Qualitative data analysis packages – Towards an informed choice

Qualitative data analysis (QDA) is by its nature a cumbersome process. In this article we discuss a limited set of conditions and criteria that may alert potential users to issues concerning the use of many QDA software packages, and help users to choose a software package that suits their needs. Central to the discussion are coding processes and data preparation. We will also touch on the application of software to different types of data, and refer to some of the different tools and analytic dimensions found in the packages that we cite.