Docs / Creating a Project

Creating a Project

Last updated 2026-07-04

A project in Paideias is your research workspace — it holds your documents, codebook, and all coded data for one study. This page walks through the real screens for creating a project with a demo title, description, and conceptual framework, then shows why and how to export it as a portable backup, and how to import it back in later.

Watch it happen: create, export, import

Every screen below is real — a project actually gets created, actually gets exported to a file, and that file actually gets imported back in. Click through it yourself, or let it play.

What is a project?

Each project represents a single qualitative study or analysis. When you create a project, you define the boundaries of your research — what you're investigating, why it matters, and how your analysis will be structured. Projects are the top-level unit in Paideias: all documents, codes, and coding decisions live within a project, and projects never share data with each other.

You can create as many projects as your plan allows. Each has its own document set, codebook, coding data, and collaborator list.

The three fields, and why they matter

The create-project form only requires a name — description and framework are optional. But they are not just labels: they directly shape how the AI behaves throughout your analysis.

Project name

Use something specific to your study — for example, Teacher Burnout Interviews 2024 rather than Project 1. This is how you and your collaborators identify it in the project list and in any exports.

Description

A short summary of your study — the population, the phenomenon, the type of data. The AI reads this before generating or applying codes, so a specific description produces more relevant suggestions than a vague one.

Tip: Write the description like a one-sentence abstract. In the demo above: “Exploring how newly remote software teams build and maintain trust during their first year without a shared office.”

Conceptual framework

The most important field for controlling AI behaviour. This is the theoretical lens you're applying — grounded theory, thematic analysis, a named theory from your discipline, or your own structured approach. The AI interprets every passage through whatever lens you provide here.

Spend real time on this field. A well-articulated framework (like citing a specific model, as in the demo above) leads to precise, relevant code suggestions. A vague or missing one leads to generic output you'll spend more time cleaning up later.

You can edit the name, description, or framework at any time from project settings. Updating the framework changes how the AI codes anything new — it will not retroactively re-code passages you've already reviewed.

Exporting a project

The Export button lives in the sidebar next to your current project's name, and produces a single .paidx file — your entire project, encrypted, downloaded straight to your computer.

1

Open the project you want to back up

Export always operates on whichever project is currently open in the sidebar.

2

Click Export

The button briefly shows "Encrypting…" while your browser packages and encrypts the project locally.

3

A .paidx file downloads

Named after your project (e.g. remote_team_trust_study.paidx) and saved wherever your browser puts downloads.

Reasons to export a project:

  • Backup — a local copy that exists independently of your Paideias account.
  • Handoff — send a complete, working copy of a study to a co-author or collaborator outside your team.
  • Archiving — close out a finished study into a single portable file for long-term storage.
  • Moving accounts — carry a project from one Paideias account to another.
Not the same as a QDPX/CSV/Word export. This is a full, re-importable copy of the project for use inside Paideias. For exporting your coded data into NVivo, MAXQDA, ATLAS.ti, Excel, or Word, see Export & Download.

Importing a project

Importing reverses the process: pick a .paidx file and Paideias decrypts it, validates it, and adds it to your dashboard as a brand-new project.

1

Click Import project

Found on the Workspaces Dashboard, next to New project.

2

Choose your .paidx file

Only files exported from Paideias are accepted — anything else is rejected immediately with a clear error, before it can touch your data.

3

You're dropped straight into it

The imported project appears in your dashboard and opens automatically, fully intact — documents, codebook, and every coding decision exactly as they were when exported.

Importing always creates a new project — it never overwrites an existing one, even if the name matches. If you import the same file twice, you'll end up with two separate copies.

What happens after you create a project?

Once your project exists, you can:

  • Upload documents — transcripts, field notes, or any text files you want to analyse. See Uploading Documents.
  • Build a codebook — define codes manually or let AI generate them from your framework. See Building a Codebook.
  • Start coding — apply codes to passages using AI or manual methods.
  • Invite collaborators — add team members, each unlocking the shared project with their own passphrase.
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