"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.
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
