Text Analytics & Thematic Coding Glossary

New to open-ended feedback, qualitative research, or AI-powered text analytics?

This glossary explains the essential terms you’ll encounter when turning raw, unstructured feedback into clear, decision-ready insights.

Whether you’re decoding NPS comments, building a code frame for audience research, testing content and messaging, or comparing manual vs. automated thematic analysis, these definitions will help you navigate modern qualitative analytics with confidence.

Explore, bookmark, and revisit anytime you need clarity on the language behind text analytics, thematic coding, and human-in-the-loop insights, all at the core of how Fathom helps brands, agencies, and researchers unlock the full value of open-ended data.

Glossary

1. What is Text Analytics?

Text analytics is the process of analyzing large volumes of open-ended or unstructured text to uncover patterns, themes, and sentiment. Fathom specializes in text analytics for audience research, customer feedback, message testing, and public opinion studies.

See also: Thematic Analysis, Sentiment Analysis, Verbatim Analysis.

2. What is Qual at Scale?

Qual at Scale refers to analyzing qualitative data (like open-ended survey responses) quickly and accurately across thousands of comments. Fathom’s human-in-the-loop system makes scaling qualitative research practical for audience insights, content testing, and public opinion tracking.

See also: Human-in-the-Loop, Qualitative Coding, Text Analytics.

Verbatim analysis means analyzing open-ended text exactly as written by respondents to extract meaning, categorize feedback, or detect sentiment. It’s essential for audience research and content testing to capture authentic language and hidden themes.

See also: Survey Verbatims, Sentiment Analysis, Text Analytics.

3. What is Verbatim Analysis?

4. What is Sentiment Analysis in Text Analytics?

Sentiment analysis evaluates the emotional tone in open-ended feedback — whether positive, negative, or neutral. Fathom combines sentiment analysis with thematic coding for deeper understanding of customer feedback, campaign reactions, and public sentiment.

See also: Thematic Analysis, Verbatim Analysis, Drivers Analysis.

5. What is a Code Frame in Thematic Coding?

A code frame (or coding frame) is a structured hierarchy of themes used to code open-ended responses consistently. Fathom auto-generates code frames for audience research, campaign tracking, and content testing, with human oversight to ensure nuance and accuracy.

See also: Codebook, Qualitative Coding, Context Adaptive Thematic Coding.

6. What is a Codebook for Thematic Analysis?

A codebook is a detailed reference that defines each code within a code frame. It ensures researchers apply themes consistently during manual or hybrid coding workflows.

See also: Code Frame, Qualitative Coding.

7. What is Human-in-the-Loop (HITL) in Text Analytics?

Human-in-the-Loop (HITL) is a process where humans validate, refine, or adjust AI-generated insights. Fathom integrates HITL review to ensure high quality and nuance in sensitive areas like public opinion research, audience insights, and campaign analysis.

See also: Qual at Scale, Context Adaptive Thematic Coding.

8. What is an Open-Ended Survey Question?

An open-ended survey question invites respondents to answer freely in their own words, instead of selecting from preset options. These questions reveal authentic attitudes and language — Fathom specializes in analyzing this data at scale.

See also: Survey Verbatims, Verbatim Analysis.

Qualitative coding means labeling qualitative data with themes, tags, or codes. Fathom automates qualitative coding for large surveys and studies in audience research, content/message testing, and customer insights — always with expert human oversight.

See also: Code Frame, Codebook, Tagging.

9. What is Qualitative Coding?

Survey verbatims are raw open-ended responses collected through surveys. Fathom structures and analyzes survey verbatims to extract meaningful themes, link insights to metrics like NPS or CSAT, and drive action.

See also: Verbatim Analysis, Open-Ended Survey Question, NPS Comments.

10. What are Survey Verbatims?

11. What is Drivers Analysis?

Drivers analysis identifies the underlying causes behind satisfaction, dissatisfaction, or other outcomes by linking coded themes to scores like NPS or CSAT. Fathom automates driver’s analysis for customer experience research, campaign feedback, and public opinion work.

See also: Thematic Analysis, Sentiment Analysis.

NPS comments are open-ended responses attached to Net Promoter Score (NPS) surveys. Fathom organizes and analyzes these comments to reveal common themes, emotional tone, and key drivers of promoter, passive, or detractor scores.

See also: Survey Verbatims, Drivers Analysis.

12. What are NPS Comments?

13. What are Closed-Ended vs. Open-Ended Questions?

Closed-ended questions offer predefined answer choices (like Yes/No or multiple choice). Open-ended questions let respondents answer freely in their own words, providing richer context and deeper insights. Fathom is purpose-built for analyzing open-ended feedback at scale.

See also: Open-Ended Survey Question.

