Our discussion of content analysis represents one approach to this useful research technique. Several Web sites provide alternative discussions on how to plan and conduct content analysis.   Any of three following sites will provide you additional information and guidance on conducting content analysis.

An Overview of Content Analysis provides an introduction to content analysis, with examples and definitions of key terms

Overview: Content Analysis describes the history and uses of content analysis and the method itself; discusses issues of validity and reliability and the advantages and disadvantages of the method; provides examples of studies that used content analysis; defines key terms associated with content analysis

Unobtrusive Measurement  refers to techniques of data collection that do not influence the kinds of observations or responses obtained), this site describes various kinds of unobtrusive measurements, including direct observation, content analysis, and secondary analysis of data

Social indicators

Social indicators are measures of wellbeing for a population in terms of some characteristic.   These measures are frequently reported for a geographical area, such as a metropolitan area, a province, or a country. Social indicators are generally based on official government data.   They are frequently used by policy makers in international organizations and government ministries in deciding how to allocate funds and staff in meeting social and economic needs.

Table12.4 lists some commonly used social indicators.    For example, the first indicator under health is the indicator used for reporting infant mortality.   The indicator is expressed precisely by the following formula:

               Number of deaths of infants
              _______________________   (1000)

               Number of infants

Infants are defined as babies less than one year of age.   The indicator gives a number of deaths per 1,000 infants in a population.   Using a standard base, in this case 1,000, allows comparison between groups with different sized populations.   For example, there may have been 1,850 deaths for a certain province of a country out of 153,250 infants, giving an infant mortality rate of 1,850/153,250 (1,000) or 12.1.   In another province there might have been 520 deaths among 28,446 infants, which would produce an infant mortality rate of 18.3.   Thus, we can say the second province has a higher infant mortality rate. Other bases are used as well.   A base of 10,000 is used for some of the medical indexes because there are so few doctors and nurses in terms of the population they serve.

Social indicators are useful in many kinds of research.   They are used to describe conditions as they currently exist or to conduct trend or longitudinal studies. Because they are standardized, social indicators are particularly valuable for making comparisons among countries and regions of the world. Some examples of social indicators that are available for all countries are listed in Table 12.4.

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