content analysis Flashcards
define content analysis
type of observation research that examines communication
give 5 forms of communications
- texts
- emails
- media
- tv
- film
- social media
what is the aim of content analysis
to summarise and describe communication in a systematic way so conclusions can be formed
define coding
analysis of data involving the identification of each instance of chosen categories
what type of data does coding produce
quantitative data
why is coding used
involves large amounts of data e.g: interview transcripts that need to be analysed
categories can be words, phrases, sentences
using categories helps break stuff down into measurable chunks
define thematic analysis (type of content analysis)
an inductive and qualitative approach to analysis involving identification of implicit or explicit ideas in the piece of data
what type of data does thematic analysis produce
qualitative
what is the main process of thematic analysis
identification
define theme
any idea explicit or implicit that is recurrent
they tend to be descriptive
and these themes may then be developed into broader categories
why may a researcher collect a new set of data
to test the validity of themes and categories
if new research can be explained what will the researcher include in the final report
quotes from the data to illustrate each theme
In an observational study, 100 cars were fitted with video cameras to record the driver’s behaviour. Two psychologists used content analysis to analyse the data from the films. They found that 75% of accidents involved a lack of attention by the driver. The most common distractions were using a hands-free phone or talking to a passenger. Other distractions included looking at the scenery, smoking, eating, personal grooming and trying to reach something within the car.
(b) Explain how the psychologists might have carried out content analysis to analyse the film clips of driver behaviour
(4 marks)
- The psychologist could have begun by watching some of the film clips of driver behaviour.
- This would enable the psychologist to identify potential categories which emerged from the data of the different types of distractions seen in the film.
- Such categories / themes might include: passenger distractions, gadget distractions, etc.
- The psychologists would then have watched the films again and counted the number of examples which fell into each category to provide quantitative data.
A researcher used content analysis to investigate how the behaviour of young children changed when they started day care.
He identified a group of nine-month-old children who were about to start day care.
He asked the mother of each child to keep a diary recording her child’s behaviour every day for two weeks before and for two weeks after the child started day care.
(a) Explain how the researcher could have used content analysis to analyse what the mothers had written in their diaries.
(4 marks)
Content analysis is a way of analysing data such as text using coding units such as themes.
In this case mothers were asked to write down how their child behaved, so students might suggest.
Create a checklist / categories
Relevant example(s) of behaviours eg aggression, crying
Read through the diaries / mothers’ writing / reports
Counting behaviours or tallying
Compare before and after day care
evaluate the use of content analysis
+ tends to lack ethical issues as consent has already been given resulting in high levels of external validity
+ produces quantitative and qualitative data
- information is being analysed outside of the context it was used. Researcher may therefore attribute opinions and motivation that wasn’t there so it lacks objectivity
(most researchers tend to acknowledge this)
