CHAPTER 1 Why MAXQDA?
CHAPTER 2 MAXQDA INTERFACE
CHAPTER 3 Importing Data
CHAPTER 4 Transcription of Interview Files
CHAPTER 5 Viewing and Editing Data
CHAPTER 6 Codes and Code Systems
CHAPTER 7 Coding
CHAPTER 8 Note-taking
CHAPTER 9 Extracting Coding Phrases
CHAPTER 10 VISUALIZATION (DATA AND ANALYSIS)
CHAPTER 11 Paraphrasing, Summary, and Case Outline
CHAPTER 12 Adding Variables and Quantitatively Converting Code to Data
CHAPTER 13 Mixed Methods Data Analysis
CHAPTER 14 MAXMaps: Infographics and Concept Maps
CHAPTER 15 Team Project Collaboration
CHAPTER 16 RESULTS REPORTING AND DOCUMENTATION
CHAPTER 17 (Supplementary) Guide to Grounded Theory Analysis Using MAXQDA

Qualitative research is a difficult and lengthy process.
That is why qualitative research is known to be difficult for many researchers.
Before I began my qualitative research in earnest, I considered coding the interview transcripts I had printed on paper.
I printed out an actual sheet of A4 paper and tried coding using underlines, guidelines, parentheses, angle brackets, highlighters, post-its, etc.
The thought of doing this process hundreds of times made me feel like it was a pre-modern method.
Even though I was a diligent researcher who could record hundreds of pages of coded data in Excel or Hangul tables, and even if I could organize or reclassify them into concepts and categories, it wasn't a wise approach.
I felt like I was skipping over the rigorous process of focusing on categories that I had to root and start from without realizing it, somewhere in the middle.
And I believed.
In the 21st century, when the 4th Industrial Revolution is being heralded, there will be software that allows you to code, take notes, and do analysis work on a computer.
After searching various literature and information, I found dozens of software programs around the world.
Among them, we discovered about 10 types and 3 famous software.
At the time, all three software versions were available for 14-day trial use.
While the other two software programs each had their strengths, it was MAXQDA that really captured my heart as a Korean researcher. MAXQDA boasted the easiest interface, a beautiful design, excellent Korean processing, a built-in transcription function, and a convenient visualization tool. I couldn't help but be amazed.
I was able to use this amazing program for less than the price of a professional transcription program or dedicated pedal. Discovering MAXQDA transformed arduous qualitative research into a fun and exciting journey.
With a little bit of software knowledge, you can make tedious and time-consuming qualitative research enjoyable.
It can be more faithful to the original data and can also significantly shorten the period.
I am confident that the use of MAXQDA will be a great help not only to domestic qualitative researchers but also to practitioners such as social workers and marketers.
Globally, qualitative research is making a comeback in nearly every social science discipline.
A 21st-century renaissance of qualitative research is unfolding.
As one researcher put it, “If context is king, qual is queen.” Appleton, E.
(2016).
The Silent Rise and Blossoming of Qualitative Research.
Research World, 2016(61), 54-54.
He applauds the rise of qualitative research.
In fact, we were all qualitative researchers.
As children make friends through social activities, they make friends who connect with them through qualitative research.
When you meet a friend with a strong personality, the common saying, "That friend is a research subject," is all a hint at qualitative research.
Despite the credibility of numerical science, the rise of qualitative research is essential in complex societies like the 21st century.
In qualitative research, using software is like putting down the brush and paper and using a computer.
If quantitative research is visible science, qualitative research is invisible insight.
MAXQDA will be a powerful tool and friend, complementing quantitative research, overcoming its limitations, and exploring complex social phenomena.
MAXQDA will serve as a reliable research assistant to promote and popularize qualitative research.
In my field of study, psychology, I am reminded of Sigmund Freud, William James, Abraham Maslow, Lawrence Kohlberg, and Gordon Allport, who historically established the tradition of qualitative research.
I look forward to seeing the active development of qualitative research among social science researchers, corporate marketers, public sector policymakers, and those in social welfare, education, and nursing settings.
This book consists of 17 chapters. As the first book published in Korea, considering the extensive functionality MAXQDA offers in qualitative and mixed-methods research, we considered its length and difficulty level.
Chapter 1 is the introduction. It introduces the qualitative research methods and functions available using MAXQDA.
Chapters 2 through 9 cover the basic functions of MAXQDA.
You will learn how to extract and report data, code, and category systems, notes, analysis, and coding passages.
In fact, the most frequently used features by many researchers in over 150 countries are Chapter 2: Interface, Chapter 3: Importing Data, Chapter 4: Transcription of Interview Files, Chapter 5: Viewing and Editing Data, Chapter 6: Code and Code System, Chapter 7: Coding, and Chapter 8: Note-taking.
Chapters 10 through 16 are more applied usage functions.
The visualization features in Chapter 10 and the infographic features in Chapter 14, MAXMaps, are powerful features of MAXQDA, but they are still somewhat difficult to use and are not yet fully utilized.
We strongly recommend its use in the future.
For researchers and readers alike, this book is for you! Chapter 11's paraphrasing, summary, and case overview features allow for a variety of comparisons.
Chapter 12, "Adding Variables and Quantitatively Converting Code to Data," and Chapter 14, "Mixed Methods Data Analysis," will serve as easy-to-follow guides to the recently popular mixed-methods research method.
Chapter 15 Team Project Collaboration can also be used for team research or team research between advisors and graduate students.
Chapter 16, Reporting and Documenting Results, guides you through presenting your research using MAXQDA in a report or paper.
The final 17 chapters are supplementary. They are a guide to grounded theory analysis using MAXQDA. Since these ideas are derived from decades of development, operation, and updating of MAXQDA, I've copied the content from the website almost verbatim.
This will serve as a good guide for readers to easily access grounded theory.
While studying qualitative research methods, particularly grounded theory, I encountered MAXQDA, which opened my eyes to a new perspective on qualitative research. Using MAXQDA, I gained a deeper understanding of qualitative research and ultimately completed my doctoral dissertation.
Since January 2020, I have been a Professional MAXQDA Trainer (the only one in Korea as of August 2021) and have been promoting qualitative research and MAXQDA.
Because I believe that there is no better friend than MAXQDA for understanding and conducting qualitative research.
I thought that the reason why it is not used much in Korea despite being a powerful and user-friendly program is because there are no Korean books available.
I was encouraged to write a book after attending workshops at the Korean Society for Psychometrics and Evaluation, consulting with public institutions related to counseling, doctoral students and professors at K University's College of Nursing, professors at J University's College of Nursing, and doctoral students completing their doctoral studies.
Their encouragement is the direct reason why this book came into being.
I have three teachers in my studies and research.
I would like to express my gratitude to Professor Koh Young-geon of the Department of Psychology at Korea University, who shed light on psychology and positive psychology during my master's course; Professor Tak Jin-guk of the Department of Industrial Psychology at Kwangwoon University, who permitted me to conduct qualitative research during my doctoral research and guided me with patience and consideration; and Professor Do Seung-i of Sungkyunkwan University, who helped me with even the most detailed considerations regarding qualitative research.
I would also like to thank the young masters who became the first participants in my qualitative research, including Choi Hye-jin, the noodle master; Lee Jeong-wook, Kim Young-jun, and Lee Seung-hoon, the paper airplane masters; Choi Jae-hyeop, the dumpling master; Han Areum, the sneaker cleaning master; and Bae Jeong-jun, the towel research master.

August 2021,
At the foot of Mt. Bukhan
Seo Hyung-jun