MASS COMMUNICATION RESEARCH

Miss. Lincy Joseph

Asst. Professor on Contract
Department of Journalism and Communication
Little Flower Institute of Social Sciences and Health
Kaithapoyil
What is Communication Research?
• It is impossible to translate a poem
• It is impossible for the President of the United States to be less
than 35 years old.
• It is impossible to send a message in to the past
• It is impossible for a door to be open and closed
simultaneously…
• It is impossible to learn how to conduct mass media research.
Davis and Park (1987) : The Nature of the Impossible
What is Communication Research?
• Those who wish to
become mass media
researchers should
spend time learning
‘What to do’ with
the research
methods, not ‘how
they work’.
 Why Mass Media Research?
• Radio and
Television stations
need to know how
many people tune
in to their
programme, in
order to set their
advertising rates.
 Why Mass Media Research?
• Publishers need to know
what their audience likes
and dislikes, What and
Why they attend to
some content and not to
others, and What effects,
if any, their messages
have on individuals and
on society.
 Why Mass Media Research?
• Journalists engaged
in in-depth
reporting
assignments may
need to determine
the effects of a new
policy or the
effectiveness of an
old one.
 Why Mass Media Research?
• Public information
officers, public relations
practitioners, and those
who work in advertising
need to know whether
their messages are
reaching their publics
and whether their
campaigns are effective
 Why Mass Media Research?
• Both businesses
and non profit
agencies need to
know how to
communicate with
their employees,
clients, and
customers.
 Why Mass Media Research?
• In the manufacturing
and high-tech
sectors, companies
need assurance that
the manuals for their
products are
accurate and that
they meet the needs
of end users.
 Why Mass Media Research?
• Politicians, government
leaders, interest groups,
non-profit agencies, and
many businesses need
to know which issues
people care about, how
to increase issue
awareness, and how to
garner and maintain
support.
Development of Communication Research.

