Transcript Intro to Methods

Communication Research:
Asking Questions, Creating Answers
“A discipline defines itself by the
integrity of its research”
John Reinard
Professional Associations for the Communication
Discipline/ Learned Associations
International Communication Association
ICA
National Communication Association
NCA
Central States Communication Association Southern States Communication Association
CSCA
SSCA
Interpersonal Communication Division
Health Communication Division
Organizational Communication Division
Communication Theory Division
Eastern Communication Association
ECA
Western States Communication Association
WSCA
Native (Everyday) Ways of
Knowing
Everyday Inquiry
• Agreement
• Tradition
• Experts/Authority
• Direct observation
Common Fallacies
• Inaccurate
observation
• Overgeneralization
• Selective observation
• Illogical reasoning
Research as a way of knowing
(logic and observation)
• Research: Systematic effort to secure
empirically-based answers to questions
– Ways of developing knowledge claims about the
world
• Methods: Particular strategies/tools researchers
use to collect data/evidence
• Theory: Set of inter-related concepts,
definitions, and propositions that present a
systematic view of phenomenon
Marie Thompson, A.B.D.
Research Questions
• RQ1: How do veterans narrate
trauma, vulnerability and healing?
• RQ2: How do family members
narrate trauma, vulnerability and
healing?
“The road to reintegration has been
paved with a lot of blood, sweat,
tears, and … [droppings]…
along the way”
(Name, mother of _____)
“I think I had to
become hard… that’s the only way
to protect yourself
... was to become
almost cold ... so
you won’t have to
feel the pain”
• Academic research
– Uncover patterns in people’s communicative
lives in order to develop, enlarge, or test
theory
• Proprietary research
– Commissioned by an individual or
organization for its own use
– Typically intended only for the use of whoever
pays for the research (e.g., NRC; IPAC)
The Process of Proposing
Research
1. Identifying the research problem
•
•
Personal experiences
Ideas from the media
2. Conducting review of literature/establish
rationale
3. Determine your purpose
1.
2.
3.
4.
Describe behavior
Determine causes
Predict
Understand/explain
Contd
4. Formulate research question
(hypotheses)
5. Formulate research design
•
•
Time dimension (e.g., cross-sectional,
cohort study, panel studies)
Space dimension (e.g., field-dependent
research)
6. Writing Proposal
Models of Research
Quantitative
Rhetorical Criticism
Deductive
•Theory guides investigation
•Gather data to assess whether
theory is correct
•Move from known position to
data
Qualitative
Inductive
•Gather and analyze data framed
around research question
•Formulate hypotheses and
theories based on data
•Move from specific data to more
general explanation