Basics
What is research in the context of communications?
A systematic process of gathering and analyzing data to answer questions about communication and human behavior
What are the three principles of The Belmont Report?
Respect for persons, beneficence, and justice
What would be the first step in the research process after selecting a research topic?
Review of existing literature
What is secondary research?
The summary or synthesis of existing data from published or syndicated sources.
What is reflexivity in qualitative research?
When the researcher reflects on how their own background and presence influence the study.
What are the two main kinds of research methods?
Qualitative and Quantitative
Why do we need ethics in research? Name any two
minimize deception, prevent harm, protect privacy
What are independent and dependent variables?
Independent = cause or predictor; Dependent = effect or outcome
When is secondary research most useful?
When conducting a literature review or identifying gaps in knowledge
What is one strength and one limitation of online interviewing?
Strength: inexpensive and geographically flexible; Limitation: harder to build rapport.
What differentiates scientific research from informal ways of knowing? Name 2
It’s systematic, replicable, and theory-driven
What type of harm did the Stanford Prison Experiment demonstrate?
Psychological and emotional harm
Name any two types of research questions in communication research
Questions of fact, value, variable relations, or policy
What are two limitations of focus group research?
Dominant participants may skew discussion; easy to overgeneralize findings.
What is it called when a concept has no variation in a study?
A constant
What are theories and why are they important in research?
Theories are interconnected propositions that explain phenomena and guide data collection and interpretation
What is the main purpose of an Institutional Review Board (IRB)?
To protect research participants by ensuring ethical standards are met
What’s the difference between quantitative and qualitative research questions?
Quantitative asks “what/why” (relationships); qualitative asks “how/meaning
Define concept vs. variable.
A concept is an abstract idea; a variable is its measurable representation.
What is a mediating variable and how does it function?
It explains the mechanism linking the IV and DV — it is both an effect of X and a cause of Y.
Explain how deductive and inductive reasoning differ in research.
Deductive starts with theory → hypothesis → data; Inductive starts with data → patterns → theory.
What are unique ethical concerns in communication research? Name 3
Data security, unbiased interpretation, and responsibility to public stakeholders.
Name three disadvantages of secondary research
not customized to the topic, limited, lack of depth, conflicting view points
Describe one threat to credibility in qualitative research and how to address it.
Researcher bias → addressed through reflexivity and triangulation.
For forty years, this U.S. study observed a group of Black men with syphilis without telling them they had it — even after treatment became available.
Name the experiment, and identify two major ethical principles it violated.
The Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment — it violated:
Respect for Persons (no informed consent), and
Beneficence (knowingly causing harm by withholding treatment