totalitarian and Kafkaesque control, a constraining complex network of rules and regulations.

This chapter focuses on the first level of data analysis in grounded theory. In this “first step,” the researcher uses line-by-line coding to begin to identify concepts from raw data. The chapter includes examples of open coding, designed to help readers to use open coding with their own data. It illustrates how the grounded theory method creates concepts that are closely tied to data. It also shows how to further develop these concepts by identifying their dimensions and properties, and how to consolidate concepts into larger categories. It demonstrates how the authors of the exemplar social work grounded theory studies used the dimensions and properties of their categories in their analyses. It emphasizes the importance of writing memos, even in this early stage of analysis. It illustrates how open coding and memoing further the use of the constant comparative method and theoretical sampling in grounded theory data analysis. These components of the grounded theory method help the researcher to move the analysis beyond description and toward theory building. Exercises in early analysis are provided.

This chapter focuses on the process of building theory from the concepts and categories developed in open coding. It introduces and illustrates the concepts of axial coding and selective coding, the final stage of grounded theory coding. A variety of techniques to stimulate thinking in the later stages of coding, such as the use of matrices and diagrams, are illustrated. The chapter emphasizes how these techniques fit into the multistage abductive process of grounded theory. The use of these techniques is illustrated in the exemplar grounded theory social work studies. The chapter concludes with exercises that students and researchers can use to apply the material in this chapter.

This chapter analyzes direct speech to identify reasoning processes underlying participation in the Arab Spring protests. First, it introduces Corbin and Strauss’ qualitative open and axial coding procedures. The author introduces this coding scheme and explains how it was constructed. The chapter then presents numerous excerpts from interviews as well as Facebook entries and explains, line by line, how these coding procedures were applied to identify the main components of reasoning processes: beliefs, direct and indirect inferences, and decisions to join the uprisings or to stay at home instead. The chapter describes how emotions, which were central to protest decisions, were identified from direct speech by referring to the psychology literature on hope, courage, pride, and solidarity. It also elaborates on the analysis of quotes expressing safety considerations, which were central to decisions to stay at home.

Four extended accounts of GTM-in-use—illustrations of Methodological Sensitivity from recent PhD students, offering very different uses of GTM in their research. Andrea Gorra’s innovative approach to dealing with her open codes. Transmissia Semiawan’s application of object-oriented modeling to GTM. Her use of Sternberg’s Triarchic model of intelligence in explaining key aspects of GTM that are common across the canonical texts and the developing variants. Stella Walsh’s ‘discovery’ of rich data and her resulting change of direction. Premila Gamage’s study of telecentres in Sri Lanka; using GTM once all the data was gathered. Lessons learned and experiences gained through use of GTM in doctoral research – clear and coherent examples of methodological sensitivity.