22. RM Qual Thematic Analysis

Question 1

What is content analysis?

Answer 1

-Content analysis is a research tool used to indirectly observe the presence of certain words, images of concepts within the media (eg advertisements, books, films etc).
-For example, content analysis could be used to study sex-role stereotyping in advertising.
-Content analysis is usually carried out on secondary data.

Question 2

Define secondary data.

Answer 2

-Secondary data is information that someone else has collected e.g. the work of other psychologists that has been published in journals or government statistics.
-They are sometimes used by other
researchers, as they are often cheaper and more convenient than gathering one’s own primary data.
-Unobtrusive research, does not collect data directly from people.

Question 3

Define coding.

Answer 3

In the social sciences, coding is an analytical process in which data, in both quantitative form (such as questionnaires results) or qualitative form (such as interview transcripts) are categorised to facilitate analysis.

Question 4

What are the 4 stages which content analysis is conducted through?

Answer 4

1. Sampling method
2. Coding the data
3. Method of representing data
4. Data is analysed and comparisons made

Question 4

Describe the sampling method.

Answer 4

Event or time sampling?

-If it’s a book, will every page be read, or everyday 5th page (time sampling).
-If comparing content of several books, what kind are selected?
-If analysing TV ads does the research sample behaviours every 30s or whenever certain behaviour occurs?

Question 5

Describe coding the data.

Answer 5

-A hypothesis is generated about a topic that is to be studied using video, text, etc.
-From the hypothesis, the research uses pre-agreed categories (coding frames), eg how men and women and depicted: are words used to describe positive or negative? What is the person doing: eating, drinking, standing, sitting etc?

Question 6

Describe the method of representing data.

Answer 6

-Data can be recorded in each behavioural category in different ways, either quantitatively or qualitatively.
-Data can also be represented as a count of instances (quantitative), or description of examples (eg excerpts from a text or descriptions of behaviour or speech).

Question 7

Describe how data is analysed and comparisons made.

Answer 7

-If the data was quantitative, descriptive statistics, eg measures of central tendency, tables and graphs.
-Inferential statistics can be used to establish if significant correlations or differences are found.

Question 8

Summarise strengths of content analysis?

Answer 8

-It is a reliable way to analyse qualitative data due to coding.
-High external validity.
-Less time consuming.
-Low cost.
-It allows a statistical analysis to be conducted to test for significance.
-Unobtrusive and has fewer ethical issues than most of other forms of research.

Question 9

Summarise limitations of content analysis?

Answer 9

-Causality (relationships/associations) cannot be established as it merely describes the data.
-As it only describes the data it cannot extract any deeper meaning or explanation for the data patterns arising.
-Subjectivity (researcher bias).

Question 10

Evaluate the strengths of content analysis.

Answer 10

-Useful in identifying trends (Cumberbatch and Gauntlett, 2005).
-Reliable because of predetermined sets of categories.
-The data is usually high in external validity, eg text conversations, newspaper articles used in real life.
-Ethics are no issue as data is secondary, as TV ads, films, personal ads in the newspaper or internet may already be within the public domain. Therefore there is no need to get permission or consent.
-Maintains richness of data when qualitative data is gathered which may reveal unexpected insights.

Question 11

Evaluate the limitations of content analysis.

Answer 11

-Researcher bias: the main problem with any form of content analysis is that it can be interpreted differently by different researchers.
-Less valid because you cannot determine reasons behind the behaviour (Cumberbatch and Gauntlett, 2005).
-Taking the original data ‘out of context’ may lead to it being misinterpreted.
-The only way to control for this is through the use of an external party who analyse, interpret and justify every decision they make during the process. Alternatively, several researchers can work together at each step.
-However, content analysis may still suffer from lack of objectivity due to researcher/observer bias.

Question 12

Define thematic analysis.

Answer 12

-As the name suggests thematic analysis looks for emergent themes in data, codes them and then interprets their meaning.
-Braun and Clarke (2006) define thematic analysis as a method for identifying, analysing and reporting patterns within data.
-Often qualitative data is gained via this method.

Question 13

What are the advantages of thematic analysis?

Answer 13

-It is simple to do for less experienced researchers.
-Thematic analysis allows for rich, detailed and complex description of your data.
-Thematic analysis has clearly defined steps. Following these steps ensures clarity and rigour in your process.

Question 14

What are the 6 steps of thematic analysis?

Answer 14

1. Familiarising yourself with your data.
2. Generating initial codes.
3. Searching for themes.
4. Reviewing themes.
5. Defining and naming themes.
6. Producing the report.

Question 15

What is a strength of thematic analysis?

Answer 15

-Maintains richness is data
-Enables qualitative data to be summarised and analysed in a manageable way.
-Allows insights that are not anticipated by the researcher.
-Flexible way of analysing qualitative data.

Question 16

What is a weakness of thematic analysis?

Answer 16

-Subjectivity: researchers use their judgement to find codes and themes, not pre-determined codes driven by the hypothesis or theory.
-Biased: may be selective in what is/is not reported as researchers may have unconscious bias.