Case Studies and Content Analysis

• Primary data is data gathered first-hand from the researchers experiment. Secondary data is data gathered from another experiment.
• Content analysis is turning qualitative data into quantitative data where people are studied through their words.
• There are 5 steps of content analysis:

  1. Sampling: Deciding what material to use
  2. Pilot
  3. Common theme: decide how to categorise material
  4. Tally
  5. Compare
• Thematic analysis is summarising qualitative data by identifying themes and writing it.
• Content Analysis: Evaluation Points

  • Reliability
  • Subjectivity
  • Validity
  • Quantitative data
• Content Analysis: Reliability


  Reliability can be tested as the experiment can be repeated using the same themes and categories
• Content Analysis: Validity


  Content analysis converts rich, qualitative data into numerical data which reduces the validity as data may be omitted and the wider picture is lost.
• Content Analysis: Subjectivity


  Content analysis may suffer from subjectivity as researchers decide the categories and what falls into each category.