Classification: grouping into categories

1
Classification grouping into categories

• Our minds naturally sort information into
  categories
• Where and when do you rely on classification?

2
Classification

• It helps writers and readers come to grips with
  large or complex topics
• It breaks a broad topic into categories according
  to some specific principle
• It presents the distinctive features of each
  category and shows how the features vary among
  categories
• Segmenting the topic simplifies the discussion by
  presenting information in small, neatly sorted
  piles rather than in one jumbled heap
• It helps people make choices (Identifying which
  groups of consumers are most likely to buy some
  new product etc.)

3
Selecting categories

• List situations where you rely on classification
• (types of teachers, doctors, cars, computer
  languages etc)
• How do you select categories?

4
Selecting categories

• Choose a principle of classification that is
  suited not only to your purpose but also to your
  audience
• Can you classify instructors according to their
  manner of dress, body build?
• List how you might be classified by the
  administration, financial aid, housing?
• How do the different purposes yield different
  categories?
• How do you divide categories into smaller
  categories? (one principle of categorization)

5
Classification

• Number of categories
• Some papers discuss every category included in
  the topic. Others discuss only selected
  categories
• Circumstances and purpose dictate the scope of
  the discussion
• How do you develop categories?

6
Developing categories

• Develop every category you include with specific,
  informative details that provide a clear picture
  of each one and help the reader grasp the
  distinctions and relationships among them.