The effects of software development on qualitative analysis. The intersecting history of CAQDAS and Cassandre
Initially, Qualitative Data Analysis Software (CAQDAS) was designed to support the grounded theory method, from a qualitative, bottom-up (inductive or abductive) and iterative perspective. The market prompted software publishers to integrate quantitative (counting) and top-down (deductive) functionalities from content analysis, such as codebooks and intercoder fidelity. These integrations have made the software versatile, but their ergonomics have become ambiguous, even paradoxical. Today, the addition of artificial intelligence functionalities makes initially silent software talkative. The automation of these functions encourages superficial analysis of large bodies of data, whereas qualitative research advocates in-depth analysis of relevant, circumscribed material. In contrast to versatility, Cassandre is a dedicated software tool, supporting a bottom-up, exclusively qualitative, diary-centered (rather than data-centered) and iterative (rather than sequential and linear) approach. The intersecting history of CAQDAS and Cassandre reveals the (sometimes unforeseen) effects of these software developments on analytical practices.