How would you define the term, formal research?
- Data is gathered in a very controlled, structured, systematic and results are meant to be objective and value-free.
- Involves posing hypotheses based on theory and testing those hypotheses
- Researchers should be able to reproduce results.
What does it mean to be empirical?
-It is a way of gaining knowledge by means of direct and indirect observation or experience rather than theory or logic
Formal research is based on the testing of what?
- Involves posing hypotheses based on theory and testing those hypotheses
The hypotheses that a researcher poses are based on what?
Based on theory and testing those hypotheses
Why must results of empirical research be reproduced by others?
Steps must be repeatable in order to predict dependably any future results
Which are the three types of common formal research methods used by advertising and public relations professionals?
- Surveys
- Experiments
- Content Analysis
What are the two types of surveys?
- Descriptive [what it is]
- Analytical [why it is]
What phenomena can surveys be used to measure?
?
How are experiments carried out?
- Apply messages (called treatment) to an audience in a controlled setting. Treatment audience is then compared to an untreated group to see if the treatment group is different
- Control allows researcher to eliminate other factors influencing audiences and observe only the impact of the messages
What are the two types of experimental settings?
- Artificial: Done in laboratories,
- Field experiments: two naturally settings are compared, (like two factories for the same company)
What is a content analysis?
- Is a research method for studying documents and communication artifacts( texts,pictures, audio or video)
- Social scientists use content analysis to examine patterns in communication in a replicable and systematic manner.
What is coding?
The act of placing units of analysis into content categories that describe the content
What are the weaknesses of surveys?
Data is self-reported and it may be difficult for individuals to report accurately
What are the weakness of the experiments?
Chief criticism is that the audience in that setting is not natural and may not reflect the real world
What are the weakness of content analysis?
Chief criticism comes from the question of whether the meaning of the text as a whole can be easily measured by counting the terms in a text
