Counting a Code’s Frequency in Content Analysis

Drawing inferences from the frequency of codes is the simplest and often the most useful form of data analysis. Drawing conclusions in the Stars and Stripes assignment, evaluators counted the number of articles that presented a negative image of the military and compared the number to the number of wire service articles with negative

Finding Associations in Content Analysis

Beyond simply counting, evaluators might look for an association between two or more variables. In the Stars and Stripes assignment, the frequency of news articles on various topics was compared between the Pacific and European editions. In the language of content analysis, the variable “topic” was compared to the variable “edition.” Topic had the

Reporting the Methodology and Results of Content Analysis

The methodology and results of a content analysis should be reported the way they are for other evaluations. The methodology should be described in sufficient detail that readers will have a clear understanding of how the work was carried out and its strengths and limitations. For example, the report should reveal the evaluation question

Planning the Content Analysis

1. Be Clear About the Questions The evaluation questions drive the study. If they are Questions ambiguous or not suited to the users’ needs, even a well-implemented method will produce findings of doubtful value. To be clear about the questions means to state them as specifically as possible so that the answers will be useful

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Coding in Content Analysis

1. Produce a Coding Manual A good coding manual is indispensable. AvoSrf the temptation to save time by not producing one or by producing only the skeleton of one. The time spent in being complete will be more than repaid by making the coders’ task easier and faster and, especially, by ensuring coding of

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Analyzing and Reporting the Data in Content Analysis

1. Cross-Check Preliminary Results Things are not always what they seem. Try to verify findings by using related variables or slightly different analysis methods. This is also a time to check on the reliability of the coding process. 2. Apply Statistical Tests In some circumstances, statistical tests of significance may be appropriate. Use them

Analysis of Qualitative Data in Content Analysis

Content analysis applies to textual information in the form of words. An analyst can classify text into categories as described in chapter 1. The categories are treated like numerical data in subsequent statistical manipulations. The statistical analysis permits the analyst to draw conclusions about the information in the text. This is the traditional form

Software for Content Analysis

This appendix describes computer software that may be useful to content analysis. The list of programs here is by no means complete, and it is purely descriptive, not a GAO endorsement of any program. The descriptions focus on features of the software that are necessary or optional for use in content analysis; they do

Intercoder Reliability in Content Analysis

An important measure forjudging the quality of a content analysis is the extent to which the results can be reproduced. Known as intercoder reliability, this measure indicates how well two or more coders reached the same judgments in coding the data. Among the variety of methods that have been proposed for estimating intercoder reliability,

The questionnaire in the survey process

The questionnaire represents one part of the survey process. It is, however, a very vital part of the process. A poorly written questionnaire will not provide the data that are required or, worse, will provide data that are incorrect. The first task with any survey is to define the objectives that the study is

Stakeholders in the questionnaire

Clearly there are a number of different stakeholders in the questionnaire, on each of whom the way in which it is written and laid out will have an effect. There can be up to five different groups of people who have an inter­est in the questionnaire, and each one has a different requirement of

The objectives of the study relating to the questionnaire

1. Relating research objectives to business objectives The brief that the researcher receives may sometimes include the business objectives for the study and the research objectives required to achieve them. For example: Business objective: to enter the mobile telecoms market with a pricing package that is attractive to at least 60 per cent of

Recruitment questionnaires

Recruitment questionnaires are used in qualitative research and for recruit­ment of respondents for some types of quantitative research (eg clinics held in central locations). The purpose of this type of questionnaire is to identify eligible respondents in order to invite them to attend the main research session. Consequently, the data collected should be limited

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Collecting unbiased and accurate data by questionnaire

Clearly, the data collected should be as accurate as possible. However, complete accuracy is almost impossible to obtain in surveys where respondents are asked to report their behaviour or their attitudes. Many problems arise because of problems within the questionnaire itself. These can include: ambiguity in the question; order effects between questions; order effects

Interviewer-administered interviews

The key benefits of having an interviewer administer the questionnaire are: Queries about the meaning of a question can be dealt with. A misunderstood question may be corrected. Respondents can be encouraged to provide deeper responses to open questions. Sometimes a question can be unintentionally ambiguous. Although this should have been spotted and corrected

Self-completion surveys

Self-completion methods, whether paper based or electronic, can benefit from the complete absence of an interviewer from the process. This removes a major source of potential bias in the responses, and makes it easier for respondents to be honest about sensitive subjects. However, self-completion studies can also suffer from there being no interviewer to

Introduction

A questionnaire that is going to provide accurate, good-quality informa­tion needs to be thought about and planned, before a single question is written. The sequence of the different topics that may be covered by the questionnaire, the sequence of individual questions and the sequence in which prompted responses are given can all dramatically affect

Defining the information required in the questionnaire

It should be clear from the research objectives and the business objectives what information areas the questionnaire needs to cover. This is the prin­cipal information such as product and brand awareness and usage, behavioural patterns, attitudes, satisfaction with service, response to concept or test product, etc. The level of detail to which it is

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Sequencing the sections of the questionnaire

The questionnaire can be properly planned once the principal and analy­sis information requirements have been decided. It is most commonly divided into three sections: exclusion or security question; screening questions; main questionnaire. Source: Brace Ian (2018), Questionnaire Design: How to Plan, Structure and Write Survey Material for Effective Market Research, Kogan Page; 4th

Exclusion question in the questionnaire

A common, although not universal, practice is to exclude respondents from research surveys who work in market research, marketing or the client’s industry. This will normally be the first question, so that they can be identified and excluded as quickly as possible and neither the respon­dent’s nor the interviewer’s time is wasted. Exclusion by