An Application of Qualitative Geographic Information Systems (GIS) in the Field of Urban Sociology Using ATLAS.ti: Uses and Reflections

Abstract

Geographic information systems (GIS) have been used for many years to integrate social and territorial information in quantitative research, but only recently have they been used in qualitative research. Recent advances have allowed qualitative GIS to be incorporated in the latest versions of computer-aided qualitative data analysis software. This article describes how qualitative GIS integrated in ATLAS.ti were used to perform a recent study of the social production of urban space. It considers the role played by geocoding and georeferencing in this study, and the implications of using qualitative GIS in urban sociology and in sociological research in general. URN: http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:0114-fqs1202144

Keywords

• urban space
• multi-method design
• geographic information systems (GIS)
• geocoding
• georeferencing
• ATLAS.ti