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CHAPTER 3: APPROACH TO ANALYSIS OF CONSULTATION RESPONSES
REPORTING AND ANALYSIS
3.1 The following chapters document the substance of the analysis and present the main issues and views expressed in the responses. These follow broadly the ordering of themes in the consultation document.
3.2 Responses were examined for themes and sub-themes, with each of these given a code number. Codes were entered into our statistical analysis package, SNAP, and data tabulations produced to show which were the most frequently mentioned views and which views were common to which types of consultees.
3.3 Examining the responses of different sub-groups provided an opportunity to uncover any differences in opinions, attitudes or priorities. Where a particular sub-group showed a marked difference in their responses, this has been highlighted in the text.
3.4 Appropriate verbatim comments were selected both to illustrate the data and to provide extra detail for any specific areas of interest.
GROUND RULES
Factual Accuracy
3.5 The views presented in this analysis have not been vetted in any way for factual accuracy. The opinions and comments submitted to the consultation may be based on fact or, indeed, may be based on what consultees perceive to be accurate, but which others may interpret differently. It is important for the analysis to represent views from all perspectives. The report, therefore, may contain analysis of responses which may be factually inaccurate or based on misunderstanding or misinformation on the issues but nevertheless reflect strongly held views. In some instances, such inaccuracies and misunderstandings will be relevant findings in themselves.
Interpretation of Findings
3.6 While the exercise was intended to give all those who wished to comment an opportunity to do so, it must be borne in mind that views may not be representative of the Scottish population. This has to be borne in mind in interpreting the findings presented in this report.
3.7 Given the primarily self-selecting nature of any consultation exercise, it should be noted that any statistics quoted here cannot be extrapolated to a wider population outwith the consultation population.
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