Fall 2004
Hong Kong
University-School of Professional and Continuing Education
FACULTY INFORMATION
Dr. Witmer’s CSUF Office: CP-650-27 Phone:
657-278-7008
dwitmer@fullerton.edu
CSUF Office Hours: Monday & Wednesday 11:15 a.m. to 12:45 p.m.
Web site: http://commfaculty.fullerton.edu/dwitmer/
COURSE INFORMATION
Overview: This graduate seminar provides an overview of applied
research methodologies for the study of communication. We will discuss the
epistemological and ontological relationships between metatheoretical,
theoretical, and methodological traditions. The course will include
conversations on all aspects of qualitative and quantitative research, from the
development of the question to the writing of the final report, but will focus
on producing a literature review that develops and supports the appropriate
methodology for answering various types of research questions.
Course Goals:
This course develops a working knowledge of the relationships between theory,
data collection, and data analysis techniques in both quantitative and
qualitative research methods. It is designed to help students become
knowledgeable consumers and novice producers of communications research.
Learning Objectives: By successfully completing this course, students will be able to:
·
read, understand,
and evaluate scholarly research reports.
·
develop simple
research designs that are appropriate to answer specific questions.
·
develop
simple data collection instruments such as questionnaires.
·
analyze textual
and numerical data.
·
prepare a review
of literature that supports specific research questions and research methods.
·
use research data
for problem solving and decision making.
WHAT YOU WILL NEED
Required
Texts:
·
Frey, L. R.,
Botan, C. H., & Kreps, G. L. (2000). Investigating
communication: An introduction to research methods. (2nd Ed.).
Also
Required:
·
Access to the
COMM 507 Blackboard Web site, available through the CSUF Student Portal at http://my.fullerton.edu/.
Strongly
Recommended:
·
Publication Manual of the American Psychological
Association (2001). (5th Ed).
GRADING POLICIES
You may earn a maximum of
1,000 points during the semester. I will assign final course grades as follows:
|
Points |
Definition |
Grade |
|
965-1000 |
Outstanding |
A+ |
|
935-964 |
A |
|
|
900-934 |
A- |
|
|
865-899 |
Good |
B+ |
|
835-864 |
B |
|
|
800-834 |
B- |
|
|
765-799 |
Acceptable |
C+ |
|
735-764 |
C |
|
|
700-734 |
C- |
|
|
665-699 |
Poor |
D+ |
|
635-664 |
D |
|
|
600-634 |
D- |
|
|
<600 |
Failing |
F |
CLASS ASSIGNMENTS
The points for your final course grade are earned by completing
assignments, taking exams, and participating in class activities. Your final
grade is based on a total of 1000 points. Each class activity is worth a
maximum number of points as follows:
|
Assignment |
Possible
Points |
|
Four In-Class Exercises & Written
Assignments |
400 |
|
Scholarly Journal Article Review &
Presentation |
200 |
|
Semester Project: Project
Topic Annotated
Bibliography Review
of Literature, Hypotheses and/or Research
Questions, & Methodology |
Pass/No Pass 100 300 TOTAL 400 |
Exercises
& Assignments:
Interview
Exercise (100 points)
The purpose of this in-class exercise is to illustrate
the use of in-depth interviewing to elicit information from another person, and
to represent that person through narrative or written portrait. It will also
give you a chance to get to know a classmate. Details will be provided in
class.
Professor
Exercise (100 points)
The purpose of this in-class exercise is to illustrate
some of the basic elements of the research process. You'll also get a chance to
learn something about your professor. Details will be provided in class.
Research
Process Exercise (100 points)
The purpose of this in-class exercise is to help you
understand and explain a real-life event that focuses on the message behavior
of the participants. It also gives you an opportunity to apply scientific
method. Details will be provided in class.
Field
Notes/Data Log & Observation Report (100
points)
The purpose of this assignment is to help you
understand the nature of field research. It involves identification of a
researchable problem, a description of how you will carry out your own research
on the problem (explanation of your methodology), collection of data at a venue
of your choosing, recording all observations in a data log or as field notes,
and reporting in written form an analysis of your field notes. You will turn in
the field notes or data log along with the written observation report.
Article
Review & Presentation: (200
points)
For this assignment, you will select an exemplary scholarly journal article on any aspect of communications. You're welcome to choose
one that you believe will pertain to your semester paper. The purpose of this
assignment is twofold: 1) it may help get you started on your research for your
paper, and 2) it will help you develop experience in the critical review and
evaluation of scholarly research. See additional information and hints on the
class Blackboard Web site.
Semester
Project Components:
Semester
Paper Topic (pass/no pass)
During the first few class sessions, give some serious
thought to why the field of communications interests you, what you are curious
about, and what you really want to know. The third week of class, come armed
with a one- or two-page description of your first, second, and third choices
for a topic you would like to tackle as a semester project.
