Research Design: a Content Analysis
Research Design
Content analysis is a process in which narrative data are divided into units of analysis to examine the contents of a particular body of material for the purpose of identifying patterns, themes or biases (Leedy and Ormrod, (2005). Further, qualitative content analysis has been defined in other ways such as: • “a research method for the subjective interpretation of the content of text or [narrative] data through the systematic classification process of coding and identifying themes or patterns” (Hsieh & Shannon, 2005, p. 1278), • “an approach of empirical, methodological controlled analysis of [narrative] texts within their context of communication, following content analytic rules and step by step models, without rash quantification” (Mayring, 2000, p. 2), and • “any qualitative data reduction and sense-making effort that takes a volume of qualitative material and attempts to identify core consistencies and meanings” (Patton, 2002, p. 453).
These definitions demonstrate that qualitative content analysis focuses on an integrated view
of narrative data and their specific contexts. It can assist researchers in understanding social
reality in a subjective but scientific manner.
The purpose of this paper is to present a content analysis about the narrative data collected from the Week Five interviews. Included in this content analysis will be the units of analysis identified, the type of coding used, the characteristics that were determined, the frequency distributions of the various units of analysis, and the interpretation of themes and outliers derived from the data.
The Research Question The topic of health maintenance and the factors that contribute to it such as dietary choices, drinking of water, exercise habits, and sufficient rest was the focus of the research. Three research questions were the initial focus of the data collection: 1. Do diet, exercise, and sleep habits
Content analysis is a process in which narrative data are divided into units of analysis to examine the contents of a particular body of material for the purpose of identifying patterns, themes or biases (Leedy and Ormrod, (2005). Further, qualitative content analysis has been defined in other ways such as: • “a research method for the subjective interpretation of the content of text or [narrative] data through the systematic classification process of coding and identifying themes or patterns” (Hsieh & Shannon, 2005, p. 1278), • “an approach of empirical, methodological controlled analysis of [narrative] texts within their context of communication, following content analytic rules and step by step models, without rash quantification” (Mayring, 2000, p. 2), and • “any qualitative data reduction and sense-making effort that takes a volume of qualitative material and attempts to identify core consistencies and meanings” (Patton, 2002, p. 453).
These definitions demonstrate that qualitative content analysis focuses on an integrated view
of narrative data and their specific contexts. It can assist researchers in understanding social
reality in a subjective but scientific manner.
The purpose of this paper is to present a content analysis about the narrative data collected from the Week Five interviews. Included in this content analysis will be the units of analysis identified, the type of coding used, the characteristics that were determined, the frequency distributions of the various units of analysis, and the interpretation of themes and outliers derived from the data.
The Research Question The topic of health maintenance and the factors that contribute to it such as dietary choices, drinking of water, exercise habits, and sufficient rest was the focus of the research. Three research questions were the initial focus of the data collection: 1. Do diet, exercise, and sleep habits
References: Hsieh, H. F. and Shannon, S. E. (2005). Three approaches to qualitative content analysis. Qualitative Health Research, 15(9), 1277-1288. Leedy, P. D. and Ormrod, J. E. (2005). Practical research: Planning and design (8th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall. Malhotra, N. K. and Peterson, M. (2006). Basic marketing research: A decision making approach (2nd ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. Mayring, P. (2000). Qualitative content analysis. Forum: Qualitative Social Research, 1(2) Patton, M.Q. (2002). Qualitative Research and Evaluation Methods. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Williams, A. (2003). How to write and analyze a questionnaire. Journal of Orthodontics, 30(3); 245-252