ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Commun.
Sec. Visual Communication
Coding the Ocean: Methodological Reflections on Image-Based Grounded Theory and Visual Content Analysis in Children's Marine-Themed Drawings
Provisionally accepted
- 1National Academy of Marine Research (NAMR), Kaohsiung, Taiwan
- 2National Museum of Marine Biology and Aquarium, Pingtung, Taiwan
- 3National Kaohsiung Normal University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan
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This study integrates image-based grounded theory (IBGT), content analysis, and hermeneutics to examine 954 children’s drawings from a national competition. Utilizing a four-phase analytical framework—compiling, disassembling, reassembling, and interpreting—the research identifies 39 subcodes across three thematic dimensions. Findings reveal significant age and gender differences: younger children favor imaginative, emotionally expressive imagery, while older children depict more functional and socially interactive scenarios. Methodologically, this research overcomes "textual bias" by treating visual data as primary evidence. Theoretically, it introduces "Visual Ocean Literacy," positioning the "ship" as a symbolic link between humans and the sea. The results highlight gaps in marine industry awareness, offering critical insights for developing differentiated marine education curricula tailored to children’s cognitive development.
Keywords: Artistic interpretation of the art form, Children's drawings, Content analysis-qualitative, Image-Based Grounded theory (IBGT), marine education, Ocean Awareness, Ocean Literacy (OL)
Received: 22 Dec 2025; Accepted: 08 Jan 2026.
Copyright: © 2026 HOU, Cheng, Wu and Liu. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: TING-YU HOU
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