Qualitative Communication Research Methods

Fourth Edition
Thomas R. Lindlof
Bryan C. Taylor
Qualitative Communication Research Methods
November 2017 | 520 pages | Sage US
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Description

“This is the best qualitative methods book I’ve seen, especially among books aimed at undergraduate audiences.”
—Michael Irvin Arrington, Indiana State University

Qualitative Communication Research Methods, Fourth Edition introduces readers to qualitative research in speech and mass communication. Award-winning scholars and authors Thomas R. Lindlof and Bryan C. Taylor guide readers through every step of the qualitative process, from developing research topics and questions through writing a final report. Readers are given numerous examples of work in the field to illustrate how studies are designed, carried out, written, evaluated, and related to theory. In addition to covering the theories and methods currently used in qualitative communication research, the authors also discuss important trends influencing the future of that research, helping readers make informed judgments about the significance and consequences of recent trends.

New to the Fourth Edition:
  • A new chapter titled “The Diversity of Qualitative Research in Communication Subfields” provides readers with a complete guide to the field’s distinctive subfields and enables readers to identify the research agenda that best represents their own interests. Two rising subfields – Political Communication and Communication Activism – were added, resulting in thirteen subfields covered.  
  • Two major phases of data analysis have been split into separate chapters, enabling readers to concentrate on the initial steps of analysis before moving on to the interpretation phase of analysis. 
  • Discussions of important intellectual and institutional trends currently reshaping the landscape of qualitative research, including Materialist Theory, Big Data, and Open-Access publishing, provide readers with cutting-edge knowledge and skills that affect what they study and how they study it.
  • An analysis of new developments in media and technology shows readers how social media networks and other digital platforms are not only topics of research, but also the means for collecting and analyzing data. 

 



Contents

Preface

Preface

Acknowledgments

Acknowledgments

About the Authors

  • Chapter 1. Introduction to Qualitative Communication Research
  • Rounding the (Paradigm) Bases: A Brief History of Qualitative Communication Research
  • Covering New Material(ism), Going Big: Two Trends in Qualitative Communication Research
  • Conclusion
  • Exercises
  • Chapter 2. The Diversity of Qualitative Research in Communication Subfields
  • Baker’s Dozen: Thirteen Subfields, Thirteen Stories of Qualitative Communication Research
  • Conclusion
  • Exercises
  • Chapter 3. Theoretical Traditions and Qualitative Communication Research
  • Introduction: “What Would You Like on Your Sandwich?”
  • The Phenomenological Tradition
  • The Sociocultural Tradition
  • Critical Theories
  • Conclusion
  • Exercises
  • Chapter 4. Design I: Planning Research Projects
  • Introduction
  • “My City, My Society, and My Life”: Renee’s Story
  • Sources of Research Ideas
  • Evaluating the Scene
  • Conclusion
  • Exercises
  • Chapter 5. Design II: Implementing Research Projects
  • Introduction
  • Negotiating Access
  • Exploratory and Mixed Methods
  • Sampling
  • Human Subject Protections
  • The Research Proposal
  • Conclusion
  • Exercises
  • Chapter 6. Producing Data I: Participation, Observation, and Recording Communication
  • Introduction: Welcome to Fieldwork
  • Ethnography and Participant Observation
  • Successful Participant Observation
  • Adapting Roles
  • Tactical Observing
  • Writing Fieldnotes
  • Conclusion
  • Exercises
  • Chapter 7. Producing Data II: Qualitative Interviewing
  • Introduction
  • Purposes of the Qualitative Interview
  • Types of Interviews in Communication Research
  • Interviewing Practices
  • Question Design and Use
  • Transcribing Interviews
  • Conclusion
  • Exercises
  • Chapter 8. Producing Data III: Studying Materiality
  • Introduction
  • Material Culture
  • Documents
  • Conclusion
  • Exercises
  • Chapter 9. Sensemaking I: Analyzing, Coding, and Managing Data
  • Introduction
  • Qualitative Data Analysis: An Overview
  • In-Process Writing
  • Categories and Codes
  • Grounded Theory
  • Coding Examples
  • Leaving the Field
  • Tools for Analysis
  • Conclusion
  • Exercises
  • Chapter 10. Sensemaking II: Creating, Evaluating, and Enhancing Interpretations of Data
  • Introduction
  • Creating Interpretations
  • Evaluating Interpretations
  • Enhancing Interpretations
  • Conclusion
  • Exercises
  • Chapter 11. Writing, Authoring, and Publishing
  • Introduction: Going Public
  • The Crisis of Representation
  • After the Fall: Reading and Writing Qualitative Research
  • Institutional Contexts of Qualitative Writing
  • The Craft of Qualitative Writing: Three Types of Formats and Their Related Strategies
  • Some Final Thoughts on Writing
  • Exercises

Epilogue

Epilogue

References

References

Author Index

Author Index

Subject Index

Subject Index

Description

“This is the best qualitative methods book I’ve seen, especially among books aimed at undergraduate audiences.”
—Michael Irvin Arrington, Indiana State University

Qualitative Communication Research Methods, Fourth Edition introduces readers to qualitative research in speech and mass communication. Award-winning scholars and authors Thomas R. Lindlof and Bryan C. Taylor guide readers through every step of the qualitative process, from developing research topics and questions through writing a final report. Readers are given numerous examples of work in the field to illustrate how studies are designed, carried out, written, evaluated, and related to theory. In addition to covering the theories and methods currently used in qualitative communication research, the authors also discuss important trends influencing the future of that research, helping readers make informed judgments about the significance and consequences of recent trends.