PHASE I
The medium
itself

PHASE 4 PHASE 2
How the medium Uses and Users
can be improved of the medium

PHASE 3
Effects of the
medium
 Development of Communication Research.
PHASE I
The medium itself:
• What is it?
• How does it work?
• What technology does it involve?
• How does it work?
• How is it similar to or different
from what we already have?
• What functions or services does it
provide?
• Who will have access to the new
medium?
• How much will it cost?
 Development of Communication Research.
PHASE 2
Uses and Users of the
medium:
• How do people use the
medium in real life?
• What gratifications does
the new medium provide?
• What uses are evident
other than those that
were projected in initial
research?
 Development of Communication Research.
PHASE 3
Effects of the medium:
• Social, psychological, and
physical effects of the
medium.
• How much time do people
spend with the medium?
• Does it change people’s
perspectives about anything?
• Are there any harmful effects
related to using the medium?
 Development of Communication Research.
PHASE 4
How the medium can be
improved?
• Can the medium provide
information or
entertainment to more
types of people?
• Is there a way to change
the content
(Programming) to be more
valuable or entertaining?
 Development of Communication Research.
Private Sector Research
• In private sector research,
an additional element
permeates every phase:
• How can the medium make
money?
• The largest percentage of
research conducted in the
private sector relates in
some way to money – how
to save it, make more of it,
or take it away from others.
 Evolution of Mass Media Research
Four Major Events or Social Forces
1. World War I
• Nature of propaganda
• Stimulus – response point of
view – The hypodermic needle
theory: mass communicators
need only “shoot” messages
at an audience and that those
messages would produce
preplanned and almost
universal effects.
• Individual differences theory
ruled out this.
Evolution of Mass Media Research
Four Major Events or Social Forces
2. Realisation by
advertisers in the 1950s
and 1960s:
• Research data were useful in
devising ways to persuade
potential customers
• Message effectiveness
• Audience demographics and size
• Placement of advertising
• Frequency of advertising
• Selection of the medium
 Evolution of Mass Media Research
Four Major Events or Social Forces
3. Increasing interest of
citizens in the effects of
the media on the public,
especially on children:
• Violence and sexual
content in television
programmes and in
commercials
• Pro-social and Anti-social
effects of television.
 Evolution of Mass Media Research
Four Major Events or Social Forces
4. Increased competition
among the media for
advertising dollars:
• Audience Fragmentation – the
masses of people have been
divided in to small groups –
“demassification”
The media “Survival Kit”:
• Information about consumers
• Changing values and tastes
• Shifts in demographic patterns
• Developing trends in lifestyles
 Evolution of Mass Media Research
Four Major Events or Social Forces
• 4. Increased competition
among the media for
advertising dollars:
Audience fragmentation increases the
need for:
• Trend Studies (New behaviour
patterns)
• Image Studies (People’s perceptions
of the media and their
environment)
• Segmentation Studies (Explanations
of types or groups of people)
 Evolution of Mass Media Research
Cross-disciplinary Studies
• Much of the media research
up to the early 1960s
originated in psychology
and sociology departments
• Today, the field is
dominated by mass media
researchers
• Cross-disciplinary Studies:
Media researchers,
sociologists, psychologists,
and political scientists.
 Evolution of Mass Media Research
New Trends
• New areas of inquiry:
• Physiological and
emotional responses to
television programmes,
commercials, or music.
• Computer modeling and
other sophisticated
computer analyses.
• Digital Media
 Nature and Scope of Communication
Research
• Communication
researchers typically
study communication
with three interests in
mind:
• First, researchers are
interested in studying the
processes of message
production, transmission,
and meaning making.
 Nature and Scope of Communication
Research
• Second, communication
researchers systematically
examine the content or form
of communicative messages.
• For example, a family
communication researcher
might study the content of
family talk at the dinner table,
perhaps with an eye toward
understanding how children
become socialized to think
about “current events” in the
world around them.
 Nature and Scope of Communication
Research
• Third, communication
researchers are interested
in studying the functions
and effects of messages.
For example, one
researcher might have an
interest in studying the
persuasive effects of anti-
smoking public service
messages targeted at
young adolescents.
 Communication Research
Areas and Issues
• Communication policy
and law: Role of
lawmaking and policy
making relevant to various
communication systems.
• Communication and
technology:
Communication process in
existing or emerging new
technologies
 Communication Research
Areas and Issues
• Comparative media
systems: Structures and
functions of media
systems in various
nations
• Cross-cultural
communication:
Communication practices
of people of different
national cultures
 Communication Research
Areas and Issues
• Development
Communication:
Communication in national
development.
• Family communication:
Communication between
family members
• Group communication:
Communication between
members of task groups or
work teams
 Communication Research
Areas and Issues
• Health communication:
Communicative
messages focused on
health promotion and
health care.
• Instructional
communication:
Communication process
associated with learning
contexts
 Communication Research
Areas and Issues
• Interpersonal communication:
Communication process
associated with interpersonal
relationships, including
acquaintances, friends,
romantic partners, and marital
partners
• Intrapersonal communication:
Cognitive processes related to
the production or
interpretation of behaviour
 Communication Research
Areas and Issues
• Language and social
interaction: How talk is
enacted in specific situations
or cultural groups.
• Legal communication:
Communication in legal
contexts.
• Mass communication:
Mediated communication
process, including the
electronic, cinematic, and
print media.
 Communication Research
Areas and Issues
• Organisational
communication:
Communicative
messages between
organisational members
• Political
communication:
Communication
associated with politics
and public argument
 Communication Research
Areas and Issues
• Popular communication:
Communication
associated with
contemporary popular
culture.
• Public communication:
Communication between
speakers and their
audiences in public
speaking contexts
 Communication Research
Areas and Issues
• Public relations:
Communication
between
organisations
and specific
publics.
Research in the Print Media
 Research in the Print Media
Common
methodologies:
• Content analysis
• Experiments
• Focus groups
• Surveys
 Research in the Print Media
Background
• Magazines and Newspapers were one of the
first subjects of mass media research
• In 1924 the ‘Journalism Bulletin’ was first
published by the Association of American
Schools and Departments of Journalism.
• The first issue contained an article by William
Bleyer entitled “Research Problems and
Newspaper Analysis”, which presented a list
of possible research topics in journalism.
 Research in the Print Media
Background
• Much of the content of
early print media research
was qualitative.
• The first volume of
Journalism Quarterly,
founded in 1928 to
succeed the ‘Journalism
Bulletin’, contained
articles on press law,
history, international
comparisons and ethics.
 Research in the Print Media
Background
• An article published in March 1930
surveyed the research interests of
those currently working in the
newspaper and magazine field and
found the most prevalent type of
study to be the survey of reader
interest in newspaper content.
• The June 1930 issue contained an
article by Ralph Nafziger, “A Reader
Interest Survey of Madison,
Wisconsin, which served as the
prototype for hundreds of future
research studies.
 Research in the Print Media
Background
• By 1960, newspapers and
magazines were competing with
television as well as radio for
audience attention and advertiser
investment. This situation greatly
spurred the growth of private
sector research.
• Print media research is conducted
by commercial research firms, in-
house research organisations,
professional associations, and
Universities/Colleges.
 Types of Print Media Research
Newspapers and magazine researchers
conduct five basic types of studies:
1. Readership
2. Circulation
3. Management
4. Typography/makeup, and
5. Readability
 Types of Print Media Research
1. Readership Research
• Many readership studies were
done in the United States in the
years immediately preceding
and following World War II.
• The George Gallup organisation
was a pioneer in developing the
methodology of these studies –
namely, a personal interview in
which respondents were shown
a copy of a newspaper and
asked to identify the articles
they had read.
 Types of Print Media Research
Readership Research

