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Content Analysis in Social Research
Study Contexts, Avenues of Research, and Data Communication Strategies
Author:
This volume is a comprehensive overview of Content Analysis (CA), whose extraordinary potential is operationally flexible, compatible with different techniques, theoretically creative, and multidisciplinary at its core. Also, CA keeps tradition and innovation together: as technology advances, CA can more efficiently perform its typical functions and proves its worth in new fields. The book illustrates the main characteristics, perspectives, plurality of objects, and contexts of use of CA, focusing on the various practical strategies that it entails and on their combinations. The aim is to provide readers with a concrete guide, presenting a research notebook that explores a unique empirical-methodological heritage â such working style is replicable and the goal is to transmit it as clearly as possible.
Maria Paola Faggiano, Ph.D. in Methodology of Social Sciences, Tenure-track assistant professor of Sociology, Sapienza-University of Rome. She has published monographs and many articles on methodological issues. Among her recent publications, Content Analysis and Digital Data: Methodological Solutions between Tradition and Innovation. The Case of Digital Campaigns as Meeting Ground of Expertises and Research Perspectives (with Gallo R., Italian Sociological Review, 2021).
List of Illustrations
Introduction: Interrogating Textual Material in Todayâs Day and AgeCharacteristics and Contexts of Use of Content Analysis
1 Content Analysis in Social Research: A Methodological Point of View
â1 Guidelines for the Qualitative Analysis of Content
ââ1.1 Detecting and Analyzing a Text Qualitatively
ââ1.2 An Example: The Testimony of a Sample of Neet Youngsters
â2 Statistical-Textual Analysis: Foundations and Perspectives of Analysis
ââ2.1 Preliminary Checks
ââ2.2 Types of Obtainable Outputs
ââ2.3 Pros and Cons of Statistical-Textual Analysis
â3 Distinctive Features of Content Analysis as a Survey
ââ3.1 Identification of the Unit of Analysis and Temporal Placement of the Investigation
ââ3.2 From Designing an Analysis Sheet to Collecting Information
ââ3.3 Analysis and Presentation of Findings
2 The Analysis of Digital Campaigns The Case Study of the Italian General Elections
â1 Introduction
â2 Twitter, TV and Political Participation in the Electoral Campaign: Zooming in on the 2013 Parliamentary Elections in Italy
â3 Themes, Actors and Contexts in the Italian Digital Campaign 2018
ââ3.1 Focalizing on Themes
ââ3.2 Political Actors: Allies and Opponents
ââ3.3 The Use of Numbers to Denounce and Inform: Sources and Statistics in the Digital Campaign
ââ3.4 Social Actors: Who to Include, Who to Exclude
ââ3.4 References to Territory Contained in Posts
3 Local Digital CampaignsThe role of Facebook in Romeâs Local Elections
â1 A Special Election Campaign: Analysis Objectives
â2 The Candidatesâ Social Statistics
â3 The Campaignâs Pars Construens: A Qualitative Examination
â4 The Pars Destruens of the Digital Campaign: In-depth Analysis of Posts
â5 The Campaignâs Climate, Actors and Scenarios
4 Analyzing the Blog of the Five Star Movement
â1 Introduction
â2 The Empirical Basis
â3 Pre-analysis Operations
â4 Key Expressions in the Blog
â5 The Time Variable in the Rome-based Blog
â6 Axes of Discourse and Typology of Posts
5 Content Analysis Applied to In-depth Interviews Drawing Ideas from an Empirical Study on Religiosity in Italy
â1 Research Design
â2 A Mixed Analysis Approach: Focusing on CA as a Survey
â3 Some of the Outcomes of Applying CA as a Survey: The Endurance of Religion and the Need for Community
â4 The Participantsâ Emotional Experiences
ââ4.1 The Dimension of Happiness
ââ4.2 Suffering
ââ4.3 The Path of Life: Secular and Religious Perspectives Compared
ââ4.4 Respondents and Death
â5 Everyday Life and Holidays: Practices, Subjects and Contexts
Concluding Remarks Past and Present Research Practices, Looking Forward
Index
Introduction: Interrogating Textual Material in Todayâs Day and AgeCharacteristics and Contexts of Use of Content Analysis
1 Content Analysis in Social Research: A Methodological Point of View
â1 Guidelines for the Qualitative Analysis of Content
ââ1.1 Detecting and Analyzing a Text Qualitatively
ââ1.2 An Example: The Testimony of a Sample of Neet Youngsters
â2 Statistical-Textual Analysis: Foundations and Perspectives of Analysis
ââ2.1 Preliminary Checks
ââ2.2 Types of Obtainable Outputs
ââ2.3 Pros and Cons of Statistical-Textual Analysis
â3 Distinctive Features of Content Analysis as a Survey
ââ3.1 Identification of the Unit of Analysis and Temporal Placement of the Investigation
ââ3.2 From Designing an Analysis Sheet to Collecting Information
ââ3.3 Analysis and Presentation of Findings
2 The Analysis of Digital Campaigns The Case Study of the Italian General Elections
â1 Introduction
â2 Twitter, TV and Political Participation in the Electoral Campaign: Zooming in on the 2013 Parliamentary Elections in Italy
â3 Themes, Actors and Contexts in the Italian Digital Campaign 2018
ââ3.1 Focalizing on Themes
ââ3.2 Political Actors: Allies and Opponents
ââ3.3 The Use of Numbers to Denounce and Inform: Sources and Statistics in the Digital Campaign
ââ3.4 Social Actors: Who to Include, Who to Exclude
ââ3.4 References to Territory Contained in Posts
3 Local Digital CampaignsThe role of Facebook in Romeâs Local Elections
â1 A Special Election Campaign: Analysis Objectives
â2 The Candidatesâ Social Statistics
â3 The Campaignâs Pars Construens: A Qualitative Examination
â4 The Pars Destruens of the Digital Campaign: In-depth Analysis of Posts
â5 The Campaignâs Climate, Actors and Scenarios
4 Analyzing the Blog of the Five Star Movement
â1 Introduction
â2 The Empirical Basis
â3 Pre-analysis Operations
â4 Key Expressions in the Blog
â5 The Time Variable in the Rome-based Blog
â6 Axes of Discourse and Typology of Posts
5 Content Analysis Applied to In-depth Interviews Drawing Ideas from an Empirical Study on Religiosity in Italy
â1 Research Design
â2 A Mixed Analysis Approach: Focusing on CA as a Survey
â3 Some of the Outcomes of Applying CA as a Survey: The Endurance of Religion and the Need for Community
â4 The Participantsâ Emotional Experiences
ââ4.1 The Dimension of Happiness
ââ4.2 Suffering
ââ4.3 The Path of Life: Secular and Religious Perspectives Compared
ââ4.4 Respondents and Death
â5 Everyday Life and Holidays: Practices, Subjects and Contexts
Concluding Remarks Past and Present Research Practices, Looking Forward
Index
The book points out the plural use of data collections and analysis techniques through multiple, concrete, research examples. Combining methodological reflections and research experiences, it explores Content Analysis and its creative possibilities.