COMPUTER APPLICATIONS IN SOCIOLOGYmany numeric data files, and the use of gateways
between the Web and third-party software such as
statistical packages. It will take considerable re-
search and development to sort out the feasibility
of providing many different analytical facilities in
the Web environment. A major challenge is deter-
mining the amount and type of data documenta-
tion necessary for typical users to get meaningful
results in a reasonable amount of time. A consider-
able challenge is created when a variety of types of
materials are necessary for retrieving useful data-
related information. The main types are text, graph-
ics, meta databases (data about databases), fielded
text/data (such as bibliographic databases), and
multimedia (audio and video) clips.
Qualitative Computing. Computer-based con-
tent analysis began with Stone (1966) and associ-
ates, and now plays an important role in the social
sciences (Weber 1984; Kelle 1995). A survey of 110
qualitative-oriented researchers found three-fourths
regularly used computers (Brent, Scott, and Spencer
1987). Ragin and Becker (1989, p. 54) persuasively
claimed that qualitative research using these com-
puting tools yields more systematic attention to
diversity, for example, by encouraging a ‘‘more
thorough examination of comparative contrasts
among cases.’’
This type of computing became much more
common as researchers combined content analy-
sis with other tasks associated with qualitative
analysis. Several general-purpose programs for
qualitative analysis have been widely distributed
(Tesch 1989; Fielding and Lee 1991). These tools
make the analysis of large amounts of text more
accurate and efficient, and potentially direct the
focus of attention to analytic procedures. The
general tasks of text entry, code assignment, count-
ing, and data organization have been extended to
include special routines for improving the quality
of coding and code management (Carley 1988).
Hesse-Biber, Dupuis, and Kinder (1997) technical-
ly extended this methodology to include the man-
agement and analysis of audio and video segments
as well as text.
Simulating and Modeling. Early in the history
of sociological computing, Coleman (1962) and
McPhee and Glaser (1962) designed computer
simulation models and showed how they could be
used to identify elusive implications of different
theoretical assumptions. Other social scientists
followed in their footsteps but the excitement of
the pioneers was lost and few simulations and
formal computer models were developed in the
1970s. With the emergence of artificial intelli-
gence and other modeling methodologies, social
researchers demonstrated renewed interest in for-
mal computer-supported models of social process-
es (cf. Feinberg and Johnson 1995; Hanneman
1988; Markovsky, Lovaglia, and Thye 1997). New
computer simulations for social policy analysis as
well as pedagogy or instruction have emerged as
well (Brent and Anderson 1990, pp. 188–210).Neural networks combined with other tech-
niques of artificial intelligence and expert systems
have excited a number of social scientists (Garson
1990). Neural nets organize computer memory in
ways that model human brain cells and their ability
to process many things in parallel. Systems that
use neural nets are especially good when pattern
matching is required, however, the computations
require high-performance computers.Computer-Assisted Data Collection. CATI
(Computer-Assisted Telephone Interviewing) is a
computing system with online questionnaires or
entry screens for telephone interviewers. It has
become very common in sociological research,
although its impact is not fully understood (Groves
et al. 1988). It is used on free-standing PCs,
networked PCs, or larger computers. These sys-
tems generally, but not always, have the following
characteristics: centralized facilities for monitor-
ing individual interviewer stations, instantaneous
edit-checks with feedback for invalid responses,
and automatic branching to different questions
depending upon the respondents’ answers. Other
major forms of computer-supported data collec-
tion include (1) CAPI (Computer-Assisted Person-
al Interviewing), the acronym used in survey re-
search to refer to face-to-face interviewing assisted
with a laptop or hand-held computing device; (2)
Computerized Self-Administered Questionnaires
(CSAQ), online programs designed for direct in-
put from respondents; and (3) data-entry pro-
grams to facilitate the entry of data collected manu-
ally at a prior time.A related innovation is software built for de-
signing online questionnaires. For example, the
Questionnaire Programming Language (QPL), de-
veloped by Dooley (1989), allows the researcher to