Communication research
A.A. 2018/2019
Obiettivi formativi
The course aims to introduce students to the major social research techniques used in the communication field. Both quantitative and qualitative techniques will be covered with the related problems of research design, measurement and data analysis. At the end of the course the student should be able to set up a research project and to evaluate research work in the communication field.
Risultati apprendimento attesi
Non definiti
Periodo: Secondo trimestre
Modalità di valutazione: Esame
Giudizio di valutazione: voto verbalizzato in trentesimi
Corso singolo
Questo insegnamento non può essere seguito come corso singolo. Puoi trovare gli insegnamenti disponibili consultando il catalogo corsi singoli.
Programma e organizzazione didattica
Edizione unica
Responsabile
Periodo
Secondo trimestre
STUDENTI FREQUENTANTI
Programma
MODULES 1 and 2
1. Course introduction
2. Remedial section and SPSS introduction
3. Analysis of variance (experimental research)
4. Linear regression 1 (longitudinal and comparative analysis)
5. Linear regression 2 (longitudinal and comparative analysis)
6. Measurement instruments for communication research 1
7. Measurement instruments for communication research 2
8. Survey research and experimental design
9. Longitudinal and comparative research designs (secondary analysis)
10. Seminar. Cultural consumption between omnivorousness and distinction
MODULE 3
1. Perspectives on communication research
2. Ethnography
3. Multimodal ethnography and tools
4. Content Analysis I
5. Content Analysis II
6. Discourse Analysis
7. Digital Methods I
8. Digital Methods II
9. Journalism and data
10. Recap
1. Course introduction
2. Remedial section and SPSS introduction
3. Analysis of variance (experimental research)
4. Linear regression 1 (longitudinal and comparative analysis)
5. Linear regression 2 (longitudinal and comparative analysis)
6. Measurement instruments for communication research 1
7. Measurement instruments for communication research 2
8. Survey research and experimental design
9. Longitudinal and comparative research designs (secondary analysis)
10. Seminar. Cultural consumption between omnivorousness and distinction
MODULE 3
1. Perspectives on communication research
2. Ethnography
3. Multimodal ethnography and tools
4. Content Analysis I
5. Content Analysis II
6. Discourse Analysis
7. Digital Methods I
8. Digital Methods II
9. Journalism and data
10. Recap
Propedeuticità
Students are required to have a basic knowledge in Methodology of social research (paradigms of social research, quantitative and qualitative research, theory and hypothesis, measurement, causality, survey, scaling) and Statistics (sampling, descriptive statistics, probability distributions, statistical inference, comparison of two groups, contingency tables, linear regression and correlation, introduction to multivariate relationships).
At the beginning of the course the students will be asked to take an entry exam to assess such basic knowledge. Students failing the entry exam will still have the opportunity to attend the course but they will have to recover in the first weeks of the course.
The following remedial readings are suggested:
Corbetta P. (2003) Social research. Theory, methods and techniques, London, Sage: chapters 1-6.
Agresti A. and Finlay B. (2009), Statistical methods for the social sciences, 4th edition, Upper Saddle River, Pearson: chapters 1-10.
Pallant J. (2016) SPSS Survival Manual. A step by step guide to data analysis using IBM SPSS, 6th edition, Open University Press.
At the beginning of the course the students will be asked to take an entry exam to assess such basic knowledge. Students failing the entry exam will still have the opportunity to attend the course but they will have to recover in the first weeks of the course.
The following remedial readings are suggested:
Corbetta P. (2003) Social research. Theory, methods and techniques, London, Sage: chapters 1-6.
Agresti A. and Finlay B. (2009), Statistical methods for the social sciences, 4th edition, Upper Saddle River, Pearson: chapters 1-10.
Pallant J. (2016) SPSS Survival Manual. A step by step guide to data analysis using IBM SPSS, 6th edition, Open University Press.
Prerequisiti
Assessment is based on: a) short presentation; b) mid-term test (it covers only modules 1 and 2 and it is composed by one SPSS exercise and three short questions; it lasts 60 minutes); c) final test (it is composed by four open-answer questions covering all three modules; it lasts 90 minutes).
Materiale di riferimento
STUDENTI NON FREQUENTANTI
MODULES 1 and 2
Corbetta P. (2003) Social research. Theory, methods and techniques, London, Sage: pp. 57-87.
Gunter B. (2012) The quantitative research process, in Jensen K.B. (Ed.): pp. 237-242 and 258-262.
Agresti A. and Finlay B. (2009), Statistical methods for the social sciences, 4th edition, Pearson, Upper Saddle River, pp. 52-55 and 369-373.
Agresti A. and Finlay B. (2009), Statistical methods for the social sciences, 4th edition, Pearson, Upper Saddle River, pp. 255-283.
Agresti A. and Finlay B. (2009), Statistical methods for the social sciences, 4th edition, Pearson, Upper Saddle River, pp. 321-339.
