introducing communication research 2e © 2014 sage publications chapter two first decisions: what?...

Introducing Communication Research 2e © 2014 SAGE Publications

Chapter TwoFirst Decisions: What? Why? How?

Key Concepts Researchers differ in –•Basic assumptions about communication

(ontology and World View).

•Views on how communication should be understood (epistemology).

•Views on how theory and research relate.

•Reasons for doing research and therefore –

•Their research methods.


Starting Points for Research ▫What? – interest area.

▫Why? – reasons for research.

▫How? – method decision.

▫World View – basic assumptions.

▫Work of others – “the literature”.

▫Research questions

▫HypothesesIntroducing Communication Research 2e © 2014 SAGE Publications

Starting With a Question:Linking Theory and Observation

•Induction – reasoning from observations to a theory that explains the observations.

•Deduction – reasoning from a theory to observations that will test the theory.


Inductive vs. Deductive Reasoning


Deductive Reasoning


Starting with a Purpose:Why do Research?

•Exploration

•Description

•Explanation

•Prediction

•Control

•Interpretation

•Criticism


Starting With a World ViewWorld View I• Human communication is objectively

measurable and can be summarized in rules. •“Nomothetic” approach

World View II •Human communication is subjective,

individualistic and must be described as such.

•“Idiographic” approach.


Starting With a Method

•Surveys

•Experiments

•Observations

•Interviews

•Focus groups

•Content analysis


Starting Without a Question

•“I don’t know what’s going on.”

•“I am making no assumptions.”

•“My methods and findings will change as my study progresses.”


Epistemology is the investigation of what distinguishes justified belief

from opinion.

Tenacity – “We’ve always done it that way.”

Intuition – “It just seems right.”Authority – “Because X said so.”

Empiricism – “Because I’ve seen it.”

Scientific method – observation and testing.

Serendipity – the accidental breakthrough.


Ontologyis the philosophical study of the nature of being, becoming, existence, or reality, as well as the basic categories of being and their relations.

•What really is it?

▫What is an attitude?

▫Do we ever make real choices?

▫Is human experience individual or social?


Sources of Inspiration

•Mental experiments (“what if?).

•Other researchers.

•Personal interest.

•Books, journals, databases.

•Conferences and meetings.


Hypothesesa supposition or proposed explanation made on the basis of limited

evidence as a starting point for further investigation.

•Two-tailed (non-directional) “There is a relationship between A and B.”

•One-tailed (directional)

“As A increases; B decreases.”

•Null

“There is no relationship.”


Research Questions

Open-ended (non-directional) –

“Is there a relationship between video gaming and academic performance?”

Closed-ended (directional) –

“Does academic performance decline as involvement in video gaming increases?”


Operationalizing Constructs

Constructs

Involvement in Gaming Academic Performance

Operationalizing the Constructs

Time spent on gaming Class rank

Money spent on gaming Number of academic awards

Number of online “personas” or avatars

Grade point average


Stanford Prison Experiment


Web Resources• Communication Research - http://crx.sagepub.com/

• The Visual Communication Concept Explorer & Idea Monkey - www.cios.org

• International Communication Association - http://www.icahdq.org

• National Communication Association - www.natcom.org

• Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication -

www.aejmc.org


introducing communication research 2e © 2014 sage publications chapter two first decisions: what?...

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