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Modify Coded Segments

There are various ways to modify coded segments:

  • By assigning a new code.
  • By assigning another code in the place of an existing code.
  • By modifying the segment boundaries, meaning enlarging or reducing the coded segment while the code remains in place.

All three of these modifications can be easily carried out in MAXQDA.

Coding a segment with more than one code

After having coded a segment, the segment remains selected (with the exception of highlight-coded segments). It is possible to attach more codes to the same segment, for example using drag & drop.

If you want to assign one or more codes later, the segment must be selected again. This is easiest if you click on the coding stripe of this segment with the left mouse button. The segment will be highlighted again and you can assign a code in the usual way.

Replacing a coded segment

When reviewing your text analysis, you may decide that the wrong code was assigned to a text segment. Or you may decide that the “Code System” is not precise enough, so it is necessary to expand the “Code System” and distinguish between different codes. In both cases, you will need to replace one code assigned to a text with another.

This can be done in several ways:

  • Assign the correct new code as an additional code, e.g. by clicking on the coding stripe to mark the segment and then add the new code. Then delete the previous code assignment by right-clicking on the coding stripe and selecting Delete.
  • If the coded segment is shown in the "Retrieved Segments" window, this procedure can be abbreviated: drag the source information box displayed next to the relevant segment to another code.
  • The new code will automatically be assigned to the coded segment. If the other code is not activated, it may be that the coded segment was removed from the “Retrieved Segments” window.
  • A coded segment can be moved from the table view or the “Overview of Coded Segments” to a different code in the same manner.
Click and drag to move the coded segment to the desired code
Tip: If you hold down the Ctrl key (Windows) or the alt key (Mac) while moving the mouse pointer, the new code is assigned to the coding in addition, so the existing code remains as is.

Editing the size of a coded segment

Sometimes a segment may be coded outside of its logical boundaries, meaning it is too short or too long. The coded segment will, therefore, be difficult to understand because it is out of context. Segment boundaries can be adjusted in the following way:

  1. Select the segment by clicking on the corresponding coding stripe or code name in the “Document Browser”. The segment is now highlighted in the original document.
  2. The segment boundaries can now be redefined as usual using the mouse. Then encode the segment again with the same code. Alternatively, you can right-click the coding stripe and select Recode with highlighted segment.

MAXQDA automatically adjusts to the newly defined segment boundaries.

Changing the size of the coded segment
Please note: Existing coded image segments in image or PDF documents will only be adjusted when the newly selected area either completely includes the existing segment or when the newly selected area is completely inside the area of the existing coded segment.

While the "Recode" function always adjusts the segment borders to the current highlighted area, you can also expand the segment boundaries with the new highlights:

  • Highlight a passage that overlaps with the beginning or the end of an existing segment.
  • Right-click on the coding stripe and choose the entry Extend with highlighted segment.

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