i. Reader Profiles
Demographic summary of
the readers of a particular
publication.
• Lifestyle segmentation
research
Respondents are asked a
battery of questions
concerning activities,
hobbies, interests, and
attitudes.
 Types of Print Media Research
Readership Research

ii. Item selection studies

• It is used to determine
who reads specific parts
of the paper.
• Aided recall
The interviewer shows a
copy of the paper to the
respondent to find out
which stories the
respondent remembers.
 Types of Print Media Research
Readership Research
iii. Reader – Non reader Studies:
• This type of study can be
conducted via personal,
telephone, or mail interviews
with minor modifications.
• A non reader is determined by
a “no” answer to the question,
“Do you generally read a
newspaper?” Others have used
the more specific question,
“Have you read a newspaper
yesterday or today?”
 Types of Print Media Research
Readership Research
iv. Uses and Gratifications
Studies:
It is used to determine the
motives that lead to
newspaper reading and
the personal and
psychological rewards that
result from it.
 Types of Print Media Research
Readership Research
v. Editor – Reader
Comparison:
A group of editors is
questioned about a
certain topic, and their
answers are compared to
those of their readers to
see whether there is any
correspondence between
the two groups
 Types of Print Media Research
2. Circulation Research
It attempts to measure
circulation in terms of the
overall characteristics of a
particular market – for example,
to determine the proportion of
households in a given market
that are reached by a particular
newspaper or the circulation
pattern of a magazine among
certain demographic groups or
in specific geographic areas.
 Types of Print Media Research
3. Newspaper Management Research:
The techniques used to study
newspaper management were the
same as those used to study any
business activity: Surveys, Case
Studies, Descriptive Content analysis,
and Mathematical models
 Types of Print Media Research
4. Typography and Makeup
Research:
The effects of different
typography and makeup
elements, including amount
of white space, presence of
paragraph headlines, size
and style of type, variations
in column width, and use of
vertical or horizontal page
make up.
 Types of Print Media Research
5. Readability Research:
Readability is the sum total of all the
elements and their interactions that
affect the success of a piece of
printed material.
• Several formulas have been
developed to objectively
determine the readability of text:
i. Flesch (1948) ‘Reading Ease
Formula
ii. Gunning (1952) ‘Fog Index’
iii. McLaughlin (1969) ‘SMOG
Grading
iv. Taylor (1953) ‘Cloze Procedure’.
Research in the Electronic Media
 Research in the Electronic Media
• The acceptance of advertising
on radio was the first step in
the development of electronic
media research.
• Advertisers, not broadcasters,
were the initiators of broadcast
research.
• Advertisers became interested
in why people behave the way
they do. This led to the
development of the research
area known as psychographics.
 Research in the Electronic Media
I. RATINGS RESEARCH
• Documenting audience size.
• Broadcast ratings create
controversy in many areas:
• Viewers complain that “good”
shows are cancelled; producers,
actors, and other artists complain
that ‘numbers’ are no judge of
artistic quality; radio and
television owners and operators
complain that the results are not
reliable; and advertisers often balk
at the lack of reliable information.
 Types of Electronic Media Research
Ratings Research

