COMPUTERS, ANALYSIS, AND TRADITIONS
Overall, authors overlook the specific application of computer programs in analysis for traditions of inquiry except for a short discussion by Lonkila(1995) about programs and grounded theory and the suggestion that some programs are best suited for one approach than another(e.g., the program Ethnography was designed for ethnographic studies; NUD IST, a theory-generation program, was designed for grounded theory). The link between computer programs to analyze text and traditions of inquiry needs to be established. It is especially important because not all qualitative researchers see such programs as relevant to their needs. feel, however, that computer programs help in the analysis of qualitative data, especially in understanding a large(e.g.,500 or more pages text database. For those studies employing especially large databases, such as ethnographies with extensive fieldnotes and interviews, grounded theory studies comprised of 20-30 extensive interviews, or case studies with multiple types of information, computer programs provide an invaluable aid in research. Following are some of these advantages: