Discourse Analysis

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. Whereas
other areas of language study might focus on individual parts of language—such as words and
phrases (grammar) or the pieces that make up words (linguistics)—discourse analysis looks at
a running conversation involving a speaker and listener (or a writer's text and its reader).

In discourse analysis, the context of a conversation is taken into account as well as what's being
said. This context may encompass a social and cultural framework, including the location of a
speaker at the time of the discourse, as well as nonverbal cues such as body language, and, in
the case of textual communication, it may also include images and symbols. It is the study of
real language use, by real speakers in real 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.

At the risk of oversimplification, discourse analysis examines the organization of language at

a level of analysis beyond the clause or the sentence. It focuses on larger linguistic units, such
as whole conversations or written messages. Discourse analysis is also concerned with the way
language is used in social contexts and how people make sense of one another’s messages. As
summarized by van Dijk (1997), discourse analysis examines who uses language, how, why,
and when. Daymon and Holloway (2002) suggest that researchers who use discourse analysis
analyze three specific aspects of language:

1. The form and content of the language used

2. The ways people use language to communicate ideas and beliefs

3. Institutional and organizational factors that might shape the way the language is used
Data collection in discourse analysis involves gathering examples of texts and messages that
are relevant to the problem being investigated. These may consist of existing documents, such
as speeches by company executives, press releases, internal memos, and advertisements. In
addition, the researcher can generate new data by conducting interviews with key informants.

There is no concrete set of procedures for conducting a discourse analysis. Data analysis
usually consists of focusing on large segments of language to identify key words, themes,
imagery, and patterns in the text.

In addition, the researcher might conduct a rhetorical analysis that looks at how various
arguments are constructed and arranged within a given body of language. Finally, the
investigator should pay special attention to the context of the language, examining such factors
as who is speaking, the circumstances surrounding the message, and the intended audience.

What is discourse analysis used for?

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.

How is discourse analysis different from other methods?

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. 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 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 Non-verbal aspects of speech, such as tone of voice, pauses, gestures, and
communication 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.

How to conduct discourse analysis?

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 steps 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.

You want to study how a particular regime change from dictatorship to democracy has affected
the public relations rhetoric of businesses in the country. You decide to examine the mission
statements and marketing material of the 10 largest companies within five years of the regime
change.

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.

You research factual information on the politics and history of the country and on the
businesses you are studying. You also research theory on democratic transitions and the
relationship between government and business.

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.

You analyze the selected material for wording and statements that reflect or relate to
authoritarian and democratic political ideologies, including attitudes toward authority, liberal
values, and popular opinion.

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.

Your analysis shows that the material published before the regime change used language that
emphasized the quality and necessity of its services and products, while the material published
after the shift to a democratic regime emphasized the needs and values of the consumer. You
compare the results with your research on the ideology and rhetoric of the political regimes,
and infer that the shifting political context shaped the communication strategies of national
businesses.

Discursive Psychology

Discursive psychology (DP) is a form of discourse analysis that focuses

on psychological themes in talk, text, and images. Here, the study of the psychological implies
commitment not to the inner life of the mind, but rather, to the written and spoken practices
within which people invoked, implicitly or explicitly, notions precisely like "the inner life of
the mind". Discursive psychology therefore starts with psychological phenomena as things that
are constructed, attended to, and understood in interaction. In discursive psychology, the focus
is not on psychological matters somehow leaking out into interaction; rather, interaction is the
primary site where psychological issues are live. It is philosophically opposed to more
traditional cognitivist approaches to language. It uses studies of naturally occurring
conversation to critique the way that topics have been conceptualised and treated in
psychology.

Evaluation

Discourse analysis is sometimes defined as the analysis of language “beyond the sentence”.
Discourse analysis looks not only at the basic level of what is said, but takes into consideration
the surrounding social and historical contexts. Discourse analysis is useful tool for studying the
political meanings that inform written and spoken text.

Discourse analysis can be used to study different situations and subjects. It allows public
relations researchers to uncover deeply held attitudes and perceptions that are important in an
organization’s image and communication practices that might not be uncovered by any other
methods.
Discourse analysis is used at the start of a discussion to foreground the topic under discussion
and identify it as important to the speaker. Discourse analysis not only study language use
“beyond the sentence boundary” but also prefer to analyze “naturally occurring” language use,
and not invented examples.

Discourse can be characterized as a way of approaching and thinking about the problem. It will
enable to reveal the hidden motivation behind a text or behind of research to interpret that text.
Discourse analysis aims at allowing us to view the problem from a higher stance and to gain a
comprehensive view of the problem. It can provide a positive social psychological critique of
any phenomenon under the gaze of the researcher. Discourse analysis has a relevance and
practical application at any given time, in any given place, and for any given people: discourse
analysis is context specific.

On the other hand, discourse analysis can take large amounts of time and effort. A second
disadvantage is that this technique focuses solely on language. Although language may be an
important component of public relations practice, it rarely tells the whole story. Consequently,
discourse analysis should be supplemented by other qualitative techniques such as observation
or focus group interviewing.

Dr. Manaswita Bharadwaja

Email: [email protected]