Abstract

COUTINHO, Clara Pereira. Análise de conteúdo da comunicação assíncrona: considerações metodológicas e recomendações práticas. Educ. Form. Tecnol. [online]. 2013, vol.06, n.01, pp.21-34. ISSN 1646-933X.

In this article we discuss the potential and the methodological challenges posed to researchers who seek to analyse the content of asynchronous communication generated within online environments. It (The article?) addresses a current and relevant issue, particularly in the context of higher education, in which the use of digital technologies opens up opportunities for the design of new online education/training scenarios. In those new learning environments, the use of interaction, predominantly written communication, is recurrent, thus its study being a way of investigating the processes of knowledge construction in virtual context. In the present article we begin by addressing the different stages occurring in the process of content analysis of computer-mediated communication (CMC), including the choice of the theoretical model and the unit of analysis, as well as the methodological procedures which assure the reliability of the coding process of the written text generated in asynchronous interaction. The discussion is sustained by the presentation of a concrete example, in order to help researchers to use the content analysis of asynchronous communication to understand the complexity of teaching and learning processes in online environments.

Keywords : Content Analysis; Coding; Asynchronous Communication; Reliability; Interaction; Cohen's Kappa.

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