"Hitler said that categories were the greatest tool a leader can use to control people and set them against each other"

I have recently added a new and promising tool to my research apprenticeship- NVivo! And for anyone that has trouble pronouncing it like me, I have been assured it is said ‘en-vivo’. But to go into a bit more detail about the tool, it is qualitative data analysis computer software that is used to organize and examine unstructured data where deep level analysis is required.

Whilst it has extensive functionality -the ability to import a range of multi-media and rich text-based information-, I will be using it in quite a basic form for my qualitative project by importing my text based transcript into the program for coding. The process uses nodes to code and categorize the data, aiding in the overall analysis of themes when reporting on the findings. I will also be producing tag clouds and word trees in the software to help me identify key words and frequently discussed concepts, which will assist me in preparing my nodes.

Once the data has been categorized, I will explore the codes and test my research question. In doing so, I will have all the relevant content grouped together by themes, which will be synthesized and analyzed for reporting in the discussion of findings. However, it is important to remember that the discussion of findings should also use quotations and evidence from the data to justify results and add credibility to the study. This in turn will provide a more holistic picture when either proving or rejecting the predicted proposition.

On a whim of curiosity, I investigated other qualitative software packages on the market. And one that i quite like is Atlas.ti- It is highly usable, with most of the action occurring on the primary screen. Also, I like that it has a range of tools for searches and queries to identify text patterns. Plus, it has the capacity to work with a multitude of languages, including Chinese and Hebrew characters (it’s always good to know that should I choose to learn one of those languages that there will be research software to support me).

Another program that aids in the storage, organization and coding of content is XSite. It appears to be suitable for visual learners, such as myself, as it encourages the use of mind maps and tags to make order out of the chaos. It has the functionality to support this, as well as a range of other features that are intended to provide structure and support in the analysis to help the researcher build a meaningful story.

Nonetheless, all three products are all quite similar. They enable the researcher to associate codes or labels with chunks of text, sounds, pictures, and video; to search these codes for patters; and to construct classifications of codes that reflect testable models of the conceptual structure of the underlying data. Also, they have been developed based on Windows XP specifications, which aids in the users familiarity with the software Overall, I would say that they are highly flexible programs that can be readily applied to a range of qualitative research needs.

Though I must say that after all of this I am still attracted to NVivo. And having already had an introduction to the NVivo software i have decided that that’s where my loyalty will lie. So- It’s now time to get cracking and NVi-GO with NVivo! (For someone in marketing I seem to lack the creativity bone, as made evident with the poor attempt at a slogan).