Content testing gathers audience feedback on messaging, creative, or ads before launch. Open-ended questions play a key role by uncovering real reactions. Fathom analyzes this qualitative feedback quickly and accurately to help teams refine content.

See also: Message Testing, Audience Research.

14. What is Content Testing?

Message testing evaluates whether a message, slogan, or campaign resonates with its target audience. Open-ended responses reveal why a message works — or doesn’t. Fathom’s thematic and sentiment analysis helps teams refine messaging based on real audience insights.

See also: Content Testing, Audience Research.

15. What is Message Testing?

Audience research uncovers insights about a target group’s attitudes, behaviors, and preferences. Open-ended survey questions let researchers hear directly from audiences. Fathom scales this analysis to uncover patterns and drivers across large samples.

See also: Content Testing, Message Testing, Audience Segmentation.

16. What is Audience Research?

17. What is Customer Feedback Analysis?

Customer feedback analysis is the systematic process of examining customer comments, reviews, or open-ended survey responses to uncover trends, pain points, and opportunities. Fathom combines thematic coding, sentiment detection, and drivers analysis to turn raw feedback into clear action.

See also: Text Analytics, Thematic Analysis, Drivers Analysis.

18. What is Tagging in Text Analytics?

Tagging is a method for labeling qualitative data with relevant keywords, topics, or codes. Tagging is often used interchangeably with coding in text analytics. Fathom supports automated tagging and deeper thematic coding for large open-ended datasets.

See also: Qualitative Coding, Code Frame.

19. What is Audience Segmentation for Open-Ended Analysis?

Audience segmentation is the process of grouping respondents by traits like demographics, behavior, or sentiment. Fathom enables segmentation within open-ended feedback, so teams can see how different audience segments express unique themes, needs, or reactions.

See also: Audience Research, Drivers Analysis.

20. What is Quality Assessment of Thematic Coding?

Quality assessment checks how well themes and codes are applied to open-ended data. Strong quality control ensures consistency, accuracy, and trust in the results. Fathom’s human-in-the-loop workflow includes rigorous quality assessment.

See also: Context Adaptive Thematic Coding, Coverage Metrics.

21. What are Coverage Metrics for Thematic Coding?

Coverage metrics measure how thoroughly a code frame or codebook captures the full range of themes in open-ended feedback. High coverage means fewer blind spots and stronger insights. Fathom tracks coverage metrics as part of its quality checks.

See also: Quality Assessment, Code Frame.

22. What is Context Adaptive Thematic Coding?

Context adaptive thematic coding adjusts the code frame or coding approach based on new feedback or emerging themes. Fathom’s hybrid AI+human model keeps coding adaptive to ensure evolving audience language and new patterns aren’t missed.

See also: Human-in-the-Loop, Quality Assessment.

23. What is Latent Text Analytics?

Latent text analytics finds hidden or implicit patterns in unstructured data that aren’t obvious at first glance. Fathom blends thematic and sentiment analysis to surface subtle insights in open-ended survey responses and public opinion research.

See also: Semantic Text Analytics, Thematic Analysis.

Semantic text analytics analyzes the meaning and relationships between words in text data. It goes beyond simple word counts to understand context, synonyms, and intent. Fathom uses semantic techniques to deliver more nuanced thematic coding.

See also: Latent Text Analytics, Thematic Analysis.

24. What is Semantic Analytics?

25. What is Inductive Text Analytics?

Inductive text analytics builds codes or themes directly from the data without starting with a preset code frame. It’s useful when exploring new topics or audiences. Fathom’s workflows support inductive coding alongside expert oversight.

See also: Deductive Text Analytics, Thematic Analysis.

26. What is Deductive Text Analytics?

Deductive text analytics applies a predefined code frame to new open-ended data. It’s efficient for tracking known topics, such as repeating campaign messages or customer pain points. Fathom supports both deductive and inductive workflows.

See also: Inductive Text Analytics, Thematic Analysis.

27. What is Mixed Methodology Research?

Mixed methodology research combines qualitative and quantitative approaches in a single study — for example, pairing open-ended survey responses with closed-ended scores like NPS. Fathom’s text analytics integrates seamlessly into mixed methods to enrich quantitative results with nuanced context.

See also: Thematic Analysis, Drivers Analysis.

An IDI (In-Depth Interview) is a qualitative research method involving a detailed one-on-one conversation with a respondent to explore attitudes, beliefs, or experiences. Fathom helps teams analyze the open-ended transcripts from IDIs alongside larger survey verbatims.

See also: Thematic Analysis, Qualitative Coding.

28. What is an IDI?

Ready to turn open-ended feedback into actionable insight?

Fathom brings text analytics, thematic coding, and human-in-the-loop AI together to help you uncover the "why" behind the data — faster, deeper, and at scale. Whether you're testing content, decoding NPS comments, or scaling qual, everything starts with understanding the language of modern analytics.

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