Qualitative Data Analysis with RQDA

Qualitative research suffers from the “no accepted boilerplate” problem, which has hampered the progress and broader acceptance of the qualitative research enterprise. This book introduces and demonstrates RQDA, an open-source computer-assisted qualitative data analysis (CAQDAS)-based R extension that increases the transparency and trustworthiness of qualitative research.
This book aims to highlight the rise of the Strauss-Corbin-Gioia (SCG) methodology as an important paradigm in qualitative research in the social sciences, and demonstrates how the SCG methodology can be operationalized and enhanced using RQDA. It provides a technical and methodological review of RQDA as a new CAQDAS tool. It uses samples of textual data and demonstrates the development of a data structure and grounded process model using the RQDA-based SCG methodology. Various techniques will be covered, including a general overview of R programming language, the installation of R, RStudio and RQDA; data preparation, data coding techniques, data attributes and memo-ing in RQDA; code abstraction and code plotting in RQDA and grounded theory development as the final output in qualitative research.
Unlike other CAQDAS books which merely focuses on the technical aspects of CAQDAS (NVivo by Pat Bazeley; ATLAS.ti by Susanne Friese) or general qualitative research books that do not offer any tools or techniques on how to use the tools to operationalize qualitative research, this book offers a methodological guidance on how to connect CAQDAS tool with accepted paradigms in qualitative research particularly the SCG methodology to produce high quality qualitative research. The book offers a step-by-step instruction on using RQDA under the well-accepted SCR qualitative research paradigm. It provides a complete treatment on the methodological issues in qualitative research such as asking the right question, collecting qualitative data, analyzing and presenting the results in the ways that are appealing to journal editors/reviewers, as well as other stakeholders and publication outlets.
This will be the first book that discusses and applies an open source (i.e., free) CAQDAS tool called RQDA for qualitative research in the social sciences; as an alternative to the proprietary tools such as NVivo and ATLAS.ti. This book is timely especially in the era of budget cutting in universities, corporations, and non-profit organizations.
This book will help qualitative scholars, quantitative scholars who are familiar with programming languages to “cross over” to analyzing qualitative data, as well as PhD/post-doctoral students and coursework students taking qualitative methodology courses in the broader social sciences.