Gerianne Merrigan, Carole L. Huston and Russell Johnston
Preface
Part I: The What and Why of Communication Research
1. Introduction to the Field of Communication
Communication and Cultural Theories
- Theory and Research Methods
- General Ways of Knowing
- Research as Argument
- Making Good Arguments
Audiences for
Communication and Cultural Research
- Professional Associations
- Scholarly Journals and Academic Presses
- Trade Journals and the Popular Press
Two Manuscripts: Research Reports and Critical Essays
- Research Reports
- Critical Essays
2. Ethics and Research
A Brief
History of Communication Ethics
Ethical Choices: Getting Started in Research
- Motives for Research Projects and Topics
- Rights and Responsibilities of Research Participants
- Reporting and Evaluating Research Ethically
3. Three Paradigms of Knowing
Methodological Ways of
Knowing
- Knowing by Discovery
- Knowing by Interpretation
- Knowing by Criticism
Philosophical Bases of the Three Paradigms
- Discovery Paradigm
- Interpretive Paradigm
- Critical Paradigm
4. Making Claims
The Process of Making Claims
Definition of
'Claim'
Types of Claims
- Descriptive Claims
- Explanatory and Predictive Claims
- Interpretive Claims
- Evaluative and Reformist Claims
5. What Counts as Data?
Outline
Introduction
Sources for Data Collection
- Texts
- Direct Observations
-
Self-reports
- Other-reports
Settings for Data Collection
Strategies for Data Collection
- Selecting Data Sources
- Random Selection Methods
- Non-random Selection Methods
- Selection Methods for Critical Studies
- Capturing Observed Interactions
- Capturing
Self-Reports and Other-Reports
Conceptual and Operational Definitions
Levels of Measurement
- Nominal Level
- Ordinal Level
- Interval Level
- Ratio Level
Research Design
- Changing Conceptions of Design
- Cross-Sectional Research Designs
- Longitudinal
Research Designs
- Triangulation
6. Warrants for Research Arguments
Discovery Paradigm Warrants
- Scientific Values: Precision, Power, and Parsimony
- Form of Argument: Demonstrating Causality
- Reliability as a Standard for Evaluating Evidence
- Validity as a Standard
for Evaluating Evidence
Interpretive Paradigm Warrants
- Interpretive Values: Subjectivity and Rich Description
- Form of Argument: Demonstrating Multiple Realities
- Researcher Credibility as a Standard for Evaluating Evidence
- Plausible Interpretations as a Standard for
Evaluating Evidence
- Transferable Findings as a Standard for Evaluating Evidence
Critical Paradigm Warrants
- Emancipatory Values: Voice and Liberation
- Form of Argument: Demonstrating Ideological Need for Change
- Coherence as a Standard for Evaluating Evidence
-
Researcher Positionality as a Standard for Evaluating Evidence
Three Views of Truth
- Discovery Paradigm
- Interpretive Paradigm
- Critical Paradigm
Part II: The How of Communication Research
7. Survey Research
Survey Research Claims
- Descriptive Claims
-
Explanatory Claims
Survey Research Data
- Sources for Data Collection
- Settings for Data Collection
- Survey Research Design
- Data Sampling Strategies
- Capturing Self-reports and Other-reports
- Instrumentation and the Measurement of Survey Data
Survey Research
Warrants
- Response Rates
- Establishing Valid Measurement
- Establishing Reliable Measurement
Ethical Issues in Survey Research
8. Content Analysis
Claims for Content Analysis
- Descriptive Claims
- Explanatory and Predictive Claims
Data for Content
Analysis
- Messages, Manifest Content and Latent Content
- Selecting a Representative Sample of Messages
- Collecting Texts
- Coding Texts for Content Analysis
Content Data Analysis
Warrants for Content Analysis
- Intercoder Reliability
- Validity of the Coding
Scheme
- External Validity
Ethical Issues in Content Analysis
9. Historical, Policy, and Case Analysis (NEW!)
Claims for Historical, Policy, and Case Analysis
- Descriptive and Interpretive Claims
- Explanatory Claims
- Evaluative and Reformist Claims
Data for
Historical, Policy, and Case Analysis
- Sources of Data
- Locating Sources
- Strategies for Analysis
Warrants for Historical. Policy, and Case Analysis
- Audit Trails
- Representativeness and Adequacy
- Coherence
10. Conversation and Discourse Analysis
The Roots
of Conversation and Discourse Analysis in Ethnomethodology
- Paradigm Affiliations
- Levels of Analysis
- Emphasis on Context in Analysis
Conversation Analytic Claims
- Turn Taking
- Adjacency Pairs
- Preference
- Repair
- Action Sequences
