Deck 14: Content Analysis

Question 1

_____(a)_____ is the process of determining the unit of content underlying a coding system prior to the content analysis; _____(b)_____ allows for new coding categories to emerge empirically as the content is being coded.

A) inductive content analysis; deductive content analysis
B) deductive content analysis; inductive content analysis
C) text-based content analysis; thematic content analysis
D) thematic content analysis; text-based content analysis

Answer 1

B

Question 2

Content analysis, broadly defined, is the method of describing and exploring various qualitative "communications" in a systematic, objective, and quantitative way. "Communications" in this context can refer to: (circle all that apply; if "e," only circle "e")

A) the recorded minutes of a meeting
B) archived photographs
C) almanac entries
D) warning labels
E) all of these options can be content analyzed

Answer 2

E

Question 3

Which of the following examples would be considered "variables" in a content analysis? (circle all that apply)

A) the word "literally"
B) the suggestion that baby boomers reflect the "Greatest Generation"
C) the front page of a newspaper
D) whether a newspaper advertisement is in color or black and white

Answer 3

A,B,D

Question 4

When arriving at the final sample of content that will be analyzed (from a very large universe of content), which of the following types of sampling processes will a researcher most likely have used?

A) context sampling
B) source sampling
C) content sampling
D) A and B
E) B and C
E) all of the above

Question 5

Which of the following techniques are appropriate for hypothesis testing?

A) semi-structured interview
B) deductive content analysis
C) inductive content analysis
D) A and B
E) all of the above
F) none of the above

Question 6

Which of the following statements is TRUE of content analyses? (circle all that apply)

A) deductive content analysis is systematic enough to be used for hypothesis testing
B) it is rarely appropriate to conduct inference-based content analyses
C) the context unit in a text-based content analysis can be as little as two words
D) much like sampling considerations for some surveys, there is a law of diminishing returns with content analysis, wherein a sample of approximately 1,000-2,000 "source-units" is sufficient to approximate the population, regardless of the size of the universe of content

Question 7

While you are content-analyzing magazine advertisements, you notice an emerging theme that was not currently part of your coding scheme - so you add that content unit to your coding system. This example would reflect what type of content analysis?

A) deductive content analysis
B) inductive content analysis
C) contextual content analysis
D) inferential content analysis

Question 8

You are content-analyzing network television sit-coms for their use of product placement, and the types of product placements that are present. You notice that a recurring product in many sit-coms is cans of soda, particularly when sit-coms included a kitchen (with refrigerator) in their regular repertoire of sets. Furthermore, product placement was especially successful when characters in the show verbally referenced the product in the same scene it was placed. In the present example, _____(a)_____ would be considered a content unit, and _____(b)_____ would be considered a context unit.

A) the kitchen; the can of soda
B) mentioning soda; the can of soda
C) the can of soda; the kitchen
D) the can of soda; the specific show

Question 9

Consider the following excerpt from a movie review: "Three Stories of the South left me wondering whether a fourth story of the South would help illuminate the meaning of the first three. This film is bad. Not only were many of the premises blatant copies from other prominent award-winning movies, but the execution of these copied premises was even worse. I mean, this film is really bad. Yet, it did have a limited budget with which to operate." Which of the following examples would potentially be considered content units? (circle all that apply)

A) the word "bad"
B) every two sentences of the excerpt
C) whenever the critic tempers her distaste for the movie with additional information
D) the entire written review of the film

Question 10

In Krippendorff's (1980) discussion of determining the reliability of a content analysis outlines several types of "reliability" that are analogous to ways of determining reliability in a measurement scale. Which of the following reliability tests is NOT analogous to those included in Krippendorff's consideration of content analysis reliability? (circle all that apply)

A) test-retest reliability
B) split-half reliability
C) predictive validity
D) interrater reliability

Question 11

Yolanda was interested in the depiction of women in print-media (e.g., magazines, advertisements, newspapers), particularly the way that the features of the "ideal" woman have changed over the past seven decades. Should she use deductive or inductive content analysis? Provide justification for why she should use one type of content analysis or the other. In addition, provide an example of two coding units that might be relevant to her content analysis, and be sure to explain why they would be considered relevant coding units.

Question 12

Researchers are interested in the portrayal of female leads (or the primary female character) in television shows between 1950 and 2010. How would they go about selecting their sample of content to analyze? Specifically, provide an example for the several steps they would take to determine their sample will be chosen from the universe of television content. For example, perhaps the first question to address is whether they wanted to focus on only television shows that were shown in the United States (let's assume they do). What other decisions would they make before they finally obtain their sample of content to analyze?

Question 13

Krippendorff (1980) discusses three approaches to reliability of content analysis coding schemes. The first, and weakest, type of reliability is essentially test-retest reliability for a single coder (which he calls stability). Describe the other two types of reliability that correspond to content analyses.

Question 14

You are a conspiracy theorist, and you believe that all of the extremely successful and memorable speeches made by US presidents were written by an immortal extraterrestrial! However, the only way you can prove it is by content analyzing the Presidents' speeches.
(a) Describe how you would determine the sample of content that you would analyze, and what steps you would take to do so. (b) Describe three decisions you would have to make regarding the content you would analyze and the coding system you might use. For your first decision, you need to determine the type of content unit you will use. Explain what considerations would go into. (c) For each analysis decision that you discuss, provide an example for how it might manifest in your actual content analysis (e.g., for your first decision, provide an example of a content unit that you might include in your analysis).

Question 15

What are the two key approaches to content analysis? How is the coding system developed and applied in each approach?

Question 16

In content analysis, what does it mean to draw a representative sample? Why is it important?

Question 17

What kinds of questions can be answered by the various forms of content analysis?