Though much of the procedures involved in Q methodology can be accomplished using a variety of programs and tools, some special purpose programs offer extra features widely used by Q researchers.
Analysis
| Software | Description | Access |
|---|---|---|
| PQMethod | Maintained by Peter Schmolck, based on FORTRAN code by John Atkinson at Kent State University | Free software, available for Windows, Linux and (via DOS-emulator) for OS X |
| PCQ | Developed by Mike Stricklin | Proprietary software, available only for Windows |
| Qmethod R package | Package for the R software environment, created by Aiora Zabala with contributions by Maximilian Held | Free |
| KenQ Analysis | Web application for Q methodology, developed by Shawn Banasick | Free, runs in supported browsers (Firefox, Chrome, Edge) |
| KADE | Desktop version of KenQ Analysis | Free, available for Windows, Linux and macOS |
| Qfactor | Program in Stata that performs factor analysis based on different factor extraction methods and rotates factors based on almost all factor rotation techniques; for further information contact Noori Akhtar-Danesh | Free |
| Qconvert | Program in Stata that coverts a raw Q-sort data file into a new Q-sort data file which is ready for analysis by qfactor program; for further information contact Noori Akhtar-Danesh | Free |
| Q method software | User-friendly web application; also includes q sorting | Free with limited features, paid version allows to fully run a Q study |
Q-Sorting
| Software | Description | Access |
|---|---|---|
| HtmlQ | Developped by Aproxima, modern HTML5-port of FlashQ, backwards compatible | Open Source (MIT) |
| Flash Q | Developed by Christian Hackert, last updated in 2007 | Open Source (non-standard license) |
| Q-sort touch | Developped by Alessio Pruneddu; also includes Likert-Scale questions | Free, but Closed Source |
| Q-Assessor | Developped by Stan Kaufman / Epimetrics Group LLC; also includes analysis | Proprietary |
| Q method software | User-friendly web application; also includes analysis | Free with limited features, paid version allows to fully run a Q study |
You may also check other Q studies that have been conducted online.
Pen & Paper
Consider doing a traditional Q design involving sorting of paper / magnetic cards on a paper / magnetic board.
Q-Assessor
I think QMethod Software should be added to the list => http://qmethodsoftware.com/
Oh my days, this is exactly what I’ve been looking for.
Oh, Q Methodology Guru, please help!
I want to use Q methodology to carry out stakeholder perception research for my MA diss. I need the software to do the following:
limit how many cards can go in each part (e.g. 1 card each in 4 and -4, 2 cards each in 3 and -3, 3 cards each in 2 and -2, and 4 cards in 1, 0 and -1).
allow secure data storage (GDPR & ethics)
allow me to restrict who can access the tool so I don’t have random participants or, conversely, complicated log on procedures that put people off or require them to put personal info like emails
allow me to sort data by stakeholder type or to create multiple tools so each stakeholder group accesses a different one
With all this in mind… which would you say I should play around with?
Hi I am PhD student and a part of my thesis is related to Q methodology. Would you kindly comment if you have any idea of userfriendly Q software to collect data? I wonder using Q methodology software would be acceptable if I want to publish my findings
Does any of this software run on Mac Catalina?