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Doing Media Research
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Doing Media Research
An Introduction

Second Edition


May 2009 | 272 pages | SAGE Publications, Inc
Comprehensive and comprehensible, Doing Media Research is an accessible introduction to both qualitative and quantitative methods in media communication. Written in a straightforward and engaging style, this text takes the student through media research step-by-step.

In order to provide students with a thorough understanding of the purpose and theories behind the various methodological approaches, the text is divided into four distinct sections:

Part One lays out the foundations to each approach, Part Two describes the types of research questions and data collection required, Part Three details a range of quantitative approaches, and Part Four examines qualitative methods.

Author Susanna Priest concludes with a discussion of special considerations for current media research including the feminist contribution, international and intercultural perspectives and new media technology. She also invites the reader to tackle issues such as ethics, objectivity, and the interpretation of data. Useful exercises are provided at the end of each chapter and there is a glossary which defines key terms and concepts.

 
PART I. ROOTS: SOCIAL SCIENCE FOUNDATIONS
 
1. A Philosophy of Social "Science"
Qualitative Versus Quantitative Methods

 
Deductive Versus Inductive Logic

 
Applied Versus Basic Research

 
The Limits of Social Science Research

 
 
2. Foundational Disciplines
Anthropology and the Range of Human Experience

 
Psychology and the Experimental Method

 
Sociology and the Study of Human Social Groups

 
 
3. Mass Communication as a Research Field
Origins of Mass Communication Research

 
Qualitative Versus Quantitative Research Revisited

 
Content Analysis as a Key Research Tool

 
Mass Communication and New Media

 
 
PART II. ASKING QUESTIONS AND COLLECTING DATA: CREATING A RESEARCH PLAN
 
4. Developing a Research Question, Reviewing the Literature, Exploring Data Sources, and Defining Variables
Reviewing the Academic Literature

 
The Nature of Academic Publishing

 
Defining and Refining Your Research Questions

 
More About the Role of Theory

 
Finding Resources and Data for Your Project

 
Defining and Measuring Variables

 
 
5. Designing Quantitative Research: Surveys, Experiments, and Quantitative Content Analysis
Survey Design Basics

 
Designing Basic Experiments

 
Content Analysis

 
 
6. Designing Qualitative Studies: Participant Observation, Interviews, Focus Groups, and Qualitative Content Analysis
Participant Observation

 
Interviews

 
Focus Groups

 
Qualitative Content Studies

 
 
PART III. APPROACHES TO DATA ANALYSIS: BASIC TOOLS
 
7. Describing a Numerical Data Set and Making Inferences
Levels of Measurement

 
Identifying and Summarizing Patterns

 
Reasoning From Sample to Population

 
 
8. Testing Hypotheses and Exploring Other Relationships
Testing Simple Hypotheses

 
Understanding Chi-Square

 
Comparing Two Means

 
Working With Complex Variables

 
Multivariate Techniques for Statistical Analysis

 
 
9. Qualitative Analysis: Identifying Themes and Writing Meaningful Summaries
Working With Theory and Identifying Themes

 
Analyzing Qualitative Data

 
Other Forms of Analysis

 
Writing Descriptive Summaries

 
Relating Data to Conclusions

 
 
PART IV. RESEARCH IN BROADER CONTEXT: CONTEMPORARY TRENDS IN THE DISSEMINATION OF RESEARCH RESULTS
 
10. Research Horizons: Opportunities and Challenges
New Media Technology

 
Research in a Global Village

 
Ethics in Research: A Further Note

 
 
11. Writing and Presenting the Research Report
Constructing the Research Paper

 
About Conference Presentations

 
A Concluding Note

 

too quantitatively focused

Dr Trey Stohlman
Broadcast Cinematic Arts Dept, Central Michigan University
October 18, 2013

This is a great introductory book for undergraduate and postgraduate journalism and media students. It uses simple language and straight forward examples and avoids being verbose or alienating. However it is definitely a starter book rather than one for students who have already undergone a lot of research methods reading already.

Ms Lily Canter
Communication & Media, Sheffield Hallam University
March 14, 2012

Proved to be more generic that specific to media studies. I was looking for a text that would help students to specifically work with research questions using mass communication data. Hence i choose it as a supplementary text

Dr Lystra Hagley-Dickinson
Dept of Sociology, Northampton University
September 24, 2010

Too simplistic for postgraduate research. More attention needed to be paid to qualitative methods of analysis.

Ms Sandra Pitcher
Media and Cultural Studies, University of KwaZulu - Natal
October 7, 2009

For instructors

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ISBN: 9781412960977
£152.00