Carmines, E.G. e Zeller, R.A. [1979], Reliability and validity assessment, Beverly Hills, CA, Sage: chapter 1 and 4
Schwartz, S. H., & Bilsky, W. (1987). Toward a psychological structure of human values. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 53, 550-562
Biolcati-Rinaldi F. (2011), "Surveys" in Southerton D. (Ed.), Encyclopedia of Consumer Culture, Sage, Los Angeles, pp. 1414-1417
Gunter B. (2012) The quantitative research process, in Jensen K.B. (Ed.): pp. 242-258
Biolcati-Rinaldi F. (2011), "Longitudinal Studies" in Southerton D. (Ed.), Encyclopedia of Consumer Culture, Sage, Los Angeles, pp. 871-873
Allum, N. e Arber, S. [2008], Secondary analysis of survey data, in Gilbert N. (Ed.), Researching Social Life, London, Sage, pp. 372-393
HOLT D.B. (1997) "Distinction in America? Recovering Bourdieu's Theory of Tastes from Its Critics", Poetics 25:93-120
PETERSON R. A. (2005) "Problems in comparative research: the example of omnivorousness", Poetics 33:257-282
Bryant J., Carveth R.A. and Brown D. (1981) "Television viewing and anxiety: an experimental examination", Journal of communication, 31(1): 106-119
Tamborini R., Zillmann D. and Bryant J. (1984) "Fear and victimization: exposure to television and perceptions of crime and fear", Communicaton yearbook, 8: 492-513
Rentz, J., Reynolds, F., and Stout, R. (1983) 'Analysing Changing Consumption Patterns with Cohort Analysis,' Journal of Marketing Research, 20: 12-20
Van Hek M., Kraaykamp, G. (2013) 'Cultural consumption across countries: A multi-level analysis of social inequality in highbrow culture in Europe', Poetics 41(4):323-341
BELLAVANCE G. (2008) "Where's high? Who's low? What's new? Classification and stratification inside cultural repertoires", Poetics, 36:189-216
KATZ-GERRO T. (2002) "Highbrow cultural consumption and class distinction in Italy, Israel, West Germany, Sweden, and the United States", Social Forces 81(1):207-229
SAVAGE M., GAYO M. (2011) "Unravelling the Omnivore: A Field Analysis of Contemporary Musical Taste in the United Kingdom", Poetics 39(5):337-357
MODULE 3
Cottle, Simon. 2007. "Ethnography and News Production: New(s) Developments in the Field". Sociology Compass 1(1): 1-16
Newton, Nigel. 2010. "The use of semi-structured interviews in qualitative research: strengths and weaknesses. The University of Bristol, 2010
Krippendorf, Klaus. 1989. "Content Analysis". In International Encyclopedia of Communications, edited by Erik Barnouw, with George Gerbner et al. Oxford University Press and the Annenberg School of Communications, University of Pennsylvania 1989, 4 v., 1
Lacy, Stephen, Brendan R. Watson, Daniel Riffe, and Jennette Lovejoy. 2015. "Issues and Best Practices in Content Analysis". Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, online first 1-21. DOI: 10.1177/1077699015607338
James Paul Gee. 1999. An Introduction to Discourse Analysis. Routledge: London (excerpt, II Chapter Discourses and social languages)
Richard Rogers. 2015. "Digital Methods for Web Research" in Robert Scott and Stephan Kosslyn Emerging Trends in the Social and Behavioral Sciences, John Wiley & Sons
Bruns, Alex and Jean Burgess. 2012. "Researching News Discussion on Twitter". Journalism Studies 13(5-6): 801-814
Splendore, Sergio. 2016. "Quantitatively Oriented Forms of Journalism and Their Epistemology", Sociology Compass, 10(5): 342-352.
Corbetta P. (2003) Social research. Theory, methods and techniques, London, Sage: pp. 57-87.
Gunter B. (2012) The quantitative research process, in Jensen K.B. (Ed.): pp. 237-242 and 258-262.
Agresti A. and Finlay B. (2009), Statistical methods for the social sciences, 4th edition, Pearson, Upper Saddle River, pp. 52-55 and 369-373.
Agresti A. and Finlay B. (2009), Statistical methods for the social sciences, 4th edition, Pearson, Upper Saddle River, pp. 255-283.
Agresti A. and Finlay B. (2009), Statistical methods for the social sciences, 4th edition, Pearson, Upper Saddle River, pp. 321-339.
