NVivo: Qualitative Data Analysis
NVivo is a PC based application which can help you to manage your analysis of qualitative data.
The core principle of this sort of software is to select passages of text, sections of audio or video files and/or areas in image files and then apply conceptual labels called 'codes' to the selection - this is known as 'coding'. You do this to a number of different files (perhaps a series of interviews). Then you can retrieve everything labelled with a certain code and analyse them together. You can retrieve based on combinations of codes too. This way of working is known as code and retrieve.
Further information is available at the manufacturer's website.
Site Licence
The College has a site licence for NVivo. This means that we can install it on any computer on campus (the open access PCs in the Rutherford Building and departmental PCs). Further, all current staff and student members of the College are entitled to a copy of the software to use on their home PC for no charge.
Each summer we update the version on the open access PCs to the latest available. There are not usually huge changes from year to year, but usually the latest version runs more stably. We are currently (September 2010) running version 8.0.335.0.
There is no Mac version, but it can be installed on an 'Intel' Mac with Windows installed.
Support and Training
Support and training on NVivo is provided within academic departments and the Graduate School. Please do not expect the Help Desk to be able to support you with such specialist software: they have not been trained to support NVivo.
If you do have problems with installing the software only, please email helpdesk@gold.ac.uk.
Training
Courses are run periodically both introducing the software and exploring more advanced features. If you can't wait for a course or have mislaid your documentation, please have a look at the online tutorials to orient yourself. Please note that unless you've got experience of using other Qualitative Data Analysis software, you are unlikely to be able to train yourself to use NVivo successfully and so should plan to come at least to an introductory orientation.
Computer based tutorials
NVivo's help system contains some on screen animations which introduce you to the software workspace and show you how to get your NVivo project started. Tutorials play automatically once clicked. When the tutorial is running use the controls at the bottom of the screen to play, pause and stop. The tutorials are available online too.
Adobe Flash player is required to play the tutorials. You may well have this installed already, but, if not, download it for free from www.adobe.com
The tutorials reference data which is from the sample project. It is designed to illustrate the type of data you may need to manage in NVivo. It is installed by default when you install NVivo. To explore it further, access it from C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Shared Documents\NVivo 8 Samples
Documentation
There is comprehensive online help available in NVivo. You may also like to consult the Getting Started Guide - Introduction to NVivo. A copy of this pdf is put on your computer when you install NVivo.
There is also a course book which can help with Qualitative Data Analysis more generally:
There are training materials also available from the College library:
- Books are catalogued at a number of places so search for "NVivo" and you will find the widest number of works.
Please remember that this is PC software. You will not be able to install it on a Mac, unless you have PC emulation software installed on a powerful "Intel" Mac.