Coding Action

The first step is to upload a video clip into the software program, name the file and create a transcript. For nexus analysis, create an action transcript of mediated actions by identifying and typing descriptions of actions with tools into the transcript window. In this example, the focal mediated action is cutting with scissors. Each cut is made up of a sequence of small physical actions (inserting fingers into looped handles, positioning the roll of tape, squeezing the blades together around the tape, and so on). An action (e.g., a cut) is the unit of analysis, made up of the sequence of smaller actions (e.g., from the positioning of scissors until the scissors snip off a piece of tape).

In a typical print transcription, describing each little action becomes quite detailed and lengthy as in the transcript pasted into the transcription window above. However, this transcript could have been much more abbreviated. In an action transcript supported by video analysis software, the verbal description of each action can be very brief because you can always refer to the video and map the analysis and codes directly to specific places on the video. The software will allow you to break the transcribed video into individual clips for each sequence or unit of analysis. For example, in the action sequence for Cut 4, the first few clips could have easily been marked just as:

Clip 01—crumples tape between scissors blades
Clip 02—dangles roll of tape
Clip 03—sticks tape to paper while humming Darth Vader theme
Clip 04—catches tape as it rolls off table

Time stamps (red asterisks) mark the starting point for each small action clip that will map the written transcription to the particular places on the video where instances to be coded begin.