Moreover, in an accounting context, a critical literature has emerged which attempts to elucidate the messy and problematic nature of qualitative data analysis (Ahrens & Chapman, 2006 Lee & Humphrey, 2006 Modell & Humphrey, 2008 O’Dwyer, 2004 Parker, 2003). While earlier literature focuses on the manual approach to qualitative data analysis (Bogdan & Bilken, 1982 Lofland, 1971), more recent literature provides support in the application of a range of technological approaches (alternatively referred to as Computer Assisted Qualitative Data Analysis Software or CAQDAS): e.g., Excel (Meyer & Avery, 2009) NVivo (Jackson & Bazeley, 2019) and ATLAS.ti (Friese, 2019). Reflecting this, a substantial literature has developed to guide the researcher through the process of qualitative data analysis (e.g.
Qualitative data analysis has a long history in the social sciences.
