ASIMeC analysis scheme for coding message characteristics and role adoption

Research Method · All research methods
Evidence · 2 claims (2 for) · 1 study (1 causal), q3 · 0 of 1 report an effect size · 2 claims rest on one study

Description

ASIMeC is a content analysis scheme developed by the authors to identify message characteristics along five dimensions: moderating, summarising, adding new discussion points, adding theory, and adding external information. Unlike the Gunawardena et al. (1997) interaction analysis model, it "is specifically related to the different roles", and was developed "to provide more information about the actual role adoption in the discussion groups". Each unit of analysis (the complete message) receives a code along each dimension, with ordered categories such as mentioning versus actively discussing theory or sources. Krippendorff's alpha reliabilities ranged from 0.59 to 0.75 across dimensions.

Accounts

• ASIMeC — analysis scheme identifying message characteristics along five dimensions: ASIMeC is a content analysis scheme developed by the authors to identify message characteristics along five dimensions: moderating, summarising, adding new discussion points, adding theory, and adding external information. Unlike the Gunawardena et al. (1997) interaction analysis model, it "is specifically related to the different roles", and was developed "to provide more information about the actual role adoption in the discussion groups". Each unit of analysis (the complete message) receives a code along each dimension, with ordered categories such as mentioning versus actively discussing theory or sources. Krippendorff's alpha reliabilities ranged from 0.59 to 0.75 across dimensions. (De Wever et al. (2007))

Claims

• Messages mentioning or discussing theory, containing minor or extensive summaries, or including content moderating reflect significantly higher levels of knowledge construction. [+M]
• Messages merely mentioning sources, containing organisational moderating, or introducing new points reflect significantly lower levels of knowledge construction, while discussing sources shows no significant difference. [+M]

Related Research Methods

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Key Sources

• De Wever, B., Van Keer, H., Schellens, T., & Valcke, M. (2007). Applying multilevel modelling to content analysis data: Methodological issues in the study of role assignment in asynchronous discussion groups. Learning and Instruction, 17, 436-447. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.learninstruc.2007.04.001

Page metadata

Field	Value
type	research-method
id	asimec-analysis-scheme-for-coding-message-characteristics-and-role-adoption
title	ASIMeC analysis scheme for coding message characteristics and role adoption
description	ASIMeC is a content analysis scheme developed by the authors to identify message characteristics along five dimensions: moderating, summarising, adding new discussion points, adding theory, and adding external information.
status	review
generated	by process:settle-candidates on 2026-10-22
trust	unverified — no one has confirmed this page's content

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