The Language of Conflict in the Focus of Quantitative Content Analysis of the USA Press Reports (on the Example of New York Times Article Archive for the Period from 1851 to 2019)

Abstract

The presented article tests the application of the method of quantitative content analysis to identify the spread of confrontational tendencies in the public consciousness. It proves the broad possibilities of monitoring and forecasting conflicts in society on the basis of it. The source base of the study was the archives of the New York Times newspaper for the period from 1851 to 2019. The author calculated the number of used indicative conflict-containing lexemes, the integrated dynamics of which expresses the coefficient of confrontation. The coefficient of confrontation correlates with the dynamics of conflicts in the history of the United States and the world, explanations of the increase and decrease of the corresponding indicators are given. The maximum phases of the confrontation coefficient fall on the period of the Second World War and the modern period. Modern maximization is viewed as a significant threat to the security of Russian society.