Critical Content Analysis of Visual Images

Content analysis is a conceptual approach to understanding what a text is about, considering content from a theoretical perspective. What makes a study “critical” is not the methodology but the selection of a critical theory as the framework used to think within, through, and beyond the text. Critical content analysis focuses on the significance of thinking with theory about data, not just using theory to interpret or discuss the data but to frame the entire study and analysis. Critical content analysis involves selecting a research purpose and set of texts and deciding on a critical theory frame that fits that purpose to identify the major theoretical tenets that will be used to frame a close analysis of the texts. The analysis itself involves a constant movement between theory and data that is complex and generative. This chapter discusses the significance of thinking with theory and why critical content analysis is important, along with a discussion of visual culture and the need to engage critically with the visual images in literature. This discussion is followed by a careful description of the processes, procedures, and analytical tools for critical content analysis of visual images. Examples from the research studies in the chapters are woven throughout this discussion of procedures, so that readers can see where each study fits within that description and what each highlights to gain a more complete understanding of critical content analysis of visual images in picturebooks and graphic novels. The chapter ends with an overview of the organization of the chapters in the book.