"What is research?" (Question Pro)
In the communication field, scholars first make a theory or a research question and then use good research methods in order to produce data that supports it. There are seven basic steps to research. 1.) Find a focus of the research develop a research question; 2.) Define key terms. 3.) Select a suitable research method 4.) Set up a sample population or data set. 5.) Gather and analyze data, and 7.) Interpret and share the results. There are three main research methodologies that scholars use to do this. Rhetorical methodologies, quantitative methods, and qualitative methods.
Rhetorical Methodology
The rhetorical method is a sophisticated and refined way to evaluate messages. Rhetorical methods offer unique views of understanding messages and their effects where no view is correct over another. There are several main types of rhetorical methodologies. Neo-Aristotelian, fantasy-theme, narrative, pentadic, feminist, and ideological. Neo-Aristotelian criticism uses the ideas of the philosopher, Aristotle, to examine rhetorical acts. Fantasy-theme criticism focuses on groups. In particular analyzing group messages that come out of social movements. Narrative criticism focuses on different parts of stories including the plot and setting to get a better understanding of the people telling these stories. Pentadic criticism uses the elements of pentad developed by Kenneth Burke to discover who, what, when, and why in relation to the communicator's motives for their actions. Feminist criticism is used to research how women’s perspectives are often absent or discredited because of the oppression of patriarchy. Finally, ideological methods draw from diverse schools of thought to examine values, beliefs, and ethics and explain why dominant groups or systems are kept or challenged through rhetoric.
"Rhetorical Methodologies" (Lumen)
Quantitative Methodology
The next major methodology is quantitative. This method is about counting communication phenomena through numerical data. There are four types of quantitative methods. Experimental research, survey research, content analysis, and meta-analysis. The experimental research approach uses the principles of research to experiment with different aspects of human behavior. This means that experiments include a control group and an experimental group. The control group is where no variables change, and the experiment group is where the variables are changed. The groups are then watched to see if the changing of the variables affects the results in any way. The second type of quantitative method is survey research. This research method is where a sample population is asked questions and their answers are put into numerical values using tables, charts, graphs, and/or percentages. This data is then used to find certain results. The third type of quantitative method is content analysis. This method is used by researchers to account for the number of occurrences in what they are studying. Researchers often look at movies, commercials, television shows, and magazines to explore potential effects. The final type of quantitative method is meta-analysis. This uses existing statistics to examine the patterns in particular lines of research over time.
"Quantitative Methods" (Lumen)
Qualitative Methodology
The final methodology is qualitative. This method draws from the social sciences, especially anthropology, sociology, and social psychology to understand the subjective lived experience of those they study. There are six types of qualitative methodology. The first type is ethnography. Ethnography “places researchers in the midst of whatever it is the study. From this vantage, researchers can examine various phenomena as perceived by participants and represent these observations” to others (Berg 148). The next type of method is focus group interviewing. “Researchers who use this meet with groups of people to explain their communication characteristics.” (Berg). The third type of qualitative method is action research. The intended outcome of this method is social change. In this research method, the outcome is relevant to the participants and empowers them to create change. Unobtrusive research is the next type of qualitative method. This method is about examining human traces. One example of this is examining the messages of graffiti in culture and reflecting on what they say about the community at large. The next type of this method is historiography. Historiography looks at past artifacts or evidence to examine the past. In particular, this is about examining communication in a past social group or context. The final type of qualitative method is case studies. This approach uses many methods for data collection but focuses on a particular case to gain “holistic description and explanation” (Berg 251). The purpose of this is to gain a broad understanding of the phenomena and to draw conclusions from them.
"Overview of Qualitative Research Methods" (Center for Research Quality)
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