Topical analysis in Relative Insight

When analysing a comparison, Relative Insight identifies differences, frequencies and similarities across topics, phrases, words, emotions and grammar.

This article covers the important things to know about topical analysis:

• What is a topic?

• What topics can Relative Insight identify?

• How are topics identified?

• Renaming topics

What is a topic?

A topic is a classification under which words are grouped, based on a shared theme or mental concept.

For example, the topic 'parts of buildings' contains words such as room, bedroom, ceiling and hundreds of similar words and phrases.

What topics can Relative Insight identify?

Relative Insight uses a topic hierarchy that consists of 21 top-level categories and over 250 sub-categories that cover a broad range of domains.

The 21 top-level categories are:

• General and Abstract Terms

• The Body and the Individual

• Arts and Crafts

• Emotional Actions, States and Processes

• Food and Farming

• Government and the Public Domain

• Architecture, Buildings, Houses and the Home

• Money and Commerce

• Entertainment

• Life and Living Things

• Movement, Location, Travel and Transport Travelling

• Numbers and Measurement

• Substances, Materials, Objects and Equipment

• Education

• Linguistic Actions, States and Processes

• Social Actions, States and Processes

• Time

• The World and Our Environment

• Psychological Actions, States and Processes

• Science and Technology

• Names and Grammatical Words

How are topics identified?

Words are imprecise and can take on different meanings in different contexts. Consider the word 'spring' that can be used as a verb, a season, a mechanical component or a body of water. This underscores the importance of analysing text in a way that considers not just a specific linguistic feature but also the words and phrases that surround it.

Relative Insight does this through a combination of predefined classifications and machine learning that enables the platform to make informed judgements about the topic(s) present in a text.

Renaming topics

When exploring the results of a comparison, you can choose to rename topics. Any changes will be reflected on any insight cards where the particular topic(s) are present.

1. From the comparison explorer, use the filters to view topics

   

2. Hover over the topic you wish to rename and select the pencil icon

   

3. Enter your preferred label for the topic and click 'Save'