Research Strategies in Mass Communications

Go directly to Question Analysis || Potential Contributors || Interviews || Selection & Synthesis || Message

This research model for communicators was created by Professors Jean Ward and Kathleen A. Hansen of the University of Minnesota School of Journalism. The explanation of this model that follows is summarized from: Ward, Jean, and Kathleen A. Hansen. Search Strategies in Mass Communication. 2nd ed. New York: Longman, 1993.

Question Analysis

Identify concepts: Get 'meta' to your topic. Attempt to take a broad view of your topic and determine all the aspects and the overall range of your subject. You need to identify as many of the factors that are at play in your topic in order to focus your topic. You must determine the focus of the topic in order to decide what you will address and what you will not. This will enable you to focus your research question

Define language: By identifying all the various aspects of your topic, you will be able to identify the terminology used in the field and key terms you will have to familiarize yourself with. You will need to understand how words are used in the context of that subject field.

Draw disciplinary boundaries: By understanding the overall range of your topic, you will be able to identify the disciplines (For an explanation of the disciplines click here.) in which you will have to do research. Each discipline produces, publishes, organizes, and makes accessible its information in a different way, so it is important that you know what to expect when doing research in various areas.

Refine the scope of the question: Ask, "Which disciplines contribute to information on this topic?...What are the geographic limits of the topic?...What time period factors can be used to limit the topic?...How in-depth will the message be?...What is the nature of the audience?...What kind of message will be produced?...What standards for evidence and documentation are important for the message?" It would also be helpful to state the language (English, French, etc.) in which the material to be researched and the material to be presented will be. Also,

Ask yourself who, what, why, where, when, and how questions to increasingly focus your...definition [of the areas of the topic you will cover]...In particular, ask "why?" in response to every answer you give yourself. This can help you get to the real core issues, needs, and concerns (Manke).

Identify potential contributors: After having worked through the other steps, you will be better able to decide what materials/resources will be useful in answering your question and what would be irrelevant.

Potential Contributors

Informal Sources: Can include professors, librarians, fellow-students--anyone with some knowledge/understanding of the topic and can assist you with getting a clearer view of it. It can include your own personal observations and knowledge of the topic and any casual reading you have done on the topic. These informal interviews/conversations, knowledge, readings can serve as background information that can lead to more formal, organized information resources.

Institutional Sources: Institutions produce a variety of materials in order to further their institutional functioning and mission. These materials can be annual reports, newsletters, market and opinion research, trade publications, and research reports.

Private institutions include: professional and trade associations and foundations, religious institutions, citizen-action groups, business, corporations, colleges, and universities.
Public institutions are governments that produce materials at all levels (local, state, federal, judiciary) that include rulings, laws, legislative acts, hearings, research reports, and statistical data, to name a small fraction. (GPO Access is a good starting point for understanding the breadth of and how to search government materials.)

Library and Database Sources:

Libraries: Know that there are different kinds of libraries and their collections differ in content, size, and organization. To determine which libraries will best serve your needs, consult directories of libraries to ascertain the kinds collections available and your access privileges.
Databases: There are thousands of databases available that index materials on a wide range of subject fields. Know that databases differ from the world wide web in that they work on a fee for service basis and are restricted in access to designated users. When you are searching the web, you are not searching the materials contained in the databases you will access from the library. They are two very different realms of information. The materials you will search in a database have gone through some level of editing and fact checking, and the authors and publishers are clearly cited. It is easy to verify the credibility of the information. On the web, no such standard of editing and fact checking exists for the most part, and often the source of information is vague, serving to call into question the credibility of the information. In general, it is fair to say that the databases are the best place to start when searching for information and that quality information on the web is rare and hard sought (See question #10 below and these tips on evaluating web materials.). If you are required to search the web, start here: The Pinakes (http://www.hw.ac.uk/libWWW/irn/pinakes/pinakes.html) .
One-step tools are reference books such as encyclopedias, dictionaries, directories, almanacs, etc., that you use to get directly (in one step) to the information needed.
Two-step tools are indexes and abstracts which require you go through two steps of consulting the resource that then directs you to the source of the information you need.

Interviews

Interviews are best used to assure timeliness and authority on a topic. As you research your topic, you will become more aware of and able to identify who the important figures are who are driving the issues and can offer expertise on the subject.

Selection and Synthesis

It is at this point that the efforts you put into defining the scope and focus of your topic pays off. Now you will be able to eliminate irrelevant materials/information, and based on how well you identified concepts and defined disciplinary boundaries, you will be able to identify the biases in the information and apply a critical eye to the analysis and synthesis of that information. Ward and Hansen offer these 12 tests of evidence questions that you can apply to assist you at this point in your research:

Clarity: Does the material have one unmistakable meaning?
Verifiability: Can the information be verified?
Accuracy: Has the correctness of the information been established?
Recency: Is the information the most recent available?
Relevance: Is the information relevant to the subject?
Reputation: What is the reputation of the information or those who have provided it?
Sufficiency: Is there enough information for each main point?
Internal consistency: Is the information consistent with itself, or are there internal contradictions?
External consistency: Are the pieces of information consistent with one another, or does some infromation contradict other information?
Comparative quality: How do the pieces of information compare in quality? Is some material clearly inferior to other material?
Context: Has the information been placed within the true context?
Statistical validity: Does the information meet tests of statistical validity?

Message

Your final product. Be sure to adhere to all presentation guidelines. Consult the style manuals for correct citation formats.

Works Cited

vManke, Kristin. Planning a Document - from the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. June 1999. 12 September 2001.< http://www.pnl.gov/ag/process/prewrite.html#SCOPE >.

vWard, Jean, and Kathleen A. Hansen. Search Strategies in Mass Communication. 2nd ed. New York: Longman, 1993.

Last modified September, 2006

Created and maintained by Prof. Annmarie.B.Singh, MLS - Communication Studies Reference Librarian

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