In this video tutorial we will take a look at all the features of AI Assist in MAXQDA. With the help of artificial intelligence, AI Assist automatically creates summaries of selected text or codes, explains terms, provides suggestions for new codes, suitable subcodes or coded segments and enables you to chat with documents and coded segments.
Most AI Assist features can be accessed via the AI Assist ribbon tab or via corresponding context menus.
With AI Assist we can summarize the content of complete documents and thus get a quick overview of the key topics in an interv iew for example. To do this we select the option summarize document from the context menu. In this window we can specify our summary and customize the language, length and type of summary. The language of the existing document and the language of the summary do not have to be the same. AI Assist recognizes the language of the current segment and translates the summary if necessary. These options are similar for all AI Assist functions. If we now click OK here, AI Assist performs the Analysis and the result is then displayed in the document summary which we can find next to the document memo. As with all other AI Assist functions shown here, we can always adjust the result later and all outputs are clearly marked as AI generated.
But it’s not just complete documents that we can summarize with the help of AI Assist. Individual selections of text can also be summarized, for example a persons answer to a question in an interview. To do this, we simply select the segment that we want to summarize, right-click on the selected segment and then select “Summarize selected text” from the context menu. If we now click OK the summary will be displayed in an In-Document Memo on the right hand side of the document browser. We can also summarize a selected segment as a paraphrase. Again we select the segment and then click on “Text selection: Paraphrase selected text” from the AI Assist ribbon. The paraphrase is then displayed on the right hand side of the document browser.
If we have already coded our project, we can also use AI Assist to summarize individual coded segments. To do this, we right-click on the coding stripe or the code name and select ” AI Assist: Summarize Segment” from the context menu. After clicking OK the summary is created and saved in a comment on the coded segment.
We can also create summaries for coded segments using the table view of coded segments, the retrived segments window, the segment matrix or the smart coding tool.
In addition to individual coded segments we can also create summaries for all coded segments of a code. This allows us to summarize the content to which the code has been applied in one central location. To do this, we right click on a code in the codes window and select “AI Assist: Summarize coded segments” from the context menu. We can also limit the number of coded segments that are taken into consideration here by only including the coded segments from activated documents in the summary. We can also include the subcodes of a code in the analysis. The summary we now create is then saved in the code memo. Furthermore, coded segments can be summarized in other places, for example in the segment matrix and in the smart coding tool.
We can use the summary grid to summarize the coded segments of a code in a document. Here, we can use this button to create a summary with the help of AI Assist. This summary then appears in the summary window.
With AI Assist we can also get inspiration for new codes. To do this, we simply select a segment from our material and select “AI Assist: Suggest New Codes for Text Selection” from the context menu. AI Assist then creates a list of possible codes that can be applied to the selected segment and on the basis of which we can create new codes for our project. We are usually also shown an explanation of the respective suggestions. The code suggestions are grouped into thematic and interpretative codes. We can tick the codes that we want to create and the codes are then created in the codes window. The explanation is then saved in the code memo. We can also have additional subcodes suggested for existing codes by right-clicking on a code in the codes window and selecting ” Suggest Subcodes” from the context menu. On the left side of this window, we’ll see the suggested subcodes along with explanations. We can then simply drag the codes we want to generate from the left side into this field on the right.
Furthermore we can also use AI Assist to explain individual words from our material. To do this we simply select the term that we want to have defined, right click and select “AI Assist: Explain Text Selection” from the context menu. We then receive an explanation of the term in an In-Document memo.
We also have the option here to translate sections of our documents. To do this, we simply highlight the segment we want to translate, select “Translate Text Selection,” and choose the target language.
We also have the option to “chat” with documents and coded segments from our MAXQDA projects. To chat with one or more documents, select “Chat with the document” in the AI Assist tab. Here, you can select the documents you want to chat with, and a chat window will open where you can ask questions about your document. For example we can ask what Selim has to say about friends and family. The answer then appears in the chat. The references to the original text documents allow us to better understand the answer. We can also return to older chats at any time by opening the chat history here. We can rename or delete these older chats at any time.
The chat for coded segments works in a very similar way: to chat with the coded segments of a code, we right-click on the code in the codes window and select “Chat with this codes segments” from the context menu. We can also use AI Assist to suggest which segments from a document could be coded with a specific code. To do this, we open the document, click on the AI Assist button and select AI Coding. We now drag the code for which we want to create suitable segments into this window. A precise definition of the code in the code memo is important for this function as AI Assist suggests the segments based on this definition. If a memo already has been assigned to the code, this memo is displayed here, however we can also adjust the definition here. If we now click OK, AI Assist goes through our document and creates code suggestions for individual segments to which the definition of the memo applies. These suggestions are collected in a new subcode and have a special colour so that they can always be identified as suggestions from AI Assist. Comments are also created for all coded segments, explaining why the code was applied to the segment in question. When we are happy with the suggestions, we can move the suggestions to our initial code at any time by dragging the AI code onto the “Merge” field of the original code.
But AI Assist isn’t limited to applying codes to entire documents. Using the Survey Analysis and Smart Coding Tool features, we can also have the system suggest codes for individual segments. The suggestions are then displayed in this list, and we can accept them by checking the box next to the respective code.
AI Report allows us to generate a structured report using AI Assist, based on selected documents, an analysis question, and optional instructions. First, we select the documents to be included in the report. A window then opens where we can enter our question. This question determines the focus of the report’s content, so it is important to formulate it as precisely as possible.Here, we can also enter additional instructions. We can also have the system suggest alternatives. AI Assist generates three alternatives, each consisting of a short description, the alternative question, and an explanation of how it differs from your original. When we click “Create Report,” the report is generated in a new document. The report follows a consistent structure and always cites the source documents, so that we can quickly verify the source material at any time.
And that’s it, we wish you all the best for your project.