New to the Fourth Edition:
  • A new chapter titled “The Diversity of Qualitative Research in Communication Subfields” provides readers with a complete guide to the field’s distinctive subfields and enables readers to identify the research agenda that best represents their own interests. Two rising subfields – Political Communication and Communication Activism – were added, resulting in thirteen subfields covered.  
  • Two major phases of data analysis have been split into separate chapters, enabling readers to concentrate on the initial steps of analysis before moving on to the interpretation phase of analysis. 
  • Discussions of important intellectual and institutional trends currently reshaping the landscape of qualitative research, including Materialist Theory, Big Data, and Open-Access publishing, provide readers with cutting-edge knowledge and skills that affect what they study and how they study it.
  • An analysis of new developments in media and technology shows readers how social media networks and other digital platforms are not only topics of research, but also the means for collecting and analyzing data. 

 



Contents

Preface

Preface

Acknowledgments

Acknowledgments

About the Authors

  • Chapter 1. Introduction to Qualitative Communication Research
  • Rounding the (Paradigm) Bases: A Brief History of Qualitative Communication Research
  • Covering New Material(ism), Going Big: Two Trends in Qualitative Communication Research
  • Conclusion
  • Exercises
  • Chapter 2. The Diversity of Qualitative Research in Communication Subfields
  • Baker’s Dozen: Thirteen Subfields, Thirteen Stories of Qualitative Communication Research
  • Conclusion
  • Exercises
  • Chapter 3. Theoretical Traditions and Qualitative Communication Research
  • Introduction: “What Would You Like on Your Sandwich?”
  • The Phenomenological Tradition
  • The Sociocultural Tradition
  • Critical Theories
  • Conclusion
  • Exercises
  • Chapter 4. Design I: Planning Research Projects
  • Introduction
  • “My City, My Society, and My Life”: Renee’s Story
  • Sources of Research Ideas
  • Evaluating the Scene
  • Conclusion
  • Exercises
  • Chapter 5. Design II: Implementing Research Projects
  • Introduction
  • Negotiating Access
  • Exploratory and Mixed Methods
  • Sampling
  • Human Subject Protections
  • The Research Proposal
  • Conclusion
  • Exercises
  • Chapter 6. Producing Data I: Participation, Observation, and Recording Communication
  • Introduction: Welcome to Fieldwork
  • Ethnography and Participant Observation
  • Successful Participant Observation
  • Adapting Roles
  • Tactical Observing
  • Writing Fieldnotes
  • Conclusion
  • Exercises
  • Chapter 7. Producing Data II: Qualitative Interviewing
  • Introduction
  • Purposes of the Qualitative Interview
  • Types of Interviews in Communication Research
  • Interviewing Practices
  • Question Design and Use
  • Transcribing Interviews
  • Conclusion
  • Exercises
  • Chapter 8. Producing Data III: Studying Materiality
  • Introduction
  • Material Culture
  • Documents
  • Conclusion
  • Exercises
  • Chapter 9. Sensemaking I: Analyzing, Coding, and Managing Data
  • Introduction
  • Qualitative Data Analysis: An Overview
  • In-Process Writing
  • Categories and Codes
  • Grounded Theory
  • Coding Examples
  • Leaving the Field
  • Tools for Analysis
  • Conclusion
  • Exercises
  • Chapter 10. Sensemaking II: Creating, Evaluating, and Enhancing Interpretations of Data
  • Introduction
  • Creating Interpretations
  • Evaluating Interpretations
  • Enhancing Interpretations
  • Conclusion
  • Exercises
  • Chapter 11. Writing, Authoring, and Publishing
  • Introduction: Going Public
  • The Crisis of Representation
  • After the Fall: Reading and Writing Qualitative Research
  • Institutional Contexts of Qualitative Writing
  • The Craft of Qualitative Writing: Three Types of Formats and Their Related Strategies
  • Some Final Thoughts on Writing
  • Exercises

Epilogue

Epilogue

References

References

Author Index

Author Index

Subject Index

Subject Index

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Qualitative Communication Research Methods

Thomas R. Lindlof , Bryan C. Taylor
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November 2017 | 520 pages | Sage US

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“This is the best qualitative methods book I’ve seen, especially among books aimed at undergraduate audiences.”
—Michael Irvin Arrington, Indiana State University

Qualitative Communication Research Methods, Fourth Edition introduces readers to qualitative research in speech and mass communication. Award-winning scholars and authors Thomas R. Lindlof and Bryan C. Taylor guide readers through every step of the qualitative process, from developing research topics and questions through writing a final report. Readers are given numerous examples of work in the field to illustrate how studies are designed, carried out, written, evaluated, and related to theory. In addition to covering the theories and methods currently used in qualitative communication research, the authors also discuss important trends influencing the future of that research, helping readers make informed judgments about the significance and consequences of recent trends.