Discourse Analytic
Claims
- Describing and Interpreting Interactional Performances
- Describing and Interpreting Social Practices and Entities
Conversation and Discourse Analytic Data
- Collecting Interactive Discourse
- Transcribing Interactive Discourse
- Collecting Narrative Discourse
-
Determining the Unit of Analysis
- Analytic Induction
Conversation Analytic Warrants
- Transcription Veracity
- Detail Level
- Sample Representativeness
Discourse Analytic Warrants
- Researcher Credibility
- Plausible Interpretations
- Transferable
Findings
11. Ethnographic Research
Ethnographic Claims
- Descriptive Claims
- Interpretative Claims
- Evaluative and Reformist Claims
Ethnographic Data
- Sources for Data Collection
- Strategies for Data Collection
- Strategies for Data Analysis
- Some Ethical
Issues
Ethnographic Warrants
- Valuing Subjectivity and Rich Description
- Researcher Credibility
- Plausible Interpretations
- Transferable Findings
- Coherence and Researcher Positionality for Critical Research
12. Critical Studies
Critical Studies Claims
-
Describing, Evaluating, and Reforming Social Structures
- Evaluating and Reinventing Discourse Processes
Evidence in Critical Studies
- Actions and Events
- Texts
- Researchers' Experiences and Beliefs
Analytic Moves in Critical Studies
- Dialectic Analyses
-
Deconstruction
- Narrative Analyses
- Speech Act Analyses
Warrants for Critical Studies
- Establishing Coherence
- Establishing Researcher Positionality
Ethical Issues
13. Descriptive Statistics
Descriptive Statistical Analyses
- Sample Distribution
Characteristics
- Visual Representations of Variables
- Measures of Shape
Inferential Statistics
- Three Types of Distributions
- Estimation and Inference
- Testing Hypotheses
- Some Ethical Issues
14. Inferential Statistics
Tests of Differneces
-
Nonparametric Tests
- Parametric Tests
Tests of Relationships
- Measuring Covariance
- Measuring Causality
Two Ethical Issues
Glossary
Instructor's Manual:
For each chapter:
Chapter outline
2-4 student activities
3-5 discussion questions
2-3 recommended readings
3-5 annotated recommended web links
Test Bank:
For each chapter:
15-20 multiple-choice questions
10-15 true-or-false
questions
1-3 matching questions
8-10 fill-in-the-blank questions
3-6 long-answer questions
Answer keys for all questions with page references
Suggested answers for long-answer questions
PowerPoint Slides:
15-20 slides per chapter
Student Study Guide:
For
each chapter:
Chapter summary
Learning objectives
Glossary of key terms with page references
10 multiple-choice questions
15 true-or-false questions
5 short-answer questions
Answer key for all questions with page references
3-10 recommended readings
3-10
recommended web links and/or online videos
E-Book (ISBN 9780199000098):
Available through CourseSmart.com
Gerianne Merrigan is professor and chair of communication studies at San Francisco State University.
Carole L. Huston is professor of communication studies and associate dean for the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of San Diego.
Russell Johnston is an
associate professor in the Department of Communication, Popular Culture and Film at Brock University. He is a well-known and respected communications scholar who has been teaching communications methods for more than ten years. His research explores the history of cultural industries in Canada, and
he has documented the emergence of the modern advertising industry and related developments in the press, magazines, and radio. Among his publications are Selling Themselves: The Emergence of Canadian Advertising (UTP, 2001), and articles for the journals Media, Culture & Society; Mediascapes;
Canadian Historical Review; Acadiensis; and International Journal of Heritage Studies.
Mass Communication in Canada - Rowland Lorimer, Mike Gasher and David Skinner
Dictionary of Media and Communication - James Watson and Anne Hill
Social Research Methods - Alan Bryman, Edward Bell and The late James J. Teevan
The Research Process - Gary D. Bouma, Rod Ling and Lori Wilkinson
Quantitative Research Methods for Communication - Jason S. Wrench, Candice Thomas-Maddox, Virginia Peck Richmond and James C. McCroskey
Researching Communications - David Deacon, Michael Pickering, Peter Golding and Graham Murdock
Researching Audiences - Kim Schroder, Kristen Drotner, Stephen Kline and Catherine Murray
Making Sense in the Social Sciences - Margot Northey, Lorne Tepperman and Patrizia Albanese