Communication Research Methods CommRC 0700
Course Syllabus Fall 2013 Dr. Patty Wharton Michael
Office Location: 200C Biddle Hall
Office Hours: Tuesday & Thursday 8:00-9:25a.m. Phone: 814-269-7983
Email: [email protected]
Required Textbook: Communication Research: Asking Questions, Finding Answers, by Keyton, J. (2011).
Recommended Text: From Numbers to Words: Reporting Statistical Results for the Social Sciences, by Morgan, S., Reichert, T., & Harrison.
Course Goals: The primary goals of this course are:
! To introduce students to research methods used in the social sciences, particularly those implemented within the communication discipline. ! To enable students to distinguish between the differing epistemological
assumptions of existing research paradigms.
! To enable students to locate, analyze and evaluate social science research reported in both scholarly and mainstream publications.
! To enable students to design, conduct, and present research projects by forming research questions/hypothesis, and by selecting appropriate analysis strategies to examine those questions.
Class Attendance:
Regular attendance and active participation in group discussions will contribute greatly to learning course material, and therefore attendance is expected for every class. Although class attendance it not taken through roll call, this course utilizes many in class exercises and activities for which students are awarded credit. If you are absent, you are unable to make up this credit. Students will loose 10 points from the final Research Proposal grade for each missed in-class group workshop provided. Make-up exams or assignments will only be given when the instructor receives prior notice to class in the case of a religious holiday or if documentation is provided for illness or emergency.
Grading: Participation 10% Journal Critique 5% Quizzes 20% Final Exam 20% Literature Review 15% Research Proposal 20% Poster 10%
Exercise & Research Participation: 10%
Students are expected to 1) regularly attend class, 2) participate in group activities and exercises, and 3) provide constructive feedback on students’ projects. A portion of your research participation grade in this course is derived from the quality of your
participation in providing feedback and working in groups. Students will engage in multiple activities and exercises during class. Therefore, this course employs both self and peer evaluations forms to report on student’s individual contributions within the class, group exercises, and final group projects. Students are also expected to provide feedback for fellow students’ critiques. Credit will be given based on the QUALITY (rather than quantity) of feedback and discussion provided.
Critiques: 5%
Research critiques are meant to achieve the third goal stated above. Students will take turns presenting a critique of a communication research articles during class meetings. Each student is expected to distribute a handout and make a five to seven minute presentation of the article in the class, followed by five minutes of questions from the instructor and fellow classmates. Students will be graded on their ability to: 1) identify the concepts and research questions, 2) describe the methods utilized, 3) interpret results, and 3) critique the research.
Quizzes: 20%
During the course of the semester, there will be several short quizzes to evaluate students’ comprehension of the course readings and materials. You will be assigned readings from the textbook and will need to read these BEFORE coming to class. Class time will focus on topics and issues that are more complex to clarify difficult concepts. This means we will not go over everything you read in the chapter. This procedure will help us to avoid spending inordinate amounts of class time in lectures of materials that are covered in the readings. The quizzes are spaced out through the semester in order to break the course material into manageable pieces and help you read the textbook in a systematic fashion. Quizzes are due by 9:30 a.m. the day the reading/chapter is listed. Final Exam: 20%
A cumulative final will be administered. Literature Review: 15%
Students will choose a communication-related research topic and conduct a literature review for a proposed final research project for this course. Working in groups of three, students will provide an overview of how their topic has been previously researched and discussed in previous literature.
Final Group Project/Poster: 20% /10%
Students, working in groups of three, will build upon their literature review by creating a final research project proposal for this course. Student will design a study that employs one of the major methodologies discussed in this class (i.e. experiments, survey, etc.). Students will formulate a research question/hypothesis and develop an instrument for
data collection. Details for the final group project will be provided throughout the semester. As mentioned earlier, peer and self-evaluation will be utilized to assign grades for student’s contribution to the projects. Projects will be graded on the quality of the literature review, research question, methods section, and discussion section (e.g. limitations and future research, and oral presentation. A separate grade will be given for the poster that represents the research.
Academic Integrity:
Academic integrity is the pursuit of scholarly and creative activity in an open, honest, and responsible manner, free from fraud and deception. Cheating, including plagiarism, falsification of research data, turning in someone else’s work, or passively allowing others to copy your work, will result in academic penalties at the discretion of the instructor, and may result in the grade of “F” being put on your permanent transcript. In serious cases, it could also result in suspension or dismissal from the university.
Support Services:
If you have a disability for which you are or may be requesting an accommodation, you are encouraged to contact both your instructor and the Office of Health and Counseling Services, G-10 Student Union, 814-269-7119 as early as possible in the term. The Office of Health and Counseling Services will verify your disability and determine reasonable accommodations for this course.
Note:
" If class is canceled, it is your responsibility to check Blackboard for instructions and assignments. Postings may be made up until midnight of the day of
cancellation.
" You MUST check your Pitt email account each day. If you use another email account you may consider forwarding your email from one account to the other. " When you communicate through email, please remember you are not sending a
text. Use a greeting and sign your name after the message as you would in any professional communication message. Please also indicate the course and time section that you attend.
" All assignments (including homework assignments) should be handed in typed. " Cell phones must be on a silent ringer and absolutely NO TEXTING during class.