New to the Fourth Edition:
  • A new chapter titled “The Diversity of Qualitative Research in Communication Subfields” provides readers with a complete guide to the field’s distinctive subfields and enables readers to identify the research agenda that best represents their own interests. Two rising subfields – Political Communication and Communication Activism – were added, resulting in thirteen subfields covered.  
  • Two major phases of data analysis have been split into separate chapters, enabling readers to concentrate on the initial steps of analysis before moving on to the interpretation phase of analysis. 
  • Discussions of important intellectual and institutional trends currently reshaping the landscape of qualitative research, including Materialist Theory, Big Data, and Open-Access publishing, provide readers with cutting-edge knowledge and skills that affect what they study and how they study it.
  • An analysis of new developments in media and technology shows readers how social media networks and other digital platforms are not only topics of research, but also the means for collecting and analyzing data. 

 




Table Of Contents:

  • Preface
  • Acknowledgments
  • About the Authors
  • Chapter 1. Introduction to Qualitative Communication Research
  • Rounding the (Paradigm) Bases: A Brief History of Qualitative Communication Research
  • Covering New Material(ism), Going Big: Two Trends in Qualitative Communication Research
  • Conclusion
  • Exercises
  • Chapter 2. The Diversity of Qualitative Research in Communication Subfields
  • Baker’s Dozen: Thirteen Subfields, Thirteen Stories of Qualitative Communication Research
  • Conclusion
  • Exercises
  • Chapter 3. Theoretical Traditions and Qualitative Communication Research
  • Introduction: “What Would You Like on Your Sandwich?”
  • The Phenomenological Tradition
  • The Sociocultural Tradition
  • Critical Theories
  • Conclusion
  • Exercises
  • Chapter 4. Design I: Planning Research Projects
  • Introduction
  • “My City, My Society, and My Life”: Renee’s Story
  • Sources of Research Ideas
  • Evaluating the Scene
  • Conclusion
  • Exercises
  • Chapter 5. Design II: Implementing Research Projects
  • Introduction
  • Negotiating Access
  • Exploratory and Mixed Methods
  • Sampling
  • Human Subject Protections
  • The Research Proposal
  • Conclusion
  • Exercises
  • Chapter 6. Producing Data I: Participation, Observation, and Recording Communication
  • Introduction: Welcome to Fieldwork
  • Ethnography and Participant Observation
  • Successful Participant Observation
  • Adapting Roles
  • Tactical Observing
  • Writing Fieldnotes
  • Conclusion
  • Exercises
  • Chapter 7. Producing Data II: Qualitative Interviewing
  • Introduction
  • Purposes of the Qualitative Interview
  • Types of Interviews in Communication Research
  • Interviewing Practices
  • Question Design and Use
  • Transcribing Interviews
  • Conclusion
  • Exercises
  • Chapter 8. Producing Data III: Studying Materiality
  • Introduction
  • Material Culture
  • Documents
  • Conclusion
  • Exercises
  • Chapter 9. Sensemaking I: Analyzing, Coding, and Managing Data
  • Introduction
  • Qualitative Data Analysis: An Overview
  • In-Process Writing
  • Categories and Codes
  • Grounded Theory
  • Coding Examples
  • Leaving the Field
  • Tools for Analysis
  • Conclusion
  • Exercises
  • Chapter 10. Sensemaking II: Creating, Evaluating, and Enhancing Interpretations of Data
  • Introduction
  • Creating Interpretations
  • Evaluating Interpretations
  • Enhancing Interpretations
  • Conclusion
  • Exercises
  • Chapter 11. Writing, Authoring, and Publishing
  • Introduction: Going Public
  • The Crisis of Representation
  • After the Fall: Reading and Writing Qualitative Research
  • Institutional Contexts of Qualitative Writing
  • The Craft of Qualitative Writing: Three Types of Formats and Their Related Strategies
  • Some Final Thoughts on Writing
  • Exercises
  • Epilogue
  • References
  • Author Index
  • Subject Index

Recent Product Reviews:

“This is the best qualitative methods book I’ve seen, especially among books aimed at undergraduate audiences.”
Michael Irvin Arrington, Indiana State University
“The book is exceptionally well written and easy to read even for students who know nothing about research methods.”
Martina Topic, Leeds Business School, Leeds Beckett University, Leeds, UK
“The engaging and accessible (generally) nature of writing is excellent and provides good inspiration and a good foundation to build on in terms of introductions to key steps and dimensions in qualitative research. The referencing of examples from ‘real’ research is attractive to lecturers and students alike and makes the introduction to qualitative research come alive.”
Anders Hansen, University of Leicester, UK
“An insightful and thoroughly researched book that will be extremely helpful for students aiming to engage with qualitative research at a deeper level.”
Sylvie Magerstädt, University of Hertfordshire

Recommendations