"Research is 'creative and systematic work undertaken to increase the stock of knowledge'."
This topic focuses on ethical considerations involved in communication research, such as informed consent and privacy concerns. It also includes methods of ensuring research validity and reliability.
Research ethics: This encompasses ethical practices and protocols that researchers must follow in order to conduct their research in a safe, responsible, and harm-free way. Topics include informed consent, confidentiality, anonymity, privacy, and data protection.
Validity and reliability: This refers to the accuracy, consistency, and reproducibility of research findings. Validity is the extent to which a study measures what it intends to measure, while reliability is the consistency and stability of the findings over time.
Sampling and generalizability: This refers to the process of selecting a representative subset of the population to study and the degree to which the findings can be generalized to the larger population.
Research design: This encompasses the overall plan for how the study will be conducted and the methods of data collection and analysis used.
Data collection methods: This includes methods such as surveys, interviews, focus groups, and content analysis, among others.
Data analysis methods: This includes statistical methods such as regression, correlation, and ANOVA, as well as qualitative methods such as content analysis and discourse analysis.
Validity threats: These are factors that can reduce the validity of a study, such as sampling bias, measurement bias, and confounding variables.
Ethical theories and frameworks: These provide a philosophical basis for ethical decision-making in research, such as utilitarianism, deontological Ethics, and virtue ethics.
Institutional review boards (IRBs): These are committees responsible for reviewing and approving research studies involving human subjects to ensure compliance with ethical standards.
Professional ethics: This encompasses the ethical codes and codes of conduct of professional organizations in the field of communication research, such as the National Communication Association (NCA) and the International Communication Association (ICA).
Informed consent: A principle in research ethics that requires participants to fully comprehend the nature, purpose, and risks associated with participating in the study before they give their consent.
Confidentiality and anonymity: Ensuring that the participant's personal information remains confidential and anonymous throughout the research process.
Deception: A practice that occurs when participants are misled or not fully informed about the purpose of the research, but where such practices are justified by the study's objectives.
Coercion: The use of intimidation, force, or threats to compel individuals to participate in a research study against their will.
Beneficence (and non-maleficence): A principle of research ethics that emphasizes the responsibility of researchers to minimize harm to their subjects and maximize their benefits.
Bias: A threat to validity in which the research study's results are influenced by the researcher's initial biases or personal beliefs.
Sampling bias: Bias introduced when the sample used in the research study is not representative of the target population, leading to ungeneralizable findings.
Instrumentation bias: Bias caused by the measuring instrument or tool used in the research study (e.g., survey questions, tests) being inaccurate or unreliable.
Response bias: Bias that occurs when participants provide answers that do not accurately reflect their true beliefs or experiences.
External validity: The extent to which the research study's findings can be generalized to other populations or contexts beyond those studied.
"It involves the collection, organization and analysis of evidence to increase understanding of a topic, characterized by a particular attentiveness to controlling sources of bias and error."
"A research project may be an expansion on past work in the field. To test the validity of instruments, procedures, or experiments, research may replicate elements of prior projects or the project as a whole."
"The primary purposes of basic research (as opposed to applied research) are documentation, discovery, interpretation, and the research and development (R&D) of methods and systems for the advancement of human knowledge."
"Approaches to research depend on epistemologies, which vary considerably both within and between humanities and sciences."
"There are several forms of research: scientific, humanities, artistic, economic, social, business, marketing, practitioner research, life, technological, etc."
"The scientific study of research practices is known as meta-research."
"A researcher is a person engaged in conducting research, possibly recognized as an occupation by a formal job title."
"In order to be a social researcher or social scientist, one should have enormous knowledge of subject related to social science that they are specialized in."
"Similarly, in order to be a natural science researcher, the person should have knowledge on field related to natural science (physics, chemistry, biology, astronomy, zoology and so on)."
"To test the validity of instruments, procedures, or experiments, research may replicate elements of prior projects or the project as a whole."
"...the research and development (R&D) of methods and systems for the advancement of human knowledge."
"It involves the collection, organization and analysis of evidence to increase understanding of a topic."
"It involves a particular attentiveness to controlling sources of bias and error."
"There are several forms of research: scientific, humanities, artistic, economic, social, business, marketing, practitioner research, life, technological, etc."
"Research is 'creative and systematic work undertaken to increase the stock of knowledge'."
"A research project may be an expansion on past work in the field."
"The primary purposes of basic research (as opposed to applied research) are documentation, discovery, interpretation, and the research and development (R&D) of methods and systems for the advancement of human knowledge."
"The scientific study of research practices is known as meta-research."
"A researcher is a person engaged in conducting research, possibly recognized as an occupation by a formal job title."