Force and Influence in Content Analysis: The Production of New Social Knowledge

We examine the two traditions of content analysis: the first in which one substitutes words of a text with categories, and the second in which one looks for clusters of words that may refer to a theme. In the first tradition, preexisting dictionary categories give meaning to the words; in the second, meaning comes after the fact. Preexisting dictionary categories (the substitution model) are calibrated instruments applied within experimental designs that leave no space for doubt; meanwhile, the ability of the correlational model to conjure up complex themes from fragments of a text yields no unique solution. These differences have bearings on the production of new social knowledge. We expound on the epistemological foundations of the two traditions of interpretation and draw from them decision rules upon which one may rely for choosing among appropriate content-analytic tactics. Two reasons make this essay timely and critical: (1) the increasing variety of new content-analyticsoftware for particular purposes and (2) the almost exclusive focusing on software and technology at the expense of adjusting the choice of the software to the nature of the text. Two studies, one in historiometry, the other in autobiography, illustrate the liabilities and benefits of the two models of content analysis.     

Author Index Volume 37 (2003)

Quality &; Quantity -     

Domestic or Imported Beer Brands? Analysis and Assessment of Brand Equity in the Spanish Market

The Spanish brewing industry is a main economic sector and a major activity in the agrifood area; however, there are few studies regarding the analysis of brand equity in this product. This study aims to analyze brand equity for both a domestic beer brand—Estrella Galicia—and an imported beer brand—Carlsberg. For this purpose a quantitative study is carried out among consumers in order to assess the sources or dimensions of brand equity and its consequences, comparing the 2 brands present in the Spanish market. Results obtained suggest a better evaluation of the domestic brand and reveal that brand loyalty and perceived quality are the dimensions with a higher relevance in beer brand equity.     

Sampling and Estimation Issues for Annual and Sub-annual Canadian Business Surveys

A typical Business Register (BR) is mainly based on administrative data files provided by organisations that produce them as a by-product of their function. Such files do not necessarily yield a perfect Business Register. A good BR should have the following characteristics: (1) It should reflect the complex structures of businesses with multiple activities, in multiple locations or with multiple legal entities; (2) It should be free of duplication, extraneous or missing units; (3) It should be properly classified in terms of key stratification variables, including size, geography and industry; (4) It should be easily updateable to represent the "newer" business picture, and not lag too much behind it. In reality, not all these desirable features are fully satisfied, resulting in a universe that has missing units, inaccurate structures, as well as improper contact information, to name a few defects.
These defects can be compensated by using sampling and estimation procedures. For example, coverage can be improved using multiple frame techniques, and the sample size can be increased to account for misclassification of units and deaths on the register. At the time of estimation, auxiliary information can be used in a variety of ways. It can be used to impute missing variables, to treat outliers, or to create synthetic variables obtained via modelling. Furthermore, time lags between the birth of units and the time that they are included on the register can be accounted for appropriately inflating the design-based estimates.     

A Review of the Structure and Participants in Cameroon's Advertising Market

This article reviews the structure of Cameroon's advertising market. After discussing changes in the market since 1985, the authors describe its current structure. A comprehensive approach leads them to consider the market as a system based on interaction between institutions or organizations involved directly or indirectly in the advertising process. The authors conclude that, overall, Cameroon's advertising market is weakly structured and dominated by a small number of large advertisers. They feel that the advertising agency system, especially in terms of the services it offers, is poorly adapted to Cameroon's small and medium-sized advertisers. They therefore propose a system of small and medium-sized agencies that would play a specific role geared to the limited needs of these advertisers.     

Feeling the Effects of a Competitor’s Product Recall: Lessons Learned by Quebec SMEs in the Cheese Sector

This article explores learning opportunities and portrays the product recall as a crisis situation from which small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) indirectly impacted by the event can and must learn. It describes the raw milk cheese recall in Quebec. A semistructured interview guide was used. The population studied comprises 12 cheese makers specializing in processing partly or totally raw milk and presents the results of interviews with managers of companies that survived the ordeal. Excerpts from interviews show that cheese makers took advantage of this crisis to improve their capacity to manage product recalls. The comments by the producers interviewed indicate that the crisis had a marked influence on knowledge creation related to prevention and preparedness for product recalls.