META-ANALYSIS CONTENT ANALYSIS

What is the Relationship between Meta-Analysis and Content Analysis?



What is the Relationship between Meta-Analysis and Content Analysis?

Introduction

Meta-analysis is generally defined as the analysis of analyses. The term generally is associated with quantitative methodologies, but it does have qualitative analogs. This technique is distinctly different from secondary analyses where the original data from a study are reanalyzed. Unlike meta-analysis, content analysis represents the blending of qualitative and quantitative research methodologies focusing on messages. It provides users with an ability to take the qualitative message and quantify it using percentages and frequency counts (Stacks, 2002). Further, content analysis can be used as a measurement tool. Content analysis is used quite extensively in public relations evaluation to better understand messages and how key people (e.g., editors and reporters) react to those messages; that use, however, is typically in a more informal, simple analysis. Hence, content analysis probably is best considered a qualitative public relations research method. Any type of content can be analyzed, including interviews, focus group discussions, editorials, television programming, and news releases, to name a few.

Relationship between Meta-Analysis and Content Analysis: Similarities and Differences

Meta-analyses can be separated into two categories: integrative and interpretive studies. Integrative studies focus on summarizing the data and are usually quantitative in nature. Interpretive studies focuses on developing concepts and operationalizing concepts a priori (Stacks, 2002). Interpretive analysis can be carried out using quantitative and qualitative approaches, does not have a priori concepts to test, and leads to the development of new interpretations from the analysis of multiple field studies. The goal is not to aggregate the data (e.g., determining and overall effect size) but to reinterpret.

In content analysis, as a method, it provides a way of systematically evaluating message content. If, for example, practitioners were interested in gauging news coverage regarding a promotional event, ...