USING COMPUTERS TO ANALYZE ETHNOGRAPHIC FIELD DATA - THEORETICAL AND PRACTICAL CONSIDERATIONS

Computer-assisted data analysis is usually associated with the analysi s of aggregate data according to the tenets of logical positivism. But there are more than twenty computer programs designed to assist resea rchers analyzing ethnographic data, and these programs may be used by researchers with a variety of epistemological orientations. Some compu ter-assisted qualitative data analysis (CAQDA) programs automate analy sis procedures that have been used by generations of ethnographers. Ot hers open up new directions through the use of linked coding schemes, hypertext, and case-based hypothesis testing. Ethnographers interested in computer assistance must acquaint themselves with the variety of c apabilities and programs available because no one program dominates th e CAQDA field. In this article, we provide an overview of the theoreti cal and practical considerations bearing on the choice of CAQDA softwa re.