Media and communication research methods : an introduction to qualitative and quantitative approaches

In this new edition, Arthur Asa Berger employs his signature style - a practical focus, the use of numerous examples, a step-by-step approach, and humor - to update and enhance this bestselling introductory text. Combining discussions of both qualitative and quantitative research methods, in a clear and engaging writing style, the book is ideal for beginning research students at both graduate and undergraduate level.

• Introduction
• Round Up the Usual Suspects
• How I Became a Man Without Quantities
• Data Man Versus Data-Free Man
• Introduction: Applications and Exercises
• Conclusions of a Man Without Quantities, Who Is Also a Practicing Theoretician
• Acknowledgments
• I Getting Started
• 1 What Is Research?
• We All Do Research, All the Time
• Scholarly Research Is Different From Everyday Research
• Nietzsche on Interpretation
• The Problem of Certainty
• Diachronic and Synchronic Research
• On the Way the Human Mind Works
• Overt and Covert Oppositions
• On Quantity and Quality in Media Research
• Media and Communication
• Why a Book That Teaches Both Methodologies?
• Considering Research Topics
• What is Research? Applications and Exercises
• Conclusions
• Further Reading
• 2 Library Searches
• Why Library Research Is So Important
• Search Strategies
• How To Read Analytically
• Doing a Literature Review
• Primary and Secondary Research Sources
• Sources for Library Research in Media and Communication
• Other Sources of Information
• Searching on the Internet or The Game of "Find The Info If You Can!"
• Analyzing Methodology in Research Articles
• Library Searches: Applications and Exercises
• Conclusions
• Further Reading
• Part II Methods of Textual Analysis
• 3 Semiotic Analysis
• Saussure's Division of Signs Into Signifiers and Signifieds
• The Semiotics of Blondeness
• Semiotics and Society
• Peirce's Trichotomy: Icon, Index, and Symbol
• Allied Concepts
• Clotaire Rapaille on Culture Codes
• Semiotics in Society: A Reprise
• The Syntagmatic Analysis of Texts
• The Paradigmatic Analysis of Texts
• Humpty-Dumpty: A Paradigmatic Analysis
• Applications of Semiotic Theory
• Paul Ekman on Facial Expression
• Semiotics: Applications and Exercises
• Conclusions
• Further Reading
• 4 Rhetorical Analysis
• Aristotle on Rhetoric
• Rhetoric and the Mass Media
• A Brief Note on the Communication Process
• Certeau on Subversions by Readers and Viewers
• Applied Rhetorical Analysis
• A Miniglossary of Common Rhetorical Devices
• Other Considerations When Making Rhetorical Analyses
• A Sample Rhetorical Analysis: A Saturn Advertisement
• Rhetorical Analysis: Applications and Exercises
• Conclusions
• Further Reading
• 5 Ideological Criticism
• Mannheim's Ideology and Utopia
• Defining Ideology
• Roland Barthes on Mythologies
• The Problem of Hegemony
• The Base and the Superstructure and the "Self Made Man and Woman."
• Post Soviet Marxist Criticism
• A Marxist Interpretation of the Fidji "Snake" Advertisement
• John Berger on Glamour
• Identity Politics
• Marxist Criticism
• Feminist Criticism of Media and Communication
• The Social Conception of Knowledge
• Phallocentric Theory: The Physical Basis of Male Domination
• Pop Culture and Media Preferences in Four Political Cultures
• Ideological Criticism: Applications and Exercises
• Conclusions
• Further Reading
• 6 Psychoanalytic Criticism
• Freud's Contribution
• The Oedipus Complex
• Human Sexuality
• The Id, Ego, and Superego
• Applications of the Id, Ego and Superego Typology to Media and Culture
• Defense Mechanisms
• Jungian Theory
• Archetypes
• The Collective Unconscious
• The Myth of the Hero
• The Anima and the Animus
• The Shadow Element in the Psyche
• Psychoanalytic Criticism: Applications and Exercises
• Conclusions
• Further Reading
• Part III Qualitative Research Methods
• 7 Interviews
• What Is an Interview?
