Content Analysis

Question 1

What are the steps to carrying out a content analysis?

Answer 1

-Define the research question, and the sample
-Pilot study (Familiarise with material)
-Identify coding units (categories) - operationalise
-Tally for each category
-Compare results with other researchers to ensure reliability

Question 2

What are the strengths and limits of a content analysis?

Answer 2

-ve Researcher bias: Coding categories may be subjective, reducing reliability.
-ve Time‑consuming: Creating coding systems and analysing large amounts of data can take a long time.
+ve - High ecological validity: It studies real, naturally occurring material (e.g., TV, social media, interviews), so findings reflect real behaviour.

Question 3

What is meant by a content analysis?

Answer 3

Content analysis is a systematic way of analysing qualitative material by coding it into categories so it can be interpreted or turned into quantitative data.