I switched to ATLAS.ti from a product of the competition because a very pragmatic reason: I found it very easy to learn. Since then (1999) I have used it in several research projects and have taught it to audiences in several countries. Based on this experience I can say that ATLAS.ti provides the flexibility necessary when the user is not committed to a particular methodological approach (such as grounded theory), but at the same time it provides the tools to be consistent and rigorous if the user wants to follow a grounded theory (or type of) approach.
This is specially welcomed by users who are transiting from quantitative and hypothesis-driven research to the "new" field of qualitative research and, as a result, are still coping with the tentation of pre-defining books of codes.
In addition to this methodological commentary, I would like to add that students find it easy to learn because the system is very logically organized, it is integrated (all tools are in the same screen, no need to learn complicated routes), and it can triangulate data from different types of sources of information.
Students can rapidly find the usefulness of the software and can quickly make sense of their data even by using some of the basic tools of ATLAS.ti (no need to use the more complicated tools in order to complete an analysis project adequately).
Finally, I would add that students and current users enjoy the software's advanced capacity for team research, the possibility of publishing the state of the project in the Internet, and the seamless integration of interpretation into the description of data (through memos).
Raymond C. Maietta, Ph.D., President ResearchTalk Inc.
ResearchTalk consultants have worked with users of qualitative software for over ten years. At a recent conference we were asked a question no one had ever asked us: "Can you summarize the benefit of ATLAS.ti in one word." I was surprised at how easy it was to answer--Versatility." ATLAS.ti is designed to accommodate quick turn-around projects and/or deeper, more abstract explorations of data. Most qualitative software can make this claim. However, presently ATLAS.ti is uniquely positioned for this type of versatility. In large part this strength derives from the power of the quotation. ATLAS.ti is the only program that currently treats text segments marked by users, and/or coded, as computer objects. As a result they can be named, adjusted, written about and included in network diagrams. We look forward to ten more years of witnessing clever ways users take advantage of the powerful options available from this elegant, yet simple, feature of ATLAS.ti. Oh, there are also a couple of other features people do clever things with too!
Nicholas Woolf, Woolf Consulting, Santa Barbara
ATLAS.ti never pushes you to take one analytic path over another, so every project turns out quite differently, which is just as it should be. I love how you stay so close to the data at every little analytic step, and how you can work and analyze directly from the visual networks - which is the only tool I have ever found to actually speed up qualitative analysis.
If the analytic strategy calls for it, you can build up conceptual frameworks and reconnect data at the same time as you are breaking it down through coding. And for other types of projects you don't have to do this, you can work direct from straightforward code lists. It is so flexible and powerful at the same time as being unintrusive, I really think it offers the best of all worlds.
Mary P. Martinasek, Research Associate, Florida Prevention Research Center, University of South Florida
Thank you soooo much. I really appreciate your prompt assistance. Yet another reason why I like using ATLAS.ti!
Paul Humphreys, Founder & Managing Director, Oxford Continuity Group
We like this software. We use it. It helps us to think about what we do. We are delighted to recommend ATLAS.ti to our clients.
Hiroki Fukahori MS, RN, Mie Prefectural College of Nursing
As a nursing researcher, I recommend ATLAS.ti as a powerful tool to support qualitative data analysis. My colleagues and I have conducted nursing research using Grounded Theory. ATLAS.ti, with its broad functionality, can be used for many research purposes by researchers from a wide variety of theoretical backgrounds.
Ani Munirah Mohamad, Young Lecturer / PhD Researcher, Law Faculty, Malaysia
My research involves a lot of qualitative data analysis, and I have been
doing it manually all this time. After being introduced to several software packages, I chose ATLAS.ti over all the others, mainly because it is straightforward and easy to use, and even a novice user can master it within a few days and get impressive results.
Now my research activities have entered a whole new paradigm, thanks to ATLAS.ti. I am happy to recommend this software to all fellow researchers.
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