Research METHODS
There are several ways of knowing:
It is not just the movement between
the concepts or theories that make generalizations and specific real-world
observations that test characterize science. It is the manner of testing
theories in a way that allows them to be falsified if they are wrong.
It is the testing of theories that is the hallmark of science. To try to
develop objectivity, it is preferred that these tests rely on measurement.
Communication
is a field that relies on a variety of research methods. These include:
-
CONTENT ANALYSIS
of existing messages
-
INTERVIEWS including
focus groups, and other in depth techniques
-
SURVEYS of existing
behaviors
-
EXPERIMENTS that
manipulate what people see or hear.
Each method has its own strengths and
weaknesses. Where practical, it is often advisable to use a variety of
research methods to compare results. Even conflicting results can provide
useful information.
When measurements and other numerical
data are used, statistical techniques are used to examine the size of observed
differences. Because there is usually variability in the underlying phenomenon
as well as error in measurement, statistics allow scientists to calculate
how large the observed difference in the sample is. This is usually examined
in terms of how sure we can be that the difference is not due to chance.
A common standard is that observed differences should be likely to occur
by chance fewer than one time in 20. This is usually abbreviated as "p
< .05"
I cover much more on research methods
in my research methods class.