Beyond semiotics and hermeneutics

Abstract

Purpose -This paper contends that the central question in understanding consumers' experiences is not what is said (lexical analysis) or why (ideological analysis), but how consumers relate these experiences. The purpose is to present a method called discourse analysis (DA) to examine consumers' narratives. This interdisciplinary perspective advantageously complements the lexical, content analytic or semiotic approaches traditionally used in marketing. Design/methodology/approach -In order to show the potential of DA as a method to analyze qualitative data, the paper reports on a research concerning consumers' shopping experiences. Data used stemmed from in-depth interviews that are analyzed through a critical DA informed by discursive psychology and foucauldian approaches. Findings -DA allows marketers grasping the experiential value of shopping activities by depicting these experiences as ongoing constructions which meaning is constantly reinterpreted. DA also gives access to the various ways informants' manage their identity through narration. Hence, it challenges the simplistic dichotomy between consumers and producers and allows marketers to look at consumers as co-producers of their lived experience. Given the scope of the study, the obtained results are situated and further researches should be conducted to critically analyze various types of discourses, produced by different actors. This paper shows the potential of DA in analyzing qualitative material. DA could be usefully employed to grasp the thoughts and feelings of the consumers. Rather than solely conducting lexical and/or semiotic analyses, marketers could use DA as a complementary investigation tool. Originality/value -Through DA, this paper suggests new ways for seeking knowledge about the consumers and the market. To this end, it presents DA principles and shows that it is too often neglected by marketers trying to analyze consumers' narratives.

A Discourse Analysis of Accounting Syllabuses to Assess the Extent of Curriculum Change: The Case of Lesotho General Certificate of Secondary Education

“…However, in the present study, it was applied within the qualitative context, analyzing qualitative or textual form of the two syllabi documents (Oliveira, 2015;Vaismoradi et al, 2013). Its adoption was based on the assumption that the content of the two syllabuses communicates meanings that can be understood by the readers (Eco, 1985 cited by Sitz, 2008). Content analysis has been used together with discourse analysis to interpret textual data (Ocler, 2009).…”

A Study of Poppies in October by Sylvia Plath from the Lens of Critical Discourse Analysis

“…Discourse is merely a method of framing, interpreting and viewing the physical world. Critical discourse analysis is the political and social approach of discourse analysis that investigates the technical connotations of words in theory and practice.The fact that it challenges the taken-for-granted nature of language is the primary benefit of discourse analysis (Sitz, 2008). As a result, it can investigate how organizational language reveals subtle shifts in values and priorities, reveals how documents may appear to have a positive agenda to the reader but actually serves a much darker purpose and encourages a more qualitative, interpretative perspective on an areas like company reports that has previously only been the subject of quantitative methods.…”