Content Analysis - Uses of Content Analysis

Uses of Content Analysis

Ole Holsti (1969) groups 15 uses of content analysis into three basic categories:

make inferences about the antecedents of a communication
describe and make inferences about characteristics of a communication
make inferences about the effects of a communication.

He also places these uses into the context of the basic communication paradigm.

The following table shows fifteen uses of content analysis in terms of their general purpose, element of the communication paradigm to which they apply, and the general question they are intended to answer.

Uses of Content Analysis by Purpose, Communication Element, and Question
Purpose	Element	Question	Use
Make inferences about the antecedents of communications	Source	Who?	Answer questions of disputed authorship (authorship analysis)
Make inferences about the antecedents of communications	Encoding process	Why?	Secure political & military intelligence Analyse traits of individuals Infer cultural aspects & change Provide legal & evaluative evidence
Describe & make inferences about the characteristics of communications	Channel	How?	Analyse techniques of persuasion Analyse style
	Message	What?	Describe trends in communication content Relate known characteristics of sources to messages they produce Compare communication content to standards
	Recipient	To whom?	Relate known characteristics of audiences to messages produced for them Describe patterns of communication
Make inferences about the consequences of communications	Decoding process	With what effect?	Measure readability Analyse the flow of information Assess responses to communications
Note. Purpose, communication element, & question from Holsti (1969). Uses primarily from Berelson (1952) as adapted by Holsti (1969).

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