Shared Flashcard Set

Details

COM 300 Exam 1
terms for tomorrow's exam
65
Communication
Undergraduate 3
10/08/2012

Additional Communication Flashcards

 


 

Cards

Term
Research
Definition
the activity of conducting intellectual investigations into the observable world
Term
Why is research conducted?
Definition

-to find truth that others depend on

-to arrive at truth

-to understand human beings

-to solve/figure out problems

-to prevent failure

Term
Ways of knowing
Definition

Tenacity: experience; how it has always been done

 

Authority: trusting someone who knows better than you

 

Intuition: feeling like something is right

Term
Skills gained from learning research
Definition

-ability to work in a team structure

-ability to make decisions and solve problems

-ability to analyze quantitative data

Term
Why are research skills critical for jobs?
Definition
Each job requires you to depend on data and research to make decisions within your field
Term
Metatheory
Definition
theory about theory; allows us to understand the philosophy that drives decisions about research methods
Term
Ontology
Definition
the study of the nature of reality; what is truth?
Term
Epistemology
Definition
the study of the nature of knowledge; what do we know, how do we know it?
Term
Axiology
Definition
the study of values; what do we value?
Term
3 sub-studies of metatheory
Definition

-Ontology

-Epistemology

-Axiology

Term
Positivism
Definition
explaining through science
Term
Interpretivist
Definition
explaining through interpretation of participants
Term
Critical
Definition
studies to empower the powerless
Term
Positivism - Metatheoretical assumptions
Definition

-Ontology: reality is orderly, fixed, and measurable

 

-Epistemology: we can know and study objective reality

 

-Axiology: research should be objective and unbiased; researchers are authorities and experts

Term
Interpretivist - Metatheoretical assumptions
Definition

-Ontology: reality is subjective; it is orderly and chaotic

 

-Epistemology: we can know and study subjective reality as it is constructed, mediated, and biased

 

-Axiology: research where all participants are equal authorities and in which all perspectives are represented without active bias

Term
Critical - Metatheoretical assumptions
Definition

-Ontology: may believe reality is orderly, measurable, and objective or that it is subjective

 

-Epistemology: we can know and study reality that is either subjective or objective

 

-Axiology: we value research that includes marginalized voices; we value research in which the researcher shares power with participants

Term
Proprietary Research
Definition
conducted for a specific audience and is not shared beyond the intended audience ex. corporations or businesesses
Term
Scholarly Research
Definition
conducted to contribute to generalizable knowledge for public consumption
Term
Qualitative Research
Definition

-Impressionist

-Inductive

-Goal is to discover, represent different world views, create knowledge and meaning, understand what is going on

-assumes that reality is constructed through interaction

-knowledge is created

-purpose to understand

-appropriate when wanting to know a lot about a small topic where not much is known

Term
Quantitative Research
Definition

-realist

-deductive

-goal is to explain, predict, and control, and to explain objective reality

-assumes that reality is objective and measurable

-believes knowledge is found and received

-purpose to measure relationships among variables, test hypotheses, predict and control

-appropriate when wanting to know something about a lot of people

Term
Tests of a good topic
Definition

-So what question?

-Is it doable

Term
Order of a scholarly research paper
Definition

Abstract

Introduction

Lit Review

Methods

References

Term
Research Paper - Abstract
Definition
To summarize the purpose of your study, your methods, and your findings
Term
Research Paper - Introduction
Definition
Address the problem, why it matters, and your major variables
Term
Research Paper - Literature Review
Definition
Provide background info, summarize what is already known about your variables, share your theory and solutions
Term
Research Paper - Methods
Definition
Study design, population/sample, investigative techniques, instrumentation, data analysis, ethical considerations
Term
Research Paper - References
Definition
Cite your sources, give credit, prevent plagiarizing
Term
Why conduct library research?
Definition

-to determine what is already known

-to define the problem and formulate solutions

-to plan the collection of primary data

-to define the population/select sample

-to supply background info

Term
Primary vs Secondary Research
Definition

Primary: research that produces original data

 

Secondary: research that has been previously collected or conducted

Term
What makes a source scholarly?
Definition
peer-reviews
Term
Annotated bibliography
Definition
list of separate summaries of various sources
Term
Value of a lit review
Definition

