Communication 6030

Naturalistic Research Methods

Fall, 2001

Course Purpose: This course introduces students to a family of naturalistic research approaches with a main emphasis on the methods given most weight in ethnographic inquiry (participant observation and intensive interviews). Class will involve an interweaving of three strands: (1) practical and analytic issues in the doing of naturalistic research, (2) ongoing critique of qualitative research reports that have appeared in communication journals, and (3) consideration of stances different qualitative traditions (and authors) take toward methodological and epistemological controversies.

A central focus of the class will be the research project that each student completes over the course of the semester. It is hoped that students will find a site/issue for their project that will be valuable to them outside of this class. MA students are encouraged to select a site for study that will help them gain extended observational experience with the kind of institution in which they might hope to secure a position upon completion of the MA. Doctoral students (and MA students planning on doctoral work) are encouraged to select sites that will feed into communication conference papers, theses, and dissertations. Grading in the seminar will take account of graduate-level experience.

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Requirements and Class Assessment:

Participation (15%): Students are expected to read assigned materials thoughtfully and come to class ready to raise questions and discuss. In addition, each student will serve as an initial critic/presenter for one of the research reports we will analyze together. Presenters will begin discussion with an 8-10 minute summary and critique; this presentation will be followed with 30-minute discussion. As the semester progresses, we will add issues for consideration and compare how different authors handled methodological and theoretical issues.

Semester Research Project (40%): The final research project is to be a 20-25 page paper that makes an interesting claim about some aspect of communication. The claim is to be grounded in field notes and interviews collected during the semester; the paper should be similar in format to the journal articles we examine. The paper needs to: (1) Pose a research question/problem and relate it to one or more scholarly traditions, (2) Describe data and method (all projects are expected to be based on 20-25 hours) of data collection. (3) Report findings in a format consistent with the adopted theoretical frame. (4) Conclude with implications of the research and directions for the future. Papers are to be double-spaced and use APA referencing. More details will be provided later.

Homework and Project Materials (15%): Over the course of the semester there will be assignments related to the final project. The purpose of these assignments is to give you feedback on the practical and analytic pieces that comprise naturalistic research, and to help you move your final project along. Written comments will be provided for each assignment but a grade will be reserved until the completion of the project. Students are expected to turn in their data (field notes & interview transcripts) with the final project. Assignments that are completed on time and done thoughtfully, and data turned in at the semester's end that (1) reflect the expected amount of data collection and preparation and (2) good responsiveness to earlier feedback can expect a grade in the "A" range.

Exam-Article Critique (30%): Roughly 2/3 of the way through the semester, you will be given a set of issues (3-4 questions) that you will apply to a particular ethnographic research report. These issues will be developed through readings and class discussion in which the class analyzes different exemplars of qualitative research. The article critique will be a take-home exam (9-10 pages).

Texts

[Lindlof] Lindlof, T. R. (1995). Qualitative communication research methods. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

[ L & L] Lofland, J. & Lofland, L. H. (1995). Analyzing social settings: A guide to qualitative observation and analysis. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.

[Morgan] Morgan, D. L. (1997). Focus groups as qualitative research. Thousand Oaks, Ca: Sage.

Readings [available in mail room (94 Hellems) & on reserve at Norlin]

Ashcraft, K. L. (2001). Feminist organizing and the construction of "alternative" community. In G. Shepherd & E. W. Rothenbuhler (Eds.), Communication and community (pp. 79-110). Mahawah, N.J.: Lawrence Erlbaum.

            Bochner, A., & Ellis, C. (1992). Personal narrative as a social approach to interpersonal communication. Communication Theory,2, 165- 172.

            Clair, R. P. (1996). The political nature of the colloquialism, "a real job": Implications for organizational socialization. Communication Monographs, 63, 249-267.

            Coutu, L. M. (2000). Communication codes of rationality and spirituality in the discourse of and about Robert S. McNamara's In Retrospect. Research on Language and Social Interaction, 33, 179-212.

