UGC NET Questions (Paper – 1)

Content analysis is a research technique used to make replicable and valid inferences from texts or other meaningful matter to the contexts of their use. It involves systematically coding units of content into categories and then counting or analysing these frequencies. This allows researchers to quantify and interpret patterns in communication messages. Therefore, the systematic descriptive and quantitative study of message content is called content analysis.

Option A:
Content analysis requires clear definitions of coding categories and rules so that different coders can classify material consistently. It can be applied to newspapers, television programmes, social media posts and interview transcripts. These features correspond closely to the description in the stem.

Option B:
Ethnography is a qualitative method involving immersion in a cultural or social setting to understand practices and meanings through observation and participation. It does not primarily involve quantitative coding and frequency counts of communication content. Hence, ethnography is not the correct completion.

Option C:
A case study focuses on an in-depth examination of a particular case or small number of cases using multiple sources of evidence; it may use content analysis as one tool but is not itself defined as a communication content technique. Thus, case study is not appropriate here.

Option D:
Phenomenology explores lived experiences and the essence of phenomena from the viewpoint of participants, relying mainly on qualitative descriptions and interpretations rather than systematic quantitative coding of texts. Therefore, phenomenology does not fit the definition in the question.

Statements A, B and C accurately present content analysis as a systematic procedure applied to various materials, conducted quantitatively or qualitatively and based on explicit coding schemes. Statement D is false because digital media, social media posts and websites are common targets of content analysis. Statement E is also false since open-ended questionnaire responses are often coded and analysed using this method. Therefore, the option including A, B and C only is correct.

Option A:
Option A is incomplete because it omits C and thus fails to mention the need for explicit coding categories and rules, which are central to ensuring consistency and reliability in content analysis.

Option B:
Option B is incorrect because it leaves out A, not explicitly stating that the method involves systematic examination of content, which is part of its definition.

Option C:
Option C is correct as it combines all three crucial aspects: systematic focus on content, dual quantitative/qualitative possibilities and reliance on clear coding schemes. It excludes D and E, which narrow the scope of content analysis wrongly.

Option D:
Option D is wrong because it includes E, the claim that open-ended responses cannot be analysed in this way, and omits B, failing to acknowledge both quantitative and qualitative variants of content analysis.