-places research in the context of current and past studies

 

-helps decide what design and methodology you should use based on what worked/didn't for others

 

-helps you to argue your research

Term
3 ways of organizing a lit review
Definition

Topical

 

Chronologically

 

Comparatively

Term
Objective of McGraw Humor Article
Definition
to explore how tragedy and closeness to the tragedy affects humor
Term
How does the Stafford article argue that their study is needed?
Definition
uses quotes about humor and tragedy by Mark Twain and Mel Brooks
Term
Ethics
Definition
derived from the greek ethos which means character
Term
Importance of informed consent
Definition
to ensure no harm is being done to the subjects during research
Term
Why can't anonymity be promised in research?
Definition
because even anonymous surveys are taken from a sample group that isn't anonymous, for example a certain location, age group, etc...
Term
Ethical Dilemmas
Definition

-Ethical research of covert research

 

-Misinterpretation of results

 

-Divided values in research

 

-Informed consent

Term
Researcher's oath
Definition
to do no harm
Term
Why must RQs be identified before completing studies?
Definition

-to ensure that the study is doable

 

-to provide a clear purpose

Term
Criteria of a good RQ
Definition

-Simple

-Observable

-Testable

-Consistent with lit review

-Sufficient scope/depth

-Important

Term
Research Question
Definition
questions scholars ask about the way things work
Term
RQ vs Hypothesis
Definition

RQ = exploratory, early investigation

 

Hypothesis = prediction/declarative

Term
Directional vs Non-Directional Hypothesis
Definition

Directional: more specific about where you want the hypothesis to go (ex. People from the south speak slower than people from the north)

 

Non-Directional: result could occur on either end, doesn't specify exact result (ex. people from the north and south speak differently)

Term
Relational vs Casual Hypothesis
Definition

Relational: implies that where one variable is found the other will be too

 

Casual: implies that one variable causes a change in the other

Term
Variable
Definition
a factor that is liable to vary or change
Term
Independent Variable
Definition
the variable that causes or determines the value of another variable (input)
Term
Dependent Variable
Definition
the variable that is assumed to depend on or be cause by another variable (output)
Term
Confounding Variable
Definition
an extraneous variable that muddles the relationship between the independent and dependent variable
Term
Reliability
Definition
the ability to produce the same results if replicated
Term
Validity
Definition
the accuracy of a measure in terms of measuring intended observations/constructs
Term
Holzworth validity
Definition
the avatar study; was not valid because it didn't really measure what it said it was going to measure
Term
Credibility
Definition
the believability of the research to the reader
Term
Random error
Definition
a fluctuation in measurement
Term
Test-retest reliability
Definition
reliability method in which the same measure is give to the same people at two different times
Term
Chronbach's Alpha
Definition

Measures reliability

 

0.8-0.9 = really good

0.6-0.7 = okay

0.5 and lower = bad

Term
Face Validity
Definition
consideration in which measure or procedures are looked at and questioned if they make sense at face value
Term
Content Validity
Definition
represents all aspects of social construct
Term
Hawthorne Effect
Definition
participants answer questions how they think they should answer them
Term
Ways to test credibility of qualitative studies
Definition

-Member Checks

 

-Data Triabgulation

 

-Credible Data Gathering, Coding, and Writing

 

-Peer Reviews

Term
Traditional Characteristics of Humanistic (Interpretivist) Research
Definition

-Not scientific

-Is interpretive or critical in its approach; primarily critical

-Studying individual cases (not generalizing)

-Dismisses natural laws

-Views humans as choice making

-Says that scholarship is value conscious (researchers cannot eliminate bias; always interpreting messages, meaning, and value of messages)

Term
History of Humanistic Research
Definition

-Post modernism: going away from science, questioning everything you know

 

-Early focus on speeches; Plato/Aristotle, are we just public speaking? first communication theory

Term
Traditional Characteristics of Quantitative Social Scientific Research
Definition

-Translate human behavior into numerical terms (eharmony)

-Absolute truth

-Perform statistical analysis (surveys, polls)

-More predictions about and explanations for human behavior

Term
Reliability Tests
Definition

Inter-item

 

Split-half

 

Alternate Forms

Supporting users have an ad free experience!