Abdul Hafidz Haji Omar
Faculty of Education
Zubaidah Awang
Faculty  of Management and Human Resource Development
Universiti Teknologi Malaysia
Skudai, Johor

Date: 26 October 2001
Time: 11.00-11.30
 

Software packages were first used in qualitative data analysis in the early 1980s (Kelle, 1995).  The introduction of software packages such as NUD*IST, Nvivo, ATLAS, Ethnograph, etc provide a more  'convenient' form of data anlaysis compared to the more laborious task of data analysis associated with the traditional methods.  However, the earlier versions of these packages were not able to meet the users' needs. Kelle (1997) argues that most of these packages acted as tools to mechanize tasks such as ordering and archiving texts rather than as tools for data analysis.  As such users had a tendency to cease the use of specific software rather that adopt it when analyzing data (Lee & Fielding, 1996).  In addition, the need for special training, the cost and the  "non-user friendly' nature of the software packages also impeded many qualitative researchers from using these packages.  The recent versions of these software packages, however, have more advanced and complex features that facilitate the analysis of complex qualitative data in terms of their advanced and more convenient storage and retrieving system.  At the same time, it also acts as a tool for theory building in qualitative research.