Ratings Methodology:
Methods of gathering ratings data:
1. Audimeter:
Only indicates whether the
television set is on or off, and the
channel to which the set is tuned;
no data about who is watching.
2. Diaries : Subjects are asked to
record in diaries the channels they
watch or the stations they listen to,
the time periods, and the number
of people viewing or listening to
each programme
 Types of Electronic Media Research
Ratings Research

Ratings Methodology:
3. Telephone Interview
4. People Meters:
Each person in the
household, as well as all
visitors, should push a
specific button on a
mechanical unit that
records the viewing
 Types of Electronic Media Research
Non ratings Research

• Provides information
about what the
audience likes and
dislikes, analyses of
different types of
programming,
demographic and
lifestyle information
about the audience,
and much more.
 Types of Electronic Media Research
Non ratings Research

i. Programme Testing:
(a). Initial idea or plan
(b). Rough cut
(c). Post production
ii. Music Research:
(a). Auditorium music testing:
• To evaluate “recurrents” (songs
that have been recently popular)
and ‘oldies’ (songs that have been
around for years)
• Between 75 and 200 people are
invited.
• It cannot be used on new releases
 Types of Electronic Media Research
Non ratings Research

(b) Call-out research:

Instead of inviting people
to a large hall or ball room,
randomly selected or pre-
recruited subjects are called
on the telephone
To test music on the air
(currents), and also used to
test newer music releases.
 Types of Electronic Media Research
Non ratings Research

iii. Performer Q:
• Producers and directors in
broadcasting naturally desire
an indication of the popularity
of various performers and
entertainers.
• A basic question in the
planning stage of any
programme is, “What
performer or group of
performers should be used to
give the show the greatest
appeal?”
 Types of Electronic Media Research
Non ratings Research

iv. Focus Groups:

To develop questionnaires
for further research and to
provide preliminary
information on a variety of
topics, such as format and
programming changes,
personalities, station
images, and life style
characteristics of the
audience.
 Types of Electronic Media Research
Non ratings Research

v. Miscellaneous Research
(1). Market Studies:
Opinions and perceptions of
the entire market
(2). Format Studies: To
determine which stations
provide the best service in a
variety of areas such as
music, news, traffic reports,
and communal activities
 Types of Electronic Media Research
Non ratings Research

Miscellaneous Research
(3). Programme element
importance: the specific
elements on radio that are most
important to a group of listeners
(4). Station Image: How the
public perceives the station and
its services.
(5). Personality (talent) Studies:
Announcers, news anchors, and
all other personalities are tested
for their overall appeal
 Types of Electronic Media Research
Non ratings Research

Miscellaneous Research
(6). Advertiser (account)
analysis: To increase the
value of their service to
advertisers
(7). Account executive
research: To determine how
their sales executives are
perceived.
(8). Sales research: For local
clients
 Types of Electronic Media Research
Non ratings Research

Miscellaneous Research
(9). Diversification analyses:
To determine where
investments should be made
(10). Qualitative research:
To test every aspect of their
station – bill board advertising,
logo designs, bumper stickers,
bus advertising, direct mail
campaigns, and programming
interests