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I did a study on qualitative researchers who transitioned from manual methods to Nud*Ist, and all of the participants did go through a stage I called the "coding trap" that parallels what you describe. I see this as a function of "too much closeness" to the data. Historically, qualitative researchers have valued closeness -- in part b/c it was hard to achieve. With the new program supporting closeness at a whole different level, we now have to *consciously* balance it against the analytical distance we need for synthesis. The metaphor I use is painting... if you watch a class of painters, they work close to see detail, stand back to see pattern. But in a beginning class, the instructor will almost have to peel the student away from their paintings to force them to stand back and LOOK, because they get so caught up in the detail of the work. More experienced painters know that the looking time is as important as the painting time. Just so, I think qualitative researchers need to work "in and out," balancing close and distant perspectives, and the use of software changes what used to be an natural balance to one that may need to be more consciously managed. Here are the strategies that the participants in my study used to mitigate the coding trap: * Simply recognizing that the software invited a level of coding that they didn't need, and resisting the "invitation"; * Alternating working on the computer with working on paper; * Reflecting on the index tree categories; * Writing memos; * Maintaining a focus on the research questions; * Coding systematically for specific research-related themes; * Using other software programs with different strengths and weaknesses; and * Using complementary manual methods. Hope that's useful! Cheers! Linda At 02:10 AM 7/26/2002 +0100, you wrote: >This brings up an interesting issue that I'm working through at the moment. > >I have a relatively large collection of data (not huge mind you... about >800 pages, >which is still a lot to code). I started out using NUD*IST and quickly >found myself >wanting to code *everything* because I could. That is, while coding I >would tag bits >of text for typical things that repeat often within the data. I started >doing this out of >the anxiety that I might miss something by not tagging every single line >in my documents. >After spending several days on just one document and mulling through >dozens of codes, >my anxiety changed to worry that I'd never complete the project! > >To resolve the issue (and keep moving forward on completing the project), >I stopped >using NUD*IST temporarily for coding, and started doing everything on >paper the >old-fashioned way. I'm still using NUD*IST to search and retrieve >pertinent subsets >for coding in this fashion, and I'm using the system's text unit >addressing system >to reference units.... but I have yet to enter these codes back into the >software program. > >My question... Is this a typical struggle for new users of Qualitative >software packages? > >Yes I know that there are many different approaches to qualitative >research. My >approach in this project is focused on conceptual discovery, elaboration, >and the >development of theory. I may later be interested in comparing frequencies >of phenomena, >but not now. > >Since the software is so good at storing coding references, does anyone >else worry >about losing the forest for the trees? Perhaps someone has some >recommendations >for maximizing the power of QDA software while still staying focused on >the conceptual >development. [In re-reading this, it seems like a naive question, but I'm >going to ask it >anyway. Please feel free to respond on or off list... experiences and >strategies with >different systems are welcome.] > >Thanks in advance, > >/Corey > > > >----------------------------------------------------------------------- >Corey J. Colyer >Research Associate >The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Data Archive >ICPSR - The University of Michigan > >(734) 615-9526 [phone] >(734) 998-9259 [fax] >(888) 741-7242 [toll-free helpline] > >http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/SAMHDA >[log in to unmask] Linda Gilbert, Ph.D G12-B Aderhold Hall University of Georgia Athens, Georgia 30602 Tel: 706-583-0880 Email: [log in to unmask]