• Four Kinds of Research Interviews
• A Note on Problems With Focus Groups (Boxed Insert)
• Why We Use Interviews
• How to Interview People
• Questions Investigative Reporters Ask (Boxed Insert?)
• The Structure of Conversations and Interviews
• Transcribing Tapes
• Problems With Interview Material
• Interviews: Applications and Exercises
• Conclusions
• Further Reading
• 8 Historical Analysis
• What Is History?
• History as Metadiscipline or Specialized Subject
• Is History Objective or Subjective or a Combination of the Two?
• Kinds of Historical Research
• The Problem of Writing History
• The Problem of Meaning
• Historical Periods
• Baudrillard and Jameson on Postmodernism
• The Historical and the Comparative Approach
• History Is an Art, Not a Science
• Doing Historical Research
• Historical Analysis: Applications and Exercises
• Conclusions
• Further Reading
• 9 Ethnomethodologlcal Research
• Defining Ethnomethodology
• Garfinkel's Ingenious and Mischievous Research
• Using Ethnomethodology in Media and Communication Research
• Humorists as Code Violators
• On the Techniques of Humor
• Ethnomethodology and the Communication Process
• Ethnomethodological Research: Applications and Exercises
• Conclusions
• Further Reading
• 10 Participant Observation
• Defining Participant Observation
• Significant Considerations to Deal With When Doing Participant Observation
• A Case Study of Participant Observation: Readers of Romance Novels
• Problems Connected With Participant Observation
• Benefits of Participant Observation Studies
• Making Sense of Your Findings
• An Ethical Dilemma
• Ethics and Research Involving Human Beings
• Participant Observation: Applications and Exercises
• Conclusions
• Further Reading
• Part IV Quantitative Research Methods
• 11 Content Analysis
• Defining Content Analysis
• Why We Make Content Analyses
• Methodological Aspects of Content Analysis
• Aspects of Violence
• Advantages of Content Analysis as a Research Method
• Difficulties to Contend With in Making Content Analyses
• A Simple Content Analysis Research Assignment
• Doing a Content Analysis: A List of Steps to Take
• Coding Sheet for Comics Content Analysis (Boxed Insert)
• Content Analysis: Applications and Exercises
• Conclusions
• Further Reading
• 12 Surveys
• Defining Surveys
• Kinds of Surveys: Descriptive and Analytic
• Methods of Data Collection
• The Nine American Lifestyles: The VALS Typology
• Advantages of Survey Research
• Problems With Using Surveys
• A Note on Media Usage Surveys: Shares and Ratings
• Open-Ended and Closed-Ended Survey Questions
• Writing Survey Questions
• Making Pilot Studies to Pretest Surveys
• Conducting Online Surveys
• On the Matter of Samples
• Evaluating the Accuracy of Surveys
• Surveys: Applications and Exercises
• Conclusion
• Notes
• Further Reading
• 13 Experiments
• Everyday Experimentation
• Defining Experiments
• The Structure of an Experiment
• Advantages of Experiments
• Disadvantages of Experiments
• A Checklist on Experimental Design
• What's an Experiment and What Isn't?
• Experiments: Applications and Exercises
• Conclusions
• Further Reading
• 14 A Primer on Descriptive Statistics
• Levels of Measurement
• Descriptive Statistics
• Measures of Central Tendency
• Measures of Dispersion
• Standard Deviation
• The Normal or Bell-Shaped Curve
• The Problems With Ratings
• A Cautionary Note on Statistics
• Statistics and Comparisons
• Data on Media Use in America in 2009
• On the Problem of Interpretation
• Statistics: Applications and Exercises
• Conclusions
• Note
• Further Reading
• Part V Putting it all Together
• 15 Nineteen Common Thinking Errors to Avoid
• Common Fallacies
• Conclusions
• Further Reading
• 16 Writing Research Reports
• Keeping a Journal
• A Trick for Organizing Reports
• Outlines, First Drafts and Revisions
• Writing Research Reports
• The IMRD Structure of Quantitative Research Reports
• Writing Correctly: Avoiding Some Common Problems
• Academic Writing Styles
• A Checklist for Planning Research and Writing
• Reports on Your Research
• Conclusions
• Further Reading
• References
• Glossary
• Name Index
• Subject Index