Content Analysis: Human Coding/The Coding Scheme

1. Content Analysis:Human Coding/The Coding Scheme Kimberly A. Neuendorf, Ph.D. Cleveland State University Fall 2011

2. Human-coded Content Analysis Measures: Not So Different from other Quantitative Studies Like survey or experimental measures. . . Exhaustive, mutually exclusive categories High level of measurement Good distributions/transform if necessary May combine into scales

3. AGE: Code the apparent age of the character: • 1 = 5-10 • 2 = 10-20 • 3 = 20-30 • 4 = 30-40 • 5 = 40-50 • 6 = 50+

4. The Coding Scheme Codebook + Coding Form = Coding Scheme See The Content Analysis Guidebook Online for some examples Janstova Thesis example (27-page codebook)

5. Patrika Janstova Thesis:Empirical Testing of Auteur Theory via Content Analysis: A Study of Jane Campion Films Sources of theory and variables: Auteur theory (Bazin, Truffaut, Sarris, Wollen & structuralism) Campion films and scholarly literature Other auteurs—50 Contemporary Filmmakers (Y. Tasker, 2002). . . Every third filmmaker listed

6. Janstova Thesis:Themes & Motifs for Non-Campion Directors Gregg Araki 1      Intensifies lighting and color of the city (LA) 2      Love, sex and lust 3      Queer characters 4      Tries to show being gay doesn’t make a difference among people 5      Characters are obsessed with video cameras 6      Adolescents and homosexuality Luc Besson 1        Lack of dialog – comic strip influences? 2        Stories of young people who have difficulties adapting to a society 3        Society lets the family down - the young people become emotionally deprived 4        Youth in crisis 5        Dysfunctional families 6        Parents are absent 7        If mother figure appears – as evil force 8        Protagonists are lonely and suffering 9        Self-erasure of the protagonists 10    Literal portrayals of underworlds – metro, sea, lower regions of cities 11    Characters are “larger than life” 12    Bricolage of genres – more genres in one

7. Janstova Thesis:Themes & Motifs for Non-Campion Directors Tim Burton 1        Love for horror and fantasy 2        Plain weirdness of main characters 3        Technical experimentation with possibilities of animation and visual effects 4        Main characters are outsiders villains with extremely complex personalities 5 Main characters have very pale skin 6       Themes of exclusion and inclusion7        Johnny Depp Jackie Chan 1        Kung-Fu stunts 2        Master-pupil theme (comical) 3        Silent cinema feel to some of his scenes (i.e., chasing scenes, bar fights) 4        Female roles are always over the top girlish David Cronenberg 1        The physical and the psychological are usually intertwined 2        Main character is often male scientist – with a bizarre name 3        Themes: science, disease, aging, invasion, death in literary metaphors 4        Bodily and psychic mutations 5    Hostility towards women – men fear and are jealous of females 6    Womb envy David Fincher 1    Critiques of today’s society 2    A man alone in the universe 3     Visual translation of feelings of isolation of the characters 4    Wide angles, shallow focus = isolation 5    Muted light and color 6     Psychological and emotional state of American males of 20th century 7    Decay of American family 8     Females are barely present

8. Jim Jarmusch 1  Alienation of characters 2    Use of jump cuts 3    Characters have no real direction in life 4 Not interested in What? and Why? but How did one character get where he is now... 5 Main characters are outsiders Abbas Kiarostami 1  Challenges the audience 2    Poetic and philosophical style 3   Self-referentiality 4    Social realist traits/themes 5    Bleakness and loss - main themes 6    Often hopeful and enthusiasm accompanies the results 7    Likes to involve the audience as much as possible Ang Lee 1 Modernity vs. tradition 2 Deep secrets and internal torment come to surface 3    Conflict between freedom and societal traditions Michael Mann 1     Interested in real events 2    Fading centrality of a male 3     Visual: soft blues, and sterile and harsh whites Janstova Thesis:Themes & Motifs for Non-Campion Directors

9. John Sayles 1    Social concerns 2     Political awareness 3   Complex characters 4 No central protagonist, usually group of characters 5    Stretches the boundaries of genres 6    Witty dialog 7     Realistic characters Steven Soderbergh 1    Character based films 2     Ironic humor 3    Sense of isolation and loneliness 4    Characters are harshly detached, emotionally frozen 5    Characters are unable to fit with the world around them – lonely 6     Ultimately, his films are character studies of populated with strangers in a strange land Oliver Stone 1    Lonely and isolated male protagonist in quasi-spiritual journey 2    Character goes through innocence, suffering and experiences liberation or destruction 3    Testosterone-driven and often didactic dialog 4    Marginalization of women 5    The lure of homo-social is evident Peter Weir 1    Very national – Australian – rather than international 2    Avoidance of sexuality 3    No vivid sex scenes 4     However he shows erotic desire Allison Anders 1     Multiple protagonists 2     Teen angst (anxiety, fear, worry) 3     Gangsters 4    Biopic  5    Emotional intimacy and heterosexual love atavistic Janstova Thesis:Themes & Motifs for Non-Campion Directors

10. Janstova Thesis:Variable Sets & Units Variable SetUnit of Data Collection Themes & motifs Film Narrative constructions Major character e.g., identity, abuse Production techniques 5-minute interval

11. Janstova Thesis:Sample All 6 Campion films 1989-2003 18 “matched” non-Campion films Total n=24 films

12. Janstova Thesis:The Codebook Available on our class web site: http://academic.csuohio.edu/kneuendorf/c63310/JanstovaCodebook.doc

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