This summary contains all information from the Methodology lectures, mandatory articles and the corresponding chapters of Treadwell’s book: “Introducing communication research”. Good luck :)!
W1, W2. Introduction & Starting your research | Chapter 1
Scientific research
starts with an interest in or question about phenomena, situations and
behaviour (RQ)
a literature review is used to find out what's already known about a certain
topic
provide its own attempt to describe or explain the
phenomenon/situation/behavior
may use various types of data to do so
only when research is reliable and valid we should believe an
explanation/description
Basic assumptions behind communication research
1. Observations capture/do not capture an underlying reality
The assumption is that what we choose to look at tells us
something about an underlying reality we cannot see but
assume exists.
For example, no one has ever actually seen an "attitude" or "power". What we
see is someone behaving in a particular way or responding to a set of survey
questions to capture this thing called "attitude".
2. Theories about human behaviour can/cannot be generalized
Summary Methodology 1
, The assumption is that theories about human behaviour can
be generalized.
To what extent can we assume people are basically like other people? →
Researchers will want to assume the result of their research will apply to people
who are similar to the study participants.
3. Researchers should/should not distance themselves from their
research participants
The assumption relates to the researcher's level of
engagement with their participants.
The more distant the observer becomes, the more neutral or dispassionate she
can be in reporting a group's behaviour, but she will be unable to get the insights
she would get if she were closer to the group. However, moving closer to the
group could lead to the researcher influencing group dynamics.
4. Research should/should not be done for a specific purpose
The assumption is about the purpose or reason that should
underlie research.
5. There is/is not one best position from which to observe human
behaviour
The assumption is that some aspects of a question are more
important to look at than others and, related, that there is one
best standpoint from which to observe human communication.
The telecommunications based model of communication (Shannon & Weaver,
1949) identifies major components in any human interaction:
Source - the provider or initiator of content
Message or messages - the content of communication
Summary Methodology 2
, Channel or medium - the vehicle for communication content (e.g. social
media)
Receiver(s) - the recipients or consumers of information
Noise - extraneous information or distractions that can disrupt an interaction
Context - the relationships between individuals, the situation in which the
interaction occurs, and the cultural norms around that interaction
However:
Source and receiver may swap roles as a discussion proceeds
What is noise to one party may be useful info to another
Unavoidable decisions
The following choices are almost inevitable for all types of researchers, based on
their theoretical predispositions and recourses.
1. The field of study → Wide or narrow?
A communication researcher focuses on one of the many specific interest
areas (page 14 in the book).
2. The researcher → Dispassionate or involved?
To what extent should researchers get involved with their human "subjects"?
→ The scientific tradition values objectivity and dispassionate observation.
→ Action research engages research to improve people's lives, so the
tradition is to be closely involved with people in order to better their lives
3. The approach → Objective or Subjective?
Social scientist often bring the assumption of an external "real" world
that can be observed, understood, and agreed on to the study of human
interaction
Phenomenologists and ethnographers try to understand people's
subjective worlds. They assume that concepts such as intelligence or
Summary Methodology 3
, loyalty are indeed just concepts and are defined subjectively by the
people they are researching.
4. The perspective → Your questions or their answers?
All research have a fundamental perspective that frames their research.
Two approaches:
Ask participants a series of specific (survey-type) questions. That will
provide an answer to the researcher's question, but does not capture
how participants feel about the subject.
Elicit respondent's views of the research subject in their own words
(a qualitative process).
5. The sample → Large or small?
How many people do you need to talk to in order to know that you have "an
accurate picture" of a communication phenomenon?
Public opinion researchers would use a large sample size
Small-sample sizes are more used for in-depth interview, to get more
understanding of how people communicate.
6. The data → Quantitative or qualitative?
Numbers are important; they are how democracies and committees make
decisions (voting).
The "truth" can be better understood by listening to what research
participants and researchers themselves have to tell us.
7. The report → Subjective or objective?
Researchers interested in interpreting the subjective world of their
informants report what their informants have to tell them in their
informants' own words
Social science researchers use statistics to report and interpret the data
they have collected.
Summary Methodology 4
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