ABSTRACT

Qualitative analysis programs are software packages developed explicitly for the purpose of interpretative analysis using data that consists of narrative text. (Some programs are capable of including drawings or other non-text materials as well.) These packages are created by researchers in the social sciences, occasionally in cooperation with a computer scientist who handles the programming details. As a rule, each program grew out of the individual scholar’s own analysis needs. Thus, the programs differ from each other along many dimensions. The main difference exists between programs designed for descriptive/interpretive analysis and those designed for theory-building. (This distinction is explained at the end of the chapter on analysis types.) This difference is one of degree; it is not absolute. Other differences have to do with the degree to which a program is language-oriented, to which it prepares data for additional quantitative analysis, or to which it provides special handling of structured data, such as those gathered when using a fixed interview schedule or an open-ended questionnaire. Naturally, work-habits and style also enter into the design of a program and determine the appearance of the screen, the manner of user-interaction, and procedural details, such as the process of code entering or modification of the coding (organizing) system.