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Introducing Communication Research 2e © 2014 SAGE Publications
Chapter FourReading Research: To Boldly Go Where Others Have Gone Before
Key Concepts
•Relevance vs. quality.
•Primary vs. secondary sources.
•Scholarly vs. trade vs. popular publications.
•Search engines vs. databases.
•Boolean search terms.
•Literature review.
Introducing Communication Research 2e © 2014 SAGE Publications
Bibliographic Research: Why?
•Build a foundation for your research.
•Get help with methods.
•Anticipate ethical issues.
•See standards for language, style and format.
Introducing Communication Research 2e © 2014 SAGE Publications
What We Want From a Literature Search
•Relevant information - ▫For insight on your research interest.
and•Quality information -
▫Credible▫Reliable, ▫Written to scholarly standards.
Introducing Communication Research 2e © 2014 SAGE Publications
How Do We Find Quality Information?
Prefer databases to search engines.
•Database example - ▫Communication and Mass Media
Complete(access through academic library)
•Search engine examples – ▫Dogpile, Google, Ask
(access through Web)Introducing Communication Research 2e © 2014 SAGE Publications
Primary vs. Secondary Sources
•Primary▫What the author originally wrote.▫Has references and method detail.
•Secondary▫How someone else interpreted the
author.▫Lacks the original detail.
Introducing Communication Research 2e © 2014 SAGE Publications
Scholarly, Trade, Popular Publications: What’s the Difference?
Scholarly Trade PopularWritten by Scholars Practitioners Journalists
Frequency Quarterly
Monthly
Monthly
Weekly
Weekly
Daily
Articles reviewed by -
Peer review Editor Editor
Citations, method details
Yes Maybe No
Title Journal of . . . “. . . News” Variable
Publisher Academic Trade Assn. News media
Introducing Communication Research 2e © 2014 SAGE Publications
Some Communication Search Terms
Introducing Communication Research 2e © 2014 SAGE Publications
Bibliographic Resources
•Catalogs•Dictionaries•Encyclopedias•Indexes•Annuals, yearbooks•Handbooks•Abstracts•Census.gov
Introducing Communication Research 2e © 2014 SAGE Publications
Assessing Quality of Publications• Author credentials - Prof., Dr., Ph.D.• Author affiliation - university, corporation,
“think tank”.• Date of publication. • Edition.• Publisher.• Title.• Intended audience.• Objectivity – subjectivity. • Coverage – comprehensive or selective.• Citations.• Writing Style – popular, technical, scholarly.• Reviews - if any.
Introducing Communication Research 2e © 2014 SAGE Publications
Assessing Quality of Websites
In addition to publication criteria – • URL - .gov, .edu, .org, .com. • Site explains why content is accepted or
rejected? • What people or organization wrote the page? • What contact information is provided?• Can you verify information on the site? • How old are documents on the site?• If you search for similar sites, what type of
information do you get?
Introducing Communication Research 2e © 2014 SAGE Publications
Boolean Searches
OR - NOT - ANDExample - Hits
▫Communication 112619▫Feminist 1245
▫Communication OR feminist 113232▫Communication NOT feminist 111987▫Communication AND feminist 632
Introducing Communication Research 2e © 2014 SAGE Publications
Saving and Reporting Information Source Information –
▫Book – author, title, date, edition, publisher.
▫Journal Article – article title, journal title, date, volume, issue number, page numbers.
▫For any direct quotes needed page numbers from book or journal.
For websites, above plus –▫URL (web address).▫Date you downloaded the information.
Introducing Communication Research 2e © 2014 SAGE Publications
Saving and Reporting Study Details•Participants –
▫Who or what was studied. •Method –
▫How research was conducted.•Results –
▫What have you discovered?•Conclusions –
▫So what?•Unique aspects –
▫what is so special about the study?
Introducing Communication Research 2e © 2014 SAGE Publications
The Literature Review•Narrative that pulls together research you
have read into a rationale for YOUR study.
•Structure – chronological or pro/con.
•Format – introduction-body-conclusion.
•Cites all work you have read using a scholarly style such as APA, MLA or Chicago.
Introducing Communication Research 2e © 2014 SAGE Publications
Vocabulary Review
Introducing Communication Research 2e © 2014 SAGE Publications
Web Resources
•American Psychological Association - www.apa.org.
•Library of Congress Subject Headings - www.loc.gov/catdir/cpso/lcco
•Evaluating Web Sites - www.library.cornell.edu/olinuris/ref/research/webeval.html
Introducing Communication Research 2e © 2014 SAGE Publications