Dear researchers, I've started using the méthodologie of Grounded theory on analysing thé collected data on focus groups, field observations and Interviews, however to do it manually it's Time consuming ans I have a short deadline to submit m'y results. What kind of software Can I use on this case? IS There a specific software in case of Grounded theory?
Dear Souad,
Common computer assisted qualitative data management softwares include Nvivo and Atlas.ti. These sources could help you manage different types of qualitative data such as interviews, focus group discussion, videos, photos, map, documents etc. For this reason, they are perfectly suited for hosting the analysis of data for a Grounded theory study.
I found NVivo to be rather slow, but other than that it worked really well (I haven't used it since 2015, so newer versions might have improved). Atlas.ti is also OK, but kind of confusing when it comes to sharing date in multiple comupters. MaxQDA is another option worth exploring.
All of the software packages work the same way: you mark the text by assigning codes to segments of the data, and then use the codes to search for and use related text segments. This will make your work more systematic, but it will not speed up the process of coding itself.
With Grounded Theory, you begin with a large number of "open" or "initial" codes and then reduce those through axial or focused coding until you have a small set of final categories. The software can assist with this process by helping you group related codes into "hierarchically ordered" sets (i.e., putting lower-level codes under more general ones). All of the software packages have some way to accomplish that kind of grouping, but MAX and Dedoose both emphasize this feature.
Thanks to all of you for your answers. Currently I am having an initiation to the R software and I noticed that it contrains as well packages for qualitative data such as RQDA. What do you think about it?
David Morgan, you raised an important question about the coding process, if I understand well I need to go through the data manually as suggested by Grounded theorists, and then enter the codes into the software as a second step!
I would appreciate if you Can enlighten me on that?
RQDA is not as fully developed as the mainstream qualitative analysis packages, but it might well be adequate for your purposes. Note that each package within R has its own set of specifications, so learning R for statistical analysis will not have much use for learning RQDA.
For GT, you can definitely enter the first set of "open" codes in the software, and then (depending on the package) use the software to group the codes into related sets as you work on building theoretical categories. But I have no idea whether RQDA could handle that process.
Dear researcher,
I recommeded you to use Atlas.ti 8, especially if you enterviews were in Arabic language because this software suports Arabic language.
Good luck
I prefer using MaxQda, it is quite easy on the simplest level of coding process, more intuitive than Atlas. You can code text, video, sound, there is special tool for focus group interviews. Qualitative analysis packages won't do the job for you, coding process is time-consuming, but you get well structured material to prepare futher analyses.
I used NVivo but there's also MAXQDA, CAT, ATLAsti or good old fashioned handcoding.
Dear Souad, I agree with my colleagues: softwares are pretty the same and work the same way. I find Nvivo very intuitive to use program. However, I think you should consider your epistemological posture before deciding how to analyse the data. Know that the use of a software enables to build an analysis table. If you are in a phenomenological perspective, maybe there is no need to the table and therefore nor to codify.
After spending or wasting a lot of time on finding out about different soft wares I ended up using google. Then amended the transcripts. The link is:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1CCpd5Z9WGxcdu6ZXbzrH4mynxlzHYZGynzMJIzxWc1k/edit
In the webpage click on Tools, then vice typing. To get the best result, activate your internal microphones and have external microphones playing towards the computer and adjust the volume as required. Hope this helps.
I suggest using a software package designed for qualitative analysis, especially if doing grounded theory. Those mentioned above work well, I am most familiar with MaxQDa of the ones mentioned. If you will be working with other researchers on the same data set you may want to consider Dedoose - it allows multiple users to work at the same time in the same data set. Good luck with the grounded theory; it is time consuming work and many iterations of coding, refining definitions, and coding, but the result is usually very valuable new characteristics for us to consider.
I have a similar recommendation like others. It is always good to make your own decision based on the previous recommendations. I my self prefer to use Atlas.it. You may try MaxQDA since it is user friendly.
Good luck!
Nvivo is based for Qualitative Data Analysis but the other option is MAXQDA and It's pro version can also do mixed method analysis.
I strongly recommend Atlas.ti 8, because it full native Unicode support that can work any language including Arabic. You do not need to use RQDA. I have used it last year, it can code and create theoretical categories, but you may face several problems, as said above is not as fully developed. In the new version, there are some functions do not work. another advantage of Atlas.ti 8 is you can export your work and import it in NVIVO. https://atlasti.com/product/v8-windows/
Thank you Salah Ahmed for Sharing your experience with me. Actually I haven't yet chosen a software, I am still coding manually. The above answers would certainly help me to choose.
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