Document Analysis

Guide Questions

1. What are the different types of documents which researchers can utilize in the conduct of
research?

 Academic Publications provide a source for inquiry and oftentimes used to as research
support. Oftentimes used when looking for knowledge gaps about phenomena of interest.
 Diaries, biographies, and other personal correspondence contain extremely rich data and
insights on specific people, such as their daily habits, routine events, and practices,
however gaining access to one’s personal writings prove to be difficult.
 Government materials are easy to acquire, often low-cost or free. Contain important
information about nongovernmental organizations, for profit organizations and nonprofit
organizations. (Rapley, 2007)
 Poetry, song lyrics, and other literature allow for the researcher to study the culture, as
well as help determine specific phenomenon of interest.
 Research diaries provide rich data as it allows for an insider view of the phenomenon of
interest. The difference between research diaries and personal diaries is that the author
has agreed to write reflections about the phenomenon under study.
 Medical documents help to gain a fuller understanding of a health or medical situation.
 Newspapers and magazines are easy to acquire since they are readily available to the
public, and provide information on specific populations, industries, or cultural groups.
 Organizational materials

2. In what contexts are documents used to aid research?

Documents are often used to gather context on the phenomenon of interest. Providing
background info on any research is important in order to help researchers learn about the
historical roots of issues.
Reviewing documents can also help give light to questions that need to be asked and
observed. Reviewing documents has also allowed for researchers to view the phenomenon of
interest in a new perspective, as well as be able to observe and gather data in a different way
from their initial method, thus gathering more data. Furthermore, it allows for the researcher to
track changes and developments on the phenomenon of interest. Similar to my experience, I was
able to track the shift in number of discriminatory comments in Facebook.

3. What are some functions of documentary materials in social science research?

Research is the rigorous and systematic investigation of a specific phenomena in order to
establish facts and, from that, form a conclusion. Documentary materials serve as one of the
major sources of data, as well as inquiry for studies. They are used as either a stand-alone
method, as well as paired with another research method in order to draw data from multiple
sources.
Some researchers choose to use triangulation, which is the decision to use more than one
method of data collection on the same topic. This method allows researchers to ensure the
validity of the research by utilizing a variety of data collection methods, as well as using
different types of samples. However, the purpose of triangulation is not to cross-validate data
gathered, but rather to capture different dimensions, perspectives, and views of the phenomenon
of interest.

4. What are the advantages and disadvantages of using documentary materials in research?
With my research topic, I was able to scour the internet for discriminatory remarks from
Filipinos quite easily just by looking up a few keywords. All I needed was an okay internet
source and a laptop, and I was set. The amount of data I had collected in just a few days was
more than enough to help me with my research. I saved a lot of money looking up comments on
Facebook than I would’ve if I printed papers and interviewed or surveyed people on the street.
The data I collected was not influenced by the research process, making sure the validity of my
research paper was high. Collecting data via documents also allowed me to create an accurate
timeframe in order to track the difference of Filipino behaviors across time. Lastly, the few days
I saved up for more data collection was used to analyze the data I collected, as well as edit and
refine my paper.
However, I also encountered difficulty with the method. Although I found a lot of data in the
internet, some of my research questions were not answered, and I was left with a bittersweet taste
in my mouth. Although I did not have any issue with document restrictions retrieving Facebook
comments, because they were posted prior to my study, they were not customizable for the study,
meaning I encountered insufficient details despite the irony of collecting hundreds of comments.
Document analysis should be paired with another data collection method that can help answer
most, if not all the research questions.