            Craig, R. T., & Tracy, K. (1995). Grounded practical theory: The case of intellectual discussion. Communication Theory, 5, 248-272.

            Geertz, C. (1973). The interpretations of cultures. New York: Basic books. "Thick description."

            Gillespie, S. R. (2001). The politics of breathing: Asthmatic medicaid patients under managed care. Journal of Applied Communication Research, 29, 97-116.

            Goldsmith, D. J., & Fitch, K. (1997). The normative context of advice as social support. Human Communication Research, 23, 454-476.

            Kress, G., Leite-Garcia, R., & Van Leeuwen, T. (1997). Discourse semiotics. In T. A. van Dijk (Ed.), Discourse as structure and process (pp. 257-291). London: Sage.

            Lemke, J. L. (1999). Discourse and organizational dynamics: Website communication and institutional change. Discourse & Society, 10, 21-48.

Lindlof, T. R. (in press). The challenge of writing the qualitative study. In W. J. Potter & A. A. Alexander (Eds.), Editor's guide to scholarly publishing. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

            Marcus, G. E. (1998). What comes (just) after "post"? The case of ethnography. In N. K. Denzin & Y.S. Lincoln (Eds.), The landscape of qualitative research (pp 383-406). Thousand Oaks,CA: Sage.

            McLaurin, P. (1995). An examination of the effects of culture on pro- social messages directed at African-American at-risk youth. Communication Monographs, 62, 301-326.

            Pelias, R. J. (2000). The critical life. Communication Education, 49, 220-228. [+ 2 responses].

            Philipsen, G. (1992). Speaking culturally: Exploration in social communication. Albany: State University of New York Press.

            Potter, J. & Edwards, D. (2001). Discursive social psychology. in W. P. Robinson & H. Giles (Eds.), Handbook of language and social psychology (pp. 103-118). Chichester, England: John Wiley & Son.

            Potter, J. (1996).Representing reality: Discourse, rhetoric and social construction. London: Sage. (chapters 4-6)

            Potter, J. (1997). Discourse analysis as a way of analysing naturally occurring talk. In D. Silverman (Ed.), Qualitiative research: theory, method and practice (pp. 144-160). London: Sage.

            Richardson, L. (1998). Writing: A method of inquiry. In N. K. Denzin & Y. S. Lincoln (Eds.), Collecting and interpreting qualitative materials (pp. 345-371). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

            Rudd, G. (2000). The symphony: Organizational discourse and the symbolic tensions between artistic and business ideologies. Journal of Applied Communication Research, 28, 117-143.

            Schwartzman, H. B. (1993). Ethnography in organizations. Newbury Park, CA: Sage.

            # 1 Silverman, D. (2001). Interpreting qualitative data: Methods for analysing talk, text and interaction (2nd Edition). London: Sage. ("Interviewing")

# 2 Silverman, D. (2000). Doing qualitative research: A practical handbook. London: Sage. ("The Literature Review")

            Skeggs, B. (2001). Feminist ethnography. In P. Atkinson, A. Coffey, S. Delamont, J. Lofland, & L. Lofland (Eds.), Handbook of ethnography (pp. 426-442). London: Sage.

            Strauss, A., & Corbin, J. (1998). Grounded theory methodology: An overview. In N. K. Denzin & Y. S. Lincoln (Eds.), Strategies of qualitative inquiry (pp. 158-183). Thousand Oaks: Sage.

            Taylor, B. C. (1999). Browsing the culture: Membership and intertextuality at a Mormon bookstore. Studies in Cultures, Organizations, and Societies, 5, 61-95.

            Tracy, K., & Muller, H. (2001). Diagnosing a school board's interactional trouble: Theorizing problem formulating. Communication Theory, 11,84-104.

            Zabava Ford, W. S. (2001). Customer expectations for interactions with service providers: Relationship versus encounter orientation and personalized service communication. Journal of Applied Communication Research, 29, 1-29.

Schedule (note: Changes may be made based on class needs)