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Classify sources

 

This topic explains how to record classifying information about your sources, such as the date and time of an interview. There are a number of ways you can record this information within NVivo. If you have this information recorded outside NVivo (for example, in a text file or spreadsheet), you can import it into your project.

What do you want to do?

 

Classify one or more sources

To classify sources:

  1. In List View, select the sources you want to classify.

  1. On the Home tab, in the Item group, click Get Info (and hold down the mouse button), and then click Classification and select the classification for the sources.

The selected sources are assigned to the classification, but you need to set the attribute values for each source—refer to Set the attribute values for a source.

NOTE  

  • You must add at least one classification to your project before you can classify sources, refer to Create source classifications for more information.

  • You can also set the classification for a selected source in the Source Properties dialog—on the Home tab, in the Item group, click Get Info.

  • Sources created by importing web pages from NCapture are automatically classified.

  • If you want to add bibliographical information in NVivo and export it when you are ready to write up your findings, you should use NVivo's predefined source classifications—these are compatible with reference management tools like EndNote.

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Set the attribute values for a source

To set the attribute values for a source that has already been classified (perhaps you classified multiple sources at once):

  1. In List View, select the source.

  2. On the Home tab, in the Item group, click Get Info.

  1. If you cannot see the classification and attribute values, click the disclosure triangle to show them.

  1. For each attribute, you can select an existing value or enter a new one.

Click the magnifying glass in the Value field to see the list of existing values or clear the value and start typing. As you type, the list of existing values is refined based on what you have typed so far. If you want to use the highlighted item in the list of values, press Return. Otherwise, keep typing to refine the list or enter a new attribute value.

  1. Click Done.

NOTE You can also set the attribute values for a classified source via the classification sheet—refer to Use the classification sheet to see attribute values for more information.

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Set attribute values using a classification sheet

The classification sheet lists all the sources in a classification and shows the attribute values set for each source.  

For example, you could open the Journal Article classification sheet to see all the sources that represent journal articles along with their classifying information:

  Author Year Title Journal
Internals\Journal Article 1 B. Jones 2006 Effects of Landfill on River Water Quality

ABC Journal
Internals\Journal Article 2 K.V Peters 2009 Managing Urban Watersheds ABC Journal
Internals\Journal Article 3 S. Slater 2009 Changing Attitudes to Recycled Drinking Water XYZ Journal

You can enter or update source attribute values via the classification sheet.

Refer to Use the classification sheet to see attribute values for more information.

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Classify sources by importing classification sheets

If you have gathered information about your sources outside of NVivo—and the information is in a structured text file or a spreadsheet—you can import it into NVivo. For example, if you conducted a series of video interviews and have recorded the interview location, interview date and interviewee name for each interview in a spreadsheet, you can import the videos into NVivo, and then import the classifying information.

Refer to Import (or export) classification sheets for more information.

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Change the classification of a source

CAUTION Changing the classification of a source may result in the loss of data if you have recorded classifying information about the source. Attribute values are only retained, when the new classification has the same attributes (matched by name and data type). For example, if you have used the predefined classification Journal Article to classify a source, and then change the classification to Government document, the values for Author, Year and Title are common to both classifications and will be retained, but the value for Journal will be lost.

To change the classification of a source:

  1. In List View, select the source.

  2. On the Home tab, in the Item group, click Get Info.

  1. If you cannot see the classification and attribute values, click the disclosure triangle to show them.

  2. From the Classification pop-up menu, select a different classification for the source.

  3. Click Done.

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