Content Analysis: Longitudinal Strategy Or Cross-Sectional Strategy?

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There are different strategies to be used when doing research. A case study analysis is one strategy. With a case study the research looks at one case for example an organization or policy. The issue is making sure that the case study does not become a longitudinal strategy or cross-sectional one. Longitudinal strategy is when the same sample is used at different points in time. This data may be collected using questionnaires and asking the same questions to the same people but at different points in time to find reasoning. Historical modeling can be done using a longitudinal strategy and secondary data, but time restraints can hinder the results. Cross-sectional design looks at many cases in one time with no look at the past or future of the …show more content…

Content analysis is commonly used in qualitative research as a way of analyzing text through the use of coding by words with the purpose to be who said what and to whom, and why. Where as thematic analysis is a way of reporting patterns and analyzing them within the data. Both sets of data look at the narrative, but thematic analysis keeps the data in a purely qualitative form when analyzed and content analysis becomes quantitative when coded (Vaismoradi, Turunen, and Bondas, 2013). Meaning that content analysis becomes about the numbers in the end to describe the results and thematic analysis has more depth and detail in the final …show more content…

For thematic analysis the first step is understanding the data by reading and rereading and collecting ideas. Then comes the initial coding by finding interesting features in the data. Next is making connections to potential themes, and then seeing if the themes work across all the data. Defining the themes is next and finding out what those themes tell about the data. Finally taking examples that give clear evidence of the themes and relating it back to the research question (Braun and Clarke, 2006). The phases for content analysis are deciding on the data, coding the data into categories, and lastly reporting on those categories. Thematic analysis has many more phases then content analysis and gives more detail into the data by drawing the themes from the data and seeing how much of the data set they fit and not just breaking the data apart to find the

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