Based in grounded theory, open coding is the analytic process through which concepts (codes) are attached to observed data and phenomena during qualitative data analysis.
Open coding attempts to codify, name or classifying the observed phenomenon and is achieved by segmenting data into meaningful expressions and describing that data with a single word or short sequence of words.
[1] Applied in varying degrees of detail, open coding can be linked to a line, sentence, paragraph or complete text (e.g., protocol, scenario).
However, coding should always follow its aim to break down and understand a text and develop a scheme of categories over the course of time.
These notes could take the form of interesting observations and thoughts that are relevant to the development of the theory.