A hands-on guide for applying research methods to common problems, issues, projects, and questions that communication practitioners deal with on a regular basis, this text demonstrates the relevance of research in professional roles and communication and media careers.
The second edition features updated material that covers major communication research methods including surveys, experiments, focus groups, and observation research while also providing key background information on ethics, validity, reliability, concept explication, statistical analysis, and other current topics. It continues to foster student engagement with research through its numerous features and practical activities, including:
- Research in Depth—examples of methods as applied in scholarly research
- Reflect & React—problems and issues that promote reflection and discussion
- Voices from Industry—Q&As with professionals working in communication industries
- End-of-Unit Activities—exercises that reinforce concepts and content
The text is ideally suited to both undergraduate and graduate courses in mass communication research methods.
Online resources, including sample syllabi, PowerPoint slides, and test banks are available on the companion website: www.routledge.com/cw/boyle.
Table of Contents:
1. Basic principles of research and a guide to using the book 2. Basic concepts of research 3. Scholarly research and the creation of knowledge 4. Ethical research 5. Concept explication and measurement 6. Reliability and validity 7. Effective measurement 8. Sampling 9. Experiments and threats to validity 10. Survey research 11. Content analysis 12. Qualitative research 13. Approaches to qualitative data analysis 14. Descriptive statistics 15. Principles of inferential statistics 16. Multivariate inferential statistics
About the Author :
Michael P. Boyle is a Professor in the Department of Communication and Media at West Chester University, USA.
Mike Schmierbach is an Associate Professor in the Donald P. Bellisario College of Communications at The Pennsylvania State University, USA.