If you are texting, you are not participating in class, and you will receive a deduction in your participation grade for this course.
" Students are expected to respect each other and the instructor by paying attention and not speaking during presentations. Failure to do so will result in a penalty of participation grade.
Tentative Schedule
Week 1 August 27 Introduction to the Course
August 29 Chapter 1, Introduction to Communication Research
Week 2 September 3 Chapter 2, The Research Process Getting Started Quiz Due Chapter 1 & 2
September 5 Chapter 5, Research Ethics
IRB Module Training Certificate Due Discussion Research Topics
Week 3 September 10 Chapter 3 Introduction to Quantitative Research Quiz Due Chapter 3
September 12 Chapter 4, Introduction to Qualitative Research Quiz Due Chapter 4
Week 4 September 17 Library Demo
September 19 Chapter 6, Measurements
Quiz Due Chapter 6
Week 5 September 24 Chapter 7, Populations, Samples, and Sample Size Quiz Due Chapter 7
Assignment 1 Due at the beginning of class (Annotated Bibliography-minimum 12 sources)
September 26 Writing Literature Reviews Read: 319-322
NOTE: Bring APA Manuel to class (if possible)
Week 6 October 1 Chapter 8, Quantitative Research Designs Submit Research Questions/ Hypothesis During Class Quiz Due Chapter 8
October 3 Chapter 9, Surveys & Questionnaires Quiz Due Chapter 9
Week 7 October 8 In-Class Workshop
Feedback on Research Questions/Hypothesis During Class Assignment 2 Due at the beginning of class
(Rational)
October 10 Chapter 13 Quantitative Analysis of Text Quiz Due Chapter 13
Week 8 October 15 FALL BREAK ☺
October 17 Chapter 14, Qualitative Communication Research Chapter 15, Qualitative Methods of Data Collection Week 9 October 22 Qualitative Continued
October 24 Chapter 10, Descriptive Statistics, Significance Levels, and Hypothesis Testing
Quiz Due Chapter 10
Week 10 October 29 Chapter 11, Testing for Differences Quiz Due Chapter 11
***Literature Review DUE
October 31 Chapter 17, Reading and Writing the Quantitative Research Report
Week 11 November 5 Chapter 18, Reading and Writing the Qualitative….
November 7 Work Day: Development of Study Materials Assignment 3 (Research Materials)
Week 12 November 12 Assignment 4 (Methods Section)
Consultation: Group Meetings
November 14 3 Copies of Rough Draft of Research Proposal Due Poster Requirement Review-Meeting in computer lab Week 13 November 19 Consultations
November 21 Workshop Week 14 November 26 Exam Review
November 28 Thanksgiving Recess
Week 15 December 3 Group Presentation-Paper Due/Poster December 5 Group Presentation-Paper Due/Poster *Date for Cumulative Final will be announced
Communication Research Methods-Article Critiques
September 10:Names___________________________________________________________ Introduction to Quantitative Research
Davis, K. L. (2012). With or without you: The absence of fathers and affection received from mothers as predictors of men’s affection with their romantic partners. Florida Communication Journal, 40(1), 29-45.
September 12:
Names___________________________________________________________ Introduction to Qualitative Research
Staggers, S. M., Brann, M., Maki, S. M. (2012). Let’s talk about HPV: Examining college male perceptions of the HPV Vaccine. Qualitative Research Reports in Communication, 13(1), 28-36.
September 19:
Names___________________________________________________________ Measurements
Earnheardt, A. C., Haridakis, P. M. (2009). An examination of fan-athlete interaction: Fandom, parasocial interaction: and identification. Ohio Communication Journal, 47, 27-53.
September 24:
Names___________________________________________________________ Populations, Samples, and Sample Size
Miller, S., Clinton, M. S., & Camey, J. P. (2007). The relationship of motivators, needs, and involvement factors to preferences for military recruitment slogans. Journal of Advertising Research, 47(1), 66-78.
October 1:
Names___________________________________________________________ Quantitative Research Designs
Kim, N. Y., & Sundar, S. (2010). Relevance to the rescue: Can ‘smart ads’ reduce negative response to online ad clutter? Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, 87(2), 346-362.
October 3:
Names___________________________________________________________ Surveys & Questionnaires
Shin, D., & Kim, J. K. (2011). Alcohol product placements and the Third-Person Effect. Television & New Media, 12(5), 412-440.
October 10:
Names___________________________________________________________ Quantitative Analysis of Text
Biswas, M. (2013). Health organizations’ use of social media tools during a pandemic situation: An H1N1 flu context. Journal of New Communications Research, 5(1), 46-81. October 17:
Names___________________________________________________________ Qualitative Communication Research
Jayasinghe. L., & Ritson, M. (2013). Everyday advertising context: An ethnography of advertising response in the living room. Journal of Communication Research, 40(1). 104-121.
October 24:
Names___________________________________________________________ Descriptive Statistics
McKinney, B., Kelly L. & Duran, R. (2012). Narcissism or openness?: Students’ use of Facebook and Twitter. Communication Research Reports, 29(2), 108-118.
October 29:
Names___________________________________________________________ Testing for Differences
Cohen, J., Mutz, D., Price, V., & Gunther, A. (1988). Perceived impact of defamation. Public Opinion Quarterly. 52(2)
