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Methodology
- Critical Discourse Analysis | Definition, Guide & Examples
Critical Discourse Analysis | Definition, Guide & Examples
Published on August 23, 2019 by Amy Luo . Revised on June 22, 2023.
Critical discourse analysis (or discourse analysis) is a research method for studying written or spoken language in relation to its social context. It aims to understand how language is used in real life situations.
When you conduct discourse analysis, you might focus on:
- The purposes and effects of different types of language
- Cultural rules and conventions in communication
- How values, beliefs and assumptions are communicated
- How language use relates to its social, political and historical context
Discourse analysis is a common qualitative research method in many humanities and social science disciplines, including linguistics, sociology, anthropology, psychology and cultural studies.
Table of contents
What is discourse analysis used for, how is discourse analysis different from other methods, how to conduct discourse analysis, other interesting articles.
Conducting discourse analysis means examining how language functions and how meaning is created in different social contexts. It can be applied to any instance of written or oral language, as well as non-verbal aspects of communication such as tone and gestures.
Materials that are suitable for discourse analysis include:
- Books, newspapers and periodicals
- Marketing material, such as brochures and advertisements
- Business and government documents
- Websites, forums, social media posts and comments
- Interviews and conversations
By analyzing these types of discourse, researchers aim to gain an understanding of social groups and how they communicate.
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Unlike linguistic approaches that focus only on the rules of language use, discourse analysis emphasizes the contextual meaning of language.
It focuses on the social aspects of communication and the ways people use language to achieve specific effects (e.g. to build trust, to create doubt, to evoke emotions, or to manage conflict).
Instead of focusing on smaller units of language, such as sounds, words or phrases, discourse analysis is used to study larger chunks of language, such as entire conversations, texts, or collections of texts. The selected sources can be analyzed on multiple levels.
| Level of communication | What is analyzed? |
|---|---|
| Vocabulary | Words and phrases can be analyzed for ideological associations, formality, and euphemistic and metaphorical content. |
| Grammar | The way that sentences are constructed (e.g., , active or passive construction, and the use of imperatives and questions) can reveal aspects of intended meaning. |
| Structure | The structure of a text can be analyzed for how it creates emphasis or builds a narrative. |
| Genre | Texts can be analyzed in relation to the conventions and communicative aims of their genre (e.g., political speeches or tabloid newspaper articles). |
| Non-verbal communication | Non-verbal aspects of speech, such as tone of voice, pauses, gestures, and sounds like “um”, can reveal aspects of a speaker’s intentions, attitudes, and emotions. |
| Conversational codes | The interaction between people in a conversation, such as turn-taking, interruptions and listener response, can reveal aspects of cultural conventions and social roles. |
Discourse analysis is a qualitative and interpretive method of analyzing texts (in contrast to more systematic methods like content analysis ). You make interpretations based on both the details of the material itself and on contextual knowledge.
There are many different approaches and techniques you can use to conduct discourse analysis, but the steps below outline the basic structure you need to follow. Following these steps can help you avoid pitfalls of confirmation bias that can cloud your analysis.
Step 1: Define the research question and select the content of analysis
To do discourse analysis, you begin with a clearly defined research question . Once you have developed your question, select a range of material that is appropriate to answer it.
Discourse analysis is a method that can be applied both to large volumes of material and to smaller samples, depending on the aims and timescale of your research.
Step 2: Gather information and theory on the context
Next, you must establish the social and historical context in which the material was produced and intended to be received. Gather factual details of when and where the content was created, who the author is, who published it, and whom it was disseminated to.
As well as understanding the real-life context of the discourse, you can also conduct a literature review on the topic and construct a theoretical framework to guide your analysis.
Step 3: Analyze the content for themes and patterns
This step involves closely examining various elements of the material – such as words, sentences, paragraphs, and overall structure – and relating them to attributes, themes, and patterns relevant to your research question.
Step 4: Review your results and draw conclusions
Once you have assigned particular attributes to elements of the material, reflect on your results to examine the function and meaning of the language used. Here, you will consider your analysis in relation to the broader context that you established earlier to draw conclusions that answer your research question.
If you want to know more about statistics , methodology , or research bias , make sure to check out some of our other articles with explanations and examples.
- Normal distribution
- Measures of central tendency
- Chi square tests
- Confidence interval
- Quartiles & Quantiles
- Cluster sampling
- Stratified sampling
- Thematic analysis
- Cohort study
- Peer review
- Ethnography
Research bias
- Implicit bias
- Cognitive bias
- Conformity bias
- Hawthorne effect
- Availability heuristic
- Attrition bias
- Social desirability bias
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Luo, A. (2023, June 22). Critical Discourse Analysis | Definition, Guide & Examples. Scribbr. Retrieved September 3, 2024, from https://www.scribbr.com/methodology/discourse-analysis/
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- Knowledge Base
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- Critical Discourse Analysis | Definition, Guide & Examples
Critical Discourse Analysis | Definition, Guide & Examples
Published on 5 May 2022 by Amy Luo . Revised on 5 December 2022.
