This document provides an overview of key concepts in research methods for journalism and mass communication. It defines research and discusses the differences between quantitative and qualitative research. It also outlines the different types of science, including natural and social sciences. Additionally, it covers topics like the scientific method, academic vs private research, audience and market research, online research methods, and the typical steps involved in the research process from developing a research problem to analyzing and reporting results.

1. BA Journalism & Mass Communication

3.  Re-search simply means Searching it again and again.
 Research is defined as human activity based on intellectual application in the investigation
of matter.
 “a careful investigation or enquiry especially through search for new facts in any branch of
knowledge” as per dictionary
 Research is an organized and systematic way of finding answers to questions
 Purpose – Discover, Interpret, Develop, Knowledge and Exploration
 Quantitative vs Qualitative Research
 Quantitative research is empirical research where the data are in the form of numbers
 Qualitative research is to develop deep understandings of how people perceive their social
realities and how they act within the social world.
 https://shodhganga.inflibnet.ac.in/bitstream/10603/74214/10/12-%20chapter-3.pdf/

5.  A school subject for few and for others, science is a craft practiced by scientists
 The word “science” is derived from the Latin word ‘Scientia’ meaning knowledge.
 Science refers to a systematic and organized body of knowledge in any area of inquiry that
is acquired using “the scientific method”
 Science grouped into two categories: natural science and social science.
 Natural science is the science of naturally occurring objects or phenomena, such as light,
objects, matter, earth, celestial bodies, or the human body.
 In contrast, social science is the science of people or collections of people, such as groups,
firms, societies, or economies, and their individual or collective behaviors.
 Social sciences can be classified into disciplines such as psychology (the science of human
behaviors), sociology (the science of social groups), and economics (the science of firms,
markets, and economies).
 https://courses.lumenlearning.com/atd-herkimer-researchmethodsforsocialscience/chapter/chapter-1-
science-and-scientific-research/

6. • Realization of Importance of
Data in a Study
• Internet the Big Game Changer
• Increase in Technology and
interest by the Citizens
• Expenditure by the Govt and
every other stakeholder
• Competition among the Media
companies

7.  Five basic characteristics, or tenets, distinguish the scientific method from other
methods of knowing.
 1. Scientific research is public - Advances in science require freely available
information.
 2. Science is objective - Science tries to rule out eccentricities of judgment by
researchers
 3. Science is empirical - Researchers are concerned with a world that is knowable
and potentially measurable
 4. Science is systematic and cumulative - No single research study stands alone,
nor does it rise or fall by itself
 5. Science is predictive - Science is concerned with relating the present to the
future.

8.  Users methods of knowing:
1. Tenacity - A user of the method of tenacity follows the logic that something is
true because it has always been true
2. Intuition - In the method of intuition (priori approach), a person assumes that
something is true because it is “self-evident” or “stands to reason.”
3. Authority - The method of authority promotes a belief in something because a
trusted source, such as a parent, a news correspondent, or a teacher, says it is
true.
4. Science - The scientific method approaches learning as a series of small steps.
the “truth” is found only through a series of objective analyses

9.  Academic – Educational purposes
 Private – Market based, Business oriented and Statistical learning
 Also divided into Basic and Applied
 Although we do not use these terms in this text because research in both sectors
can be basic or applied.
 The two sectors are equally important and in many cases work together to answer
mass media questions.

10.  Audience can generally be understood as the overall set of data or respondents
available for conducting research
 Universe – The Complete – Infinite Population
 Population – The data set used for research – Finite Population
 Sample – Random data selected out of the population
 Audience research is any research conducted on specific audience segments to
gather information about their attitudes, knowledge, interests, preferences, or
behaviors.

11.  Market research, is any organized effort to gather information about
target markets – including the folks who may NOT be visiting an
organization
 Deals with studying the Markets
 Tricky Research with potential to reach high number of sample
 Business must properly analyze and use the derived data
 Helps organization in decision making on the Products size, price,
quantity, quality etc;

12.  Online research methods are the digital tools and processes used to gather
information on a topic from an internet search.
 E-Internet is the buzz word of 21st Century
 One has got the freedom to use Internet in the best possible way to conduct
research
 Tools can be listed down as:
a. Google forms, Survey Monkeys
b. Google Analytics
c. Data Simulation Tools

13.  Step 1: Identify the Problem. ...
 Step 2: Review the Literature. ...
 Step 3: Clarify the Problem. ...
 Step 4: Clearly Define Terms and Concepts. ...
 Step 5: Define the Population. ...
 Step 6: Develop the Instrumentation Plan. ...
 Step 7: Collect Data. ...
 Step 8: Analyze the Data

14. 8 basic questions.
1. Is the Topic Too Broad?
2. Can the Problem really be Investigated?
3. Can the Data be Analyzed?
4. Is the problem significant?
5. Can the Results of the Study be Generalized?
6. What costs and time are involved in the analysis?
7. Is the planned approach appropriate to the project?
8. Is there any potential harm to the subjects?

15. Literature Review is a research conducted in order to understand the already conducted
research documents or papers. Thus before new project, research will ask the below
questions:
1. What type of research has been done in the area?
2. What has been found in previous studies?
3. What suggestions do other researchers make for further study?
4. What has not been investigated?
5. How can the proposed study add to our knowledge of the area?
6. What research methods were used in previous studies?
Answers to these questions will usually help define a specific hypothesis or research
question.

16. A hypothesis is a formal statement regarding the
relationship between variables and is tested
directly.
A research question is a formally stated question
intended to provide indications about something; it
is not limited to investigating relationships
between variables.

17.  The Penultimate Stage is Analysis and Interpretation
 The time, hard work, process, cost everything in the research bears fruits based on
the analysis.
 Analysis turns out to be most hectic
 Researcher should validate the answers externally and internally
 Internal Validation includes: History, Maturation, Testing, Instrumentation,
Statistics, Experimentation, Sampling and more
 External Validity determines if the study can be extended to the population
outside the sample.

18.  Results must be presented in a clear and concise manner
appropriate to both the research question and the individuals who
will read the report.
 Results are only clear if the report made is understandable.
 Thus report writing is very important step in the entire research
process
 Though this is the end step it is as equally important as setting up a
research study or gathering sample or data analysis.
 Graphics will be the best way of presenting the data.