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Interpretive Orchestration is a comprehensive Claude Code plugin that transforms qualitative research through structured human-AI collaboration. It’s not a tool for faster coding—it’s infrastructure for deeper thinking.
Created by: Xule Lin & Kevin Corley (Imperial College London)Framework: Cognitio Emergens (Lin, 2025) - Partnership Agency for interpretive inquiryGitHub: linxule/interpretive-orchestration
Not for Automation: This plugin deliberately enforces methodological rigor. You cannot skip stages or bypass human judgment. If you want speed over depth, this isn’t for you. If you want to become a better interpretive researcher, welcome to the atelier.

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What Makes This Different?

Traditional AI approach:
  • Give AI your data → Get instant analysis → Review output
  • AI automates manual labor (the “calculator mindset”)
  • Faster but not necessarily deeper
Interpretive Orchestration approach:
  • Build your foundation first → Collaborate with visible reasoning → Synthesize with tradition
  • AI asks questions that deepen YOUR reflexivity
  • Scale AND interpretive depth through Partnership Agency
“Human and AI boundaries dissolve into unified epistemic system generating insights neither could produce independently.” — Cognitio Emergens (Lin, 2025)
The philosophy: Friction over flow. If the plugin stops you, it’s asking you to think.

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The Atelier of Co-Apprenticeship

Both human and AI are apprentices to the craft tradition of interpretive inquiry. Neither masters the other. Both learn from craft principles: rigor, reflexivity, theoretical sensitivity, interpretive depth.

Solo Practice

What you do: Manual coding of 10-15 documents, memo-writing, framework developmentAI role: @stage1-listener watches but doesn’t interveneWhy it matters: Builds the irreplaceable theoretical sensitivity that makes partnership meaningful. This stage is enforced - doors to collaborative workspace stay locked until complete.

Side-by-Side Collaboration

What you do: Guide AI, refine patterns, parallel theoretical + empirical streamsAI role: @dialogical-coder with 4-stage visible reasoning:
  1. What I observe in the data
  2. What patterns I’m noticing
  3. What theoretical connections emerge
  4. What remains uncertain
The Whisperer: @research-configurator translates technical decisions to research language - no coding knowledge required!

Dialogue with Tradition

What you do: Interpret significance, synthesize findingsAI role: @scholarly-companion asks tradition’s questions (Gioia, Corley, Constructivist GT)Outcome: Work that can withstand methodological scrutiny

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Skills Architecture

Skills are auto-discoverable capability packages that Claude loads when relevant to your request.
SkillTriggersPurpose
project-setup”initialize”, “new project”Socratic onboarding + config
gioia-methodology”data structure”, “Gioia”Data structure building (1st→2nd→aggregate)
literature-sweep”literature”, “Stream A”Search + fetch + organize papers
interview-ingest”transcribe”, “convert audio”Audio/PDF conversion
deep-reasoning”think through”, “plan”Sequential Thinking integration
paradox-navigation”tension”, “both/and”Lotus Wisdom integration
Full list of 11 skills with complete triggers in CLAUDE.md on GitHub.

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Bundled MCPs

No API keys required for core functionality!
MCPPurpose in PluginCommand
Sequential ThinkingStructured reasoning chains/qual-think-through
Lotus WisdomNavigate paradoxes, integrate tensions/qual-wisdom-check
MarkdownifyConvert PDFs, transcribe audio, extract from videos/qual-import-pdf
Optional MCPs (require API keys):
MCPPurposeKey Required
MinerUHigh-accuracy PDF parsing (90%+)MINERU_API_KEY
Zen MCPMulti-model validationGOOGLE_API_KEY
ExaLiterature searchEXA_API_KEY
JinaFetch articlesJINA_API_KEY
ZoteroBibliography managementZOTERO_API_KEY

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Quick Start

cd your-qualitative-project
claude
/plugin install linxule/interpretive-orchestration
/qual-check-setup  # Verify installation
/qual-init         # Begin Socratic onboarding
Then: Complete Stage 1 manual coding (10-15 documents) before AI-assisted analysis. This builds the irreplaceable theoretical sensitivity that makes partnership meaningful.

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Key Commands

CommandStagePurpose
/qual-init0Begin Socratic philosophy establishment
/qual-statusAnyCheck where you are in the journey
/qual-think-through1+Deep sequential reasoning
/qual-wisdom-check1+Navigate interpretive paradoxes
/qual-parallel-streams2Run theoretical + empirical streams
/qual-synthesize2+Merge discovery streams
/qual-reflectAnyEnd-of-session dialogue

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Methodology Hooks

The plugin enforces the sandwich methodology through automated hooks:
  • PreStage2 - Blocks AI coding until Stage 1 foundation complete
  • PostFiveDocuments - Triggers interpretive pause every 5 documents
  • EpistemicCoherence - Checks philosophical consistency
If you’re blocked, it’s asking you to think. That’s intentional epistemic friction.

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Who Should Use This?

  • PhD students learning qualitative methods
  • Researchers committed to methodological rigor
  • Those working with Gioia methodology or Constructivist GT
  • Anyone valuing depth over speed
  • Researchers who want defensible AI-assisted work
  • Those interested in human-AI epistemic partnership

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Connection to Research Memex

This plugin is the practical implementation of interpretive orchestration - the core philosophy that animates Research Memex. The progression:
  1. Core Principles → Understand the philosophy
  2. Individual MCPs → Learn the tools (Sequential Thinking, Lotus Wisdom, Zen)
  3. Interpretive Orchestration Plugin → Apply it all to qualitative research

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Resources

Meta-Moment: This plugin embodies what Research Memex teaches. It was created using interpretive orchestration principles—including the very Sequential Thinking and Lotus Wisdom MCPs it bundles. The methodology shaped the tool that now teaches the methodology.Built with Claude Opus 4.5 as co-apprentice. Reviewed by Codex and Gemini. Validated with 264 narrative analyses.Recursion, meet reflexivity. 🔄
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