Klaus Krippendorff (2019)
Canonical introduction to content analysis by Krippendorff, outlining how to make inferences from texts and other symbolic data.
Krippendorff’s book-length introduction synthesizes content analysis as a systematic methodology for drawing replicable and valid inferences from texts, images, and other communicative materials. It is widely treated as a foundational reference that clarifies key concepts (e.g., unitizing, coding, reliability, and inference) and links practical procedures to methodological justification. For qualitative researchers, it helps turn “coding” into a defensible analytic process with explicit assumptions and quality criteria. For mixed-methods and quantitative users, it provides a shared framework for designing studies and evaluating claims based on coded data.
Methodological overview and guidance on designing and evaluating content analysis studies.
Basic familiarity with qualitative research design, coding practices, and general principles of measurement and inference.