The article discusses the concept of frame and some of its analytic operationalizations. Starting with a reflection about the roots of the notion of frame in the works of Gregory Bateson and Erving Goffman, three investigative approaches deriving from it are subjected to analysis: (1) micro-sociological studies centered in the analysis of interactive situations; (2) discursive content analysis; and (3) framing effects analysis. To conclude, the article discusses some risks and possibilities emerging from this diversified set of approaches. It is emphasized the need of perspectives attentively concerned with the inter-subjective and social dimension of framings.
Framing; Erving Goffman; Qualitative methodology