Content Analysis, Definition of

Definition and Uses of Content Analysis

Content analysis is a quantitative process for analyzing communicative messages that follow a specific process. In many communication studies, scholars determine the frequency of specific ideas, concepts, terms, and other message characteristics and make comparisons in order to describe or explain communicative behavior. Content analysis can be used to examine the manifest or latent content of communication, depending on the research question. Manifest content is the specific characteristics of the message itself, or what the communication literally says. For example, when a husband tells his wife, “You look fine, honey,” the manifest content of the message expresses that the wife looks adequate or appropriate. Latent content is the underlying message, or interpretations of the content by implying something about the communicative message. When the wife hears, “You look fine, honey,” she might interpret it to mean that she does not look good but her husband is tired of waiting for her to get ready. Content analysis can study both types of content.

Scholars use content analysis to describe or explain communication; however, content analysis cannot be used to predict cause-and-effect relationships. While used as an approach to discover communication, content analysis can be used in conjunction with other methods, and is useful as a starting point for understanding the effects of particular messages through other research methodologies, in situations where understanding the content of communication is pivotal to examining the effect. Content analysis can be used in conjunction with experimental research when the dependent variable is message-related behavior. For example, researchers who study online civility on social media and message boards use content analysis to analyze posts. A researcher could design an experiment in which participants were exposed to a series of comments written in a specific tone (civil or uncivil) for each participant, and then the participant added a comment of his or her own. The participant’s comment could vary based on the messages to which he or she was exposed. The researcher would conduct a content analysis on the participant comments and compare those to the original comments to which the participant was exposed to determine if the tone of the original comments affected how the participant would respond.

Content analysis, as a method, has several uses. First, content analysis is a flexible method used by scholars and practitioners; that is, it can be used in a wide variety of contexts. Content analysis can be used to characterize communication and make comparisons, such as the types of persuasive messages used in beauty ads. Content analysis is also useful for studying communication in nontraditional settings. While mass media communication is an obvious application of the method, content analysis can be used in a variety of settings, including digital communication, speech therapy, work groups, and the like.

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