Discourse analysis is a research method for studying written or spoken language in relation to its social context. It aims to understand how language is used in real-life situations.
When you do discourse analysis, you might focus on:
- The purposes and effects of different types of language
- Cultural rules and conventions in communication
- How values, beliefs, and assumptions are communicated
- How language use relates to its social, political, and historical context
Discourse analysis is a common qualitative research method in many humanities and social science disciplines, including linguistics, sociology, anthropology, psychology, and cultural studies. It is also called critical discourse analysis.
Table of contents
What is discourse analysis used for, how is discourse analysis different from other methods, how to conduct discourse analysis.
Conducting discourse analysis means examining how language functions and how meaning is created in different social contexts. It can be applied to any instance of written or oral language, as well as non-verbal aspects of communication, such as tone and gestures.
Materials that are suitable for discourse analysis include:
- Books, newspapers, and periodicals
- Marketing material, such as brochures and advertisements
- Business and government documents
- Websites, forums, social media posts, and comments
- Interviews and conversations
By analysing these types of discourse, researchers aim to gain an understanding of social groups and how they communicate.
Prevent plagiarism, run a free check.
Unlike linguistic approaches that focus only on the rules of language use, discourse analysis emphasises the contextual meaning of language.
It focuses on the social aspects of communication and the ways people use language to achieve specific effects (e.g., to build trust, to create doubt, to evoke emotions, or to manage conflict).
Instead of focusing on smaller units of language, such as sounds, words, or phrases, discourse analysis is used to study larger chunks of language, such as entire conversations, texts, or collections of texts. The selected sources can be analysed on multiple levels.
| Level of communication | What is analysed? |
|---|---|
| Vocabulary | Words and phrases can be analysed for ideological associations, formality, and euphemistic and metaphorical content. |
| Grammar | The way that sentences are constructed (e.g., verb tenses, active or passive construction, and the use of imperatives and questions) can reveal aspects of intended meaning. |
| Structure | The structure of a text can be analysed for how it creates emphasis or builds a narrative. |
| Genre | Texts can be analysed in relation to the conventions and communicative aims of their genre (e.g., political speeches or tabloid newspaper articles). |
| Non-verbal communication | Non-verbal aspects of speech, such as tone of voice, pauses, gestures, and sounds like ‘um’, can reveal aspects of a speaker’s intentions, attitudes, and emotions. |
| Conversational codes | The interaction between people in a conversation, such as turn-taking, interruptions, and listener response, can reveal aspects of cultural conventions and social roles. |
Discourse analysis is a qualitative and interpretive method of analysing texts (in contrast to more systematic methods like content analysis ). You make interpretations based on both the details of the material itself and on contextual knowledge.
There are many different approaches and techniques you can use to conduct discourse analysis, but the steps below outline the basic structure you need to follow.
Step 1: Define the research question and select the content of analysis
To do discourse analysis, you begin with a clearly defined research question . Once you have developed your question, select a range of material that is appropriate to answer it.
Discourse analysis is a method that can be applied both to large volumes of material and to smaller samples, depending on the aims and timescale of your research.
Step 2: Gather information and theory on the context
Next, you must establish the social and historical context in which the material was produced and intended to be received. Gather factual details of when and where the content was created, who the author is, who published it, and whom it was disseminated to.
As well as understanding the real-life context of the discourse, you can also conduct a literature review on the topic and construct a theoretical framework to guide your analysis.
Step 3: Analyse the content for themes and patterns
This step involves closely examining various elements of the material – such as words, sentences, paragraphs, and overall structure – and relating them to attributes, themes, and patterns relevant to your research question.
Step 4: Review your results and draw conclusions
Once you have assigned particular attributes to elements of the material, reflect on your results to examine the function and meaning of the language used. Here, you will consider your analysis in relation to the broader context that you established earlier to draw conclusions that answer your research question.
Cite this Scribbr article
If you want to cite this source, you can copy and paste the citation or click the ‘Cite this Scribbr article’ button to automatically add the citation to our free Reference Generator.
Luo, A. (2022, December 05). Critical Discourse Analysis | Definition, Guide & Examples. Scribbr. Retrieved 3 September 2024, from https://www.scribbr.co.uk/research-methods/discourse-analysis-explained/
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the method of analysis used as well as the limitations of the study. Finally, it offers operational definitions and an overview of the thesis. Critical Discourse Analysis as a Linguistic Research Tool Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) has become prominent and influential over recent years.
critical discourse analysis, education research, social inequality, qualitative research, analytical framework. Critical discourse analysis (CDA) is a qualitative analytical approach for critically describing, interpreting, and explaining the ways in which discourses construct, main-tain, and legitimize social inequalities (Wodak & Meyer, 2009).
Critical discourse analysis (or discourse analysis) is a research method for studying written or spoken language in relation to its social context. It aims to understand how language is used in real life situations. When you conduct discourse analysis, you might focus on: The purposes and effects of different types of language.