Carmines, E.G. e Zeller, R.A. [1979], Reliability and validity assessment, Beverly Hills, CA, Sage: chapter 1 and 4
Schwartz, S. H., & Bilsky, W. (1987). Toward a psychological structure of human values. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 53, 550-562
Biolcati-Rinaldi F. (2011), "Surveys" in Southerton D. (Ed.), Encyclopedia of Consumer Culture, Sage, Los Angeles, pp. 1414-1417
Gunter B. (2012) The quantitative research process, in Jensen K.B. (Ed.): pp. 242-258
Biolcati-Rinaldi F. (2011), "Longitudinal Studies" in Southerton D. (Ed.), Encyclopedia of Consumer Culture, Sage, Los Angeles, pp. 871-873
Allum, N. e Arber, S. [2008], Secondary analysis of survey data, in Gilbert N. (Ed.), Researching Social Life, London, Sage, pp. 372-393
HOLT D.B. (1997) "Distinction in America? Recovering Bourdieu's Theory of Tastes from Its Critics", Poetics 25:93-120
PETERSON R. A. (2005) "Problems in comparative research: the example of omnivorousness", Poetics 33:257-282
Bryant J., Carveth R.A. and Brown D. (1981) "Television viewing and anxiety: an experimental examination", Journal of communication, 31(1): 106-119
Tamborini R., Zillmann D. and Bryant J. (1984) "Fear and victimization: exposure to television and perceptions of crime and fear", Communicaton yearbook, 8: 492-513
Rentz, J., Reynolds, F., and Stout, R. (1983) 'Analysing Changing Consumption Patterns with Cohort Analysis,' Journal of Marketing Research, 20: 12-20
Van Hek M., Kraaykamp, G. (2013) 'Cultural consumption across countries: A multi-level analysis of social inequality in highbrow culture in Europe', Poetics 41(4):323-341
BELLAVANCE G. (2008) "Where's high? Who's low? What's new? Classification and stratification inside cultural repertoires", Poetics, 36:189-216
KATZ-GERRO T. (2002) "Highbrow cultural consumption and class distinction in Italy, Israel, West Germany, Sweden, and the United States", Social Forces 81(1):207-229
SAVAGE M., GAYO M. (2011) "Unravelling the Omnivore: A Field Analysis of Contemporary Musical Taste in the United Kingdom", Poetics 39(5):337-357
MODULE 3
Cottle, Simon. 2007. "Ethnography and News Production: New(s) Developments in the Field". Sociology Compass 1(1): 1-16
Newton, Nigel. 2010. "The use of semi-structured interviews in qualitative research: strengths and weaknesses. The University of Bristol, 2010
Krippendorf, Klaus. 1989. "Content Analysis". In International Encyclopedia of Communications, edited by Erik Barnouw, with George Gerbner et al. Oxford University Press and the Annenberg School of Communications, University of Pennsylvania 1989, 4 v., 1
Lacy, Stephen, Brendan R. Watson, Daniel Riffe, and Jennette Lovejoy. 2015. "Issues and Best Practices in Content Analysis". Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, online first 1-21. DOI: 10.1177/1077699015607338
James Paul Gee. 1999. An Introduction to Discourse Analysis. Routledge: London (excerpt, II Chapter Discourses and social languages)
Richard Rogers. 2015. "Digital Methods for Web Research" in Robert Scott and Stephan Kosslyn Emerging Trends in the Social and Behavioral Sciences, John Wiley & Sons
Bruns, Alex and Jean Burgess. 2012. "Researching News Discussion on Twitter". Journalism Studies 13(5-6): 801-814
Splendore, Sergio. 2016. "Quantitatively Oriented Forms of Journalism and Their Epistemology", Sociology Compass, 10(5): 342-352.
Programma
1. Introduction
2. Research Ethics
3. The Positivist Approach
4. The Interpretive Paradigm
5. The Critical Paradigm
6. Data
7. Warrants
8. Interviewing
9. Focus Groups
10. Ethnography
11. Surveys
12. Experiments
13. Descriptive Statistics
14. Inferential Statistics
15. Content Analysis
16. Rhetorical Criticism
17. Critical/Cultural Studies
2. Research Ethics
3. The Positivist Approach
4. The Interpretive Paradigm
5. The Critical Paradigm
6. Data
7. Warrants
8. Interviewing
9. Focus Groups
10. Ethnography
11. Surveys
12. Experiments
13. Descriptive Statistics
14. Inferential Statistics
15. Content Analysis
16. Rhetorical Criticism
17. Critical/Cultural Studies
Prerequisiti
Assessment is based on a final written examination. The exam is composed by four open-answer questions and it lasts 60 minutes. Every answer is graded from 0 to 10: the 3 best answers are considered.
Materiale di riferimento
Stephen M. Croucher and Daniel Cronn-Mills, Understanding Communication Research Methods. A Theoretical and Practical Approach, 2015, Routledge.
SPS/07 - SOCIOLOGIA GENERALE - CFU: 9
Lezioni: 60 ore
Docente/i
Ricevimento:
martedì, 16.30-19.30 (si consiglia di contattare il docente per fissare un appuntamento in presenza o online)
Dipartimento di Scienze Sociali e Politiche, edificio di via Passione, piano 2°, stanza 204
Ricevimento:
Martedì dalle 10 alle 12.30 (su appuntamento)
Ufficio Ricercatori - Via Conservatorio / MS Teams
Ricevimento:
Thursdays 12-15 Please send an email to set an appointment.
Via Passione, 13 - stanza 303 (terzo piano)