Week 7 - Content Analysis Flashcards
Unobtrusive Methods
Definition: Ways of amassing data without interacting with participants.
Content Types:
Manifest Content: Easily observed and evident content.
Latent Content: Uncovering implicit, deeper meanings.
Analyzing Pre-Existing Documents
Individuals and groups represent themselves through documents they produce.
Statistical Records
Consultation: Utilize pre-existing records.
Repurposing: Reintegration of statistics to reinforce findings or theories.
Design Analysis: Analyze the design of forms collecting statistical data.
Example: Canadian census emphasizes multiculturalism; does not use “race.”
Maps
Translation of Reality: Maps interpret and translate geographical realities.
Interpretation: No hills on a map indicates it’s designed for car use; authority invoked by map design.
Letters and Autobiographies
Insights: Provide insights into individuals’ lived experiences.
Study of Notes: Analyze themes in teen suicide notes and diaries.
Examples: Breakdown of family structures; identity foreclosure after loss.
Professional Publications
Trend Analysis: Examine ongoing discussions in publications to track changing social trends.
Example: Psychology textbooks depict sexual problems as biomedical issues
Analyzing Documents of Social Institutions
Institutional Ethnography: Importance of social institutional factors in daily experiences.
Standardized Practices: Texts and documents sustain practices and ruling relationships.
Examples: Misrepresentation of nursing work; bureaucratic forms affect patient care.
News Media
Societal Understanding: Shapes public perception through framing.
Fear Framing: Media often depicts issues in a way that promotes fear.
Omission: What is omitted and the framing of discussions matter.
Advertisements
Commonplace: Advertisements are familiar yet often overlooked.
Content Analysis: Analyze bizarre and exaggerated portrayals of gender.
Women: Often depicted as weaker and objectified.
Men: Presented as strong, dominant figures.
Fiction
Reflection of Reality: Addresses cultural themes and societal experiences.
Theme Analysis: Analyze themes, images, and metaphors in literature.
Rite of Passage: Separation, transition (liminality), incorporation into a new role.
Television
Content Blending: Blends fictional and non-fictional content.
Ethnographic Content Analysis: Analyzing underlying meanings in TV shows.
Physical Objects
Behavior Insights: Insights into community behaviors and preferences.
Litter Analysis: Popularity of items indicated by litter.
Location Context: Found objects hint at activities in specific areas.
Visual Sociology
Images as Data: Understanding social phenomena through images.
Cultural Studies: Analyze media images to identify social ideals and shifting attitudes.
Mundane Technology: Everyday overlooked technologies with complex meanings.
Internet Research
Blogs: Publicly available, low-cost, immediate access to data.
Authenticity: Anonymity allows for candid expression.
Social Media: Data on public discourse and societal trends; can portray people in specific ways.
