qualitative methods- case studies and content analysis

• what is meant by content analysis?

  • looking at the content of something and analysing it.
  • Observational study when behaviour is studied indirectly in written/verbal material.
  • Could be quantitative/qualitative analysis
• state the steps involved in a content analysis

  • sampling method- time/event/systematic/stratified random sampling- relate to question
  • coding- placing qualitative/quantitative data into categories like behavioural ones
  • method of representing data- describe examples of each category (qualitative) count instances (quantitative)
• what is meant by a thematic analysis?

  analysis of qualitative data. Themes and categories are identified and data is organised according to these themes
• briefly describe how you would conduct a thematic analysis

  • understand meaning communicated and perspective of participants. No notes should be made
  • break data down into meaningful units
  • assign a label/code- initial categories, each unit may be given more than one code/method
  • combine codes into larger categories
  • test categories by collecting new set of data and using categories to analyse it. Should fit the new data well if they represent the topic area investigated
• what are the purposes of a thematic analysis?

  • propose order on data
  • ensure order represents pps perspectives
  • enable general conclusions to be drawn and themes identified
• two advantages and disadvantages of content analysis?

  • 😊high ecological validity- based on observations on what people do in real life
  • 😊can be replicated if the sources can be accessed by others, so can be tested for reliability
  • ☹️observer bias- reduces objectivity because different observers may interpret things differently
  • ☹️cultural bias- interpretation of material will be affected by culture/language of observer, also behavioural categories will be affected
• what is a case study?

  • in-depth study of a person/group of people over time
  • carried out in the real world
  • individualistic
• what are the strengths and weaknesses of case studies?

  • 😊presents researchers with in-depth information about complex interactions
  • 😊can investigate rare behaviours
  • ☹️researcher's could get to know individual well- lack of objectivity
  • ☹️difficult to replicate- lacks reliability
  • ☹️ethical issues- trauma related to scrutiny/in depth study of an individual