Critical discourse analysis (CDA) is a rapidly developing area of language study. It regards discourse as 'a form as social practice' (Fairclough & Wodak, 1997, p.258), and takes consideration of the context of language use to be crucial to discourse (Wodak, 2001). It takes particular interest in the relation between language and power.
down into pieces. Discourse Analysis simply refers to the linguistic analysis of connected writing and speech. The major focus in Discourse Analysis is the use of language in social context. This article presents a Critical Discourse Analysis of the famous speech by Martin Luther king, Jr. "I Have a Dream" by applying Fairclough 3D Model.
The critical approach is distinctive in its view of (a) the relationship between language and society, and (b) the relationship between analysis and the practices analysed" (Wodak 1997:173). CDA states that discourse is socially constitutive as well as socially conditioned. Furthermore, discourse is an opaque power object in modem societies and ...
Van Dijk (forthcoming) summarizes the history of Discourse Studies (DS) in a very. precise way, and emphasizes that 'the "core" of the new discipline remains the systematic. and explicit ...
ABSTRACT. This paper discusses some principles of critical discourse analy- sis, such as the explicit sociopolitical stance of discourse analysts, and a focus on dominance relations by elite groups and institutions as they are being enacted, legitimated or otherwise reproduced by text and talk. One of the crucial elements of this analysis of ...
Abstract. Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) serves as one of the tools to analyze the linguistic and the social. This article aims at investigating the relevance of ideas amongst CDA figures ...
Critical discourse analysis (CDA) stresses that language use, discourse, and communication should be studied in their social, cultural and political contexts. A considerable amount of literature ...
interested in using discourse analysis methods to further demystify the process of CDA for others. I have outlined in the thesis further research studies which potentially lead on from this study. Having reflected on my findings I will apply for funding to further explore under-
A Critical Discourse Analysis of Social Change in Women-related Posts on Saudi English-Language Blogs Posted between 2009 and 2012 Shrouq Hamad Al Maghlouth A thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of Linguistics and English Language Lancaster University United Kingdom
Abstract. This paper discusses some principles of critical discourse analysis, such as the explicit sociopolitical stance of discourse analysts, and a focus on dominance relations by elite groups and institutions as they are being enacted, legitimated or otherwise reproduced by text and talk. One of the crucial elements of this analysis of the ...
Critical discourse analysis is a rapidly growing, interdisciplinary field of inquiry that combines linguistic analysis and social theory to address the way power and dominance are enacted and reproduced in text. Critical discourse analysis is primarily concerned with the construction of social phenomena and involves a focus on the wider social ...
Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA; better named critical discourse studies [CDS]) is a movement or perspective of multidisciplinary discourse studies that specifically focuses on the discursive reproduction of power abuse, such as sexism, racism, and other forms of social inequality, as well as the resistance against such domination. CDA/CDS is not a specific method of discourse studies but ...
How language use relates to its social, political, and historical context. Discourse analysis is a common qualitative research method in many humanities and social science disciplines, including linguistics, sociology, anthropology, psychology, and cultural studies. It is also called critical discourse analysis.
This is to certify that the Sarjana thesis of Achmad Komaruddin, entitled. "A Critical Discourse Analysis on Meaning Levels of Hillary Diane Rodham. Clinton. Speech about Women" has been approved by the board of examiners as. one of the requirements for the Degree of Sarjana Sastra (S.S) in English. artment, Faculty of Humanities at Maulana.
M udhofar, A Critical Discourse Analysis on the Jakarta Post Text. A Thesis. Jakarta: Letters and H um anities Faculty, State Islam ic U niversity S yarif H idayatullah, February 2009. The purpose of this research is to develop a research betw een socio-linguistic sciences w ith m ass com m unication in critical discourse analysis w hich
As cited in Critical Discourse Analysis second draft by Teun A. van Dijk (1998:1-2), CDA is a type of discourse analytical research that. primarily studies the way social power abuse, dominance, and inequality. and resi. ted by text and talk in social and politicalcontext. With suc. thus want to under.
Based on the title of this thesis which is Critical Discourse Analysis of SBY's Speech, it is known that the data used is a speech of SBY, in this case is the speech which related to the bombings on Jakarta at that time. In a speech there is a relationship between language, power, and ideology. Therefore Critical Discourse
This thesis uses critical discourse analysis to study the discursive construction of EU counter-terrorism policy. It uses representative extracts from twenty counter-terrorism documents prepared by/or for the EU institution the European Council, across a ten-year period from November 1999 to December 2009. The analysis identifies several ...
This is to certify that Ila Rosyada's thesis entitled "Critical Discourse Analysis on the Online News of Yahya Cholil Staquf's Visit to Israel" has been approved by the Board of Examiners as one of the requirements for the degree of Sarjana Sastra (S.S.) in Department of English Literature. Malang, 22 November 2019
of socialisation. For Fairclough, language in critical discourse analysis is both discourse, and discourse as social practice is determined by social structures. These could be seen in Figure 1. In the book . Critical Discourse Analysis: the Critical Study of Language, he proposes the process of CDA: description, interpretation and explanation.