Annotated
Bibliography (100 points)
This assignment is your opportunity to get a running start
on your semester project, a review of literature. The bibliography should
consist of an alphabetical listing in APA format of every book and article you
can find that addresses your proposal topic. Each reference should be
accompanied by a brief paragraph that summarizes the book or article and its relevance to your specific topic.
Review
of Literature, Research Questions or Hypotheses, and Methodology (300 points)
The major assignment in this course is the preparation
of a review of the literature that pertains to a specific topic, your specific
hypotheses and/or research questions, and a detailed description of the methods
you would use to test the hypotheses or answer the research questions. We will
discuss this extensively in class, and additional information is available on
the class Blackboard Web site.
COURSE POLICIES & REQUIREMENTS
·
Regular attendance is expected and necessary in this class. Please do not assume that you
do not need to attend class when only lab, student presentations, or guest
speakers are scheduled. I expect you there, armed with all necessary books and
materials, and readiness to discuss the topic at hand. It is to your advantage
to attend all classes, since test material will be drawn from in-class
discussions, exercises, and lab assignments. You will lose points for missing class during the last two weeks of
class.
·
As a matter of
courtesy and professionalism, set your
beepers and cell phones to silent alerts during class time.
·
You are
responsible for all notes, handouts, and assigned readings. If you must miss a
class, it is up to you to get notes and materials from fellow students. Develop
a buddy system and exchange phone numbers!
·
You must type and
double space all work, unless you receive other instructions.
·
You must turn in
all assignments on time, at the beginning
of class. No late assignments are
accepted. Only severe medical problems are acceptable reasons for missing exams
or assignments, and it is your responsibility to make immediate arrangements
with me for make-up work. Computer problems and crashed disks are not valid
reasons for late work. If a medical emergency arises, you must notify me in advance of the class and provide verification in order to be
excused and scheduled for make-up work.
·
See me immediately if you have any difficulties
in this course. DO NOT wait a week or until the end of the semester to contact
me with problems. I'm always happy to
help you in any way I can, but any delay in communicating directly with me
greatly reduces your chances of getting help.
·
You must complete
all course activities to earn a minimum grade of "D."
·
You must earn a
minimum of 600 points as described above to earn a minimum grade of
"D."
·
Any proven case
of plagiarism or violation of ethical conduct will result in immediate failure
of the class. In COMM 507, plagiarism includes but is not limited to: borrowing
another person's ideas without acknowledgment; using paraphrased material
without attribution; not citing quoted material; copying from any source and presenting the work as
your own; downloading and using as your
own any sentences, paragraphs, or entire documents off the Internet (including source code, scripts, graphics, or
other Web elements); or using anyone else's assistance (other than the
instructor or a lab TA) to fulfill course requirements.
The very best way to reach me is by
e-mail. Don't forget that if you have any questions, I'm only a "Send
Button" away!
TENTATIVE
SCHEDULE
Read the assigned chapter prior to each class meeting. Additional assignments will be
announced.
Note:
FBK denotes the Frey, Botan & Kreps text.
|
Date |
Topic |
Assignments Due |
|
18 Nov |
Course Introduction &
Overview Section I: Foundations of Comm. Research Introduction to the
Research Culture Researcher Role
Perspectives |
FBK
Chapter 1 & 2 |
|
19 Nov |
Finding, Secondary Research: Using
the Library Interview
Exercise |
FBK
Chapter 3 |
|
20 Nov |
Section II: Planning & Designing Comm. Research Observing & Measuring
Comm. Variables Designing Valid Comm.
Research |
FBK Chapters
4 & 5 |
|
21 Nov |
Research Ethics &
Politics Field Notes/Data
Log & |
FBK
Chapter 6 |
|
22 Nov |
NO CLASS |
|
|
23 Nov |
Scholarly Article Reviews |
Article Reports & Presentations Due |
|
24 Nov |
Section III: Methodologies for Comm. Research Experimental Research |
FBK
Chapter 7 |
|
25 Nov |
Survey Research &
Textual Analysis |
FBK
Chapters 8 & 9 Semester Paper Topics Due |
|
26 Nov |
Historic & Naturalistic
Inquiry |
FBK
Chapter 10 |
|
27 Nov |
Exercises in Qualitative
Research Section IV: Analyzing & Interpreting
Quantitative Data Describing Quantitative
Data & Inferring from Data |
FBK Chapters 11 & 12 Annotated Bibliography Due |
|
28 Nov |
Analyzing Differences
Between Groups & Analyzing Relationships Between Variables Concluding Research |
FBK
Chapters 13, 14, & 15 |
|
6 Dec |
|
Full Semester Paper Due |
November 2, 2004