David C. Coker
Themes and thematic analysis are very popular in qualitative research methods and analysis. The very definition of theme varies widely, from patterns that exclude the researcher as biased to highly interpretive work that prizes the researcher's instrumentality. Exploring the historical development of themes, the many definitions reveal that different levels of analysis produced varied understandings of the meanings of concepts and themes. A qualitative analysis of educational leadership dissertations in the US using thematic analysis showed that a common practice was to state that themes emerged; regardless of the claims, the resultant themes were mostly topical and descriptive. The construction of themes beyond the descriptive is a practice for which many researchers lack systematic, rigorous processes and fail to show visible methods. To develop a methodical, visible practice, a theme construction tool provides a three-step framework to use a storyboard approach to develop concepts, produce hypotheses using abductive reasoning, and then evaluate hypotheses to make an inference to the best explanation. Criteria for evaluating themes provide a reference point for researchers to apply concrete skills across a range of qualitative methods. The paper serves as a call to action for researchers to adopt structured, transparent, and methodologically flexible tools for theme construction. By doing so, researchers can move beyond simple summarization and opaque claims of “emerge” to produce more credible, nuanced, and genuinely interpretive themes.