CISA Tools | Critical Incident Semantic Analysis Suite

What is CISA?

CISA is a narrative-discursive methodology for analysing identity construction in interview and narrative data. It combines template analysis with computational pattern recognition, offering systematic detection while keeping the researcher in interpretive control.

How it works

CISA scans transcripts for discourse markers across eight categories — identity markers (I am, who I am), temporal shifts (now, I used to), emotional language, conflict indicators (but, torn between), modal verbs, and more. When multiple marker types converge, this signals a critical incident — a moment where identity work is actively occurring.

"I feel like I am being pulled in different directions constantly. I belong in the classroom with my students but I am isolated in the business world. I know who I am as a teacher but I am lost as an entrepreneur."

Here, repeated I-statements, conflict markers (but appears three times), and emotional language (feel, isolated, lost) converge — signalling active identity negotiation between two professional selves.

From detection to analysis

Once critical incidents are identified, CISA offers different approaches to analysing tensions and contradictions:

CISA Detect uses the Situated Beliefs Model, capturing not just what someone believes but how they evaluate it (their stance) and where it operates across 15 life domains. The same person might affirm confidence in teaching but be critical of their confidence in research — two distinct situated beliefs, not a simple contradiction.

CISA Narrative tracks tensions across time — temporal shifts, emotional trajectories, and how identity positions evolve through a single account, mapped across 8 core domains.

Both tools generate reports at transcript and dataset level.

The Tool Suite

Detect & Explore — Systematic detection and flagging across larger datasets

Narrative — Deep analysis of individual accounts and journey trajectories

Visual-Spatial — Concept-mapping for visual-verbal integration

Cluster Analysis — Pattern identification across participants

Supporting Tools

Transcript Cleaner — Prepare transcripts for analysis

CISA Librarian — Manage and organise your analyses

CISA Learning Tool — Interactive training bridging theory and practice

🔒 Privacy-First

💻 Browser-Based

🎓 Research-Grade

All tools run locally — your data never leaves your device.