What Is Communication Research

947 Words2 Pages

What Is Communication Research

Introduction

In this paper we will be discussing communication research, its purpose, goals, and its desired outcomes. Positivism is also a topic that will be touched on. After reading this paper you will be able to fully understand what communication research is and why people decide to go into the field.

Body

What is communication research?

We can first take a look at the definition of the words communication and research as an individual. Please note that communication is different than communication(s). Communication is defined as messages within many texts according to Treadwell. It is impossible for someone to not communicate. So communication is a process that occurs through all beings. According to Treadwell, Research is the process of asking questions and finding answers. When you put the two together, communication research is the study of human communication. Many times in communication you study symbols that are many times used to produce meaning. There are three main components of communication research according to Donald Treadwell, they include problem posing, problem solving, and peer persuasion. These three components are all touched on during the experimental process.

Describe Communication Research

Furthermore, when going through the process of communication research there are scientific and systematic steps that must be followed in order to produce accurate results. There are multiple ways to do communication research. Those ways include quantitative and qualitative research. Researchers who use the quantitative method of research are more neutral and have less passion when it comes to reporting and the behavior on the group they have studied. On the other had, quali...

... middle of paper ...

...example of this would be the 1932 Tuskegee study or the Tuskegee in Guatemala experiment. Though these two cases were not connected, they were still very still similar to one another. One major ideology of science is positivism. Information that is gathered from experimentation, communication research, and experiences are the most elite source of verifiable information and knowledge.

Conclusion

In conclusion communication research is a field that many researchers enjoy studying. It is a field where you can explore and open the door to many new discoveries. It opens your mind to a new world of questions and answers. The question that I had while completing this paper was, “how do researchers choose what topic they are going to do their research on?” But the question that I leave for you is “what new discovery will you find as a new communication researcher?”

Open Document