Content Analysis of Online Discussion in an Applied Educational Psychology

This study analyzed discussion in an online conference that supplemented class discussion using an instructional method called the starter-wrapper technique within a traditional graduate level educational psychology course. Various quantitative measures were recorded to compare instructor and student participation rates. In addition, Henri’s (1992) model for content analysis of computer-mediated communication was employed to qualitatively analyze the electronic discourse. Using this model, five key variables were examined: (1) student participation rates; (2) electronic interaction patterns; (3) social cues within student messages; (4) cognitive and metacognitive components of student messages; and (5) depth of processing—surface or deep—within message posting. Transcript content analyses showed that, while students tended to post just the one required comment per week in the conference, their messages were lengthy, cognitively deep, embedded with peer references, and indicative of a student oriented environment. Moreover, students were using high level cognitive skills such as inferencing and judgment as well as metacognitive strategies related to reflecting on experience and self-awareness. Weekly conference activity graphs revealed that student electronic comments became more interactive over time, but were highly dependent on the directions of discussion starter. To better understand the impact of electronic conferencing discourse, modifications to Henri’s model as well as qualitative research suggestions were offered.