CAPE

COMMUNICATION STUDIES
MODULE ONE
GATHERING AND PROCESSING
INFORMATION
 GENERAL OBJECTIVES

On completion of this Module, students should be able to:

1. use the structures of Caribbean Standard English correctly and appropriately, as well as
with a degree of elegance;
2. evaluate examples of written and spoken communication, including arguments, taking into
consideration the form and content of the communication and the context in which it is
presented or constructed;
3. apply comprehension skills of analysis and critical evaluation to a wide range of oral and
written material;
4. present information in speech and writing with accuracy, clarity and fluency;
5. demonstrate competence in organising oral and written communication.
RESEARCH METHODS
https://youtu.be/mV0bUQpz468

RESEARCH
Research is the systematic process of collecting and analyzing information to increase our understanding of
the phenomenon under study. It is the function of the researcher to contribute to the understanding of the
phenomenon and to communicate that understanding to others. There are eight characteristics of research.
 
1. Research originates with a question or problem
The world is filled with unanswered questions, unresolved problems. Everywhere we look, we observe
things that cause us to wonder, to speculate, to ask questions; and by asking questions we strike the first
spark igniting a chain reaction that terminates in the research process. An inquisitive mind is the beginning
of research. There is so much that we do not know and understand! The hope in mitigating our ignorance
lies in the questions we ask and the information we gather and in whose collective meaning we may find
insight. The problem and its statement are important because they are the point of origin of formal
research.

2. Research requires a clear articulation of a goal.

A clear unambiguous statement of the problem is critical. This statement is an exercise in intellectual
honesty. It cannot brook vagueness, or the avoidance of an obligation to set forth clearly and in a
grammatically complete sentence precisely what the ultimate goal of the research is. The statement asks the
researcher, “What precisely do you intend to do?” This is basic and required for the success of any research
undertaking. Without it, the research is on shaky ground.
RESEARCH METHODS (cont’d)
3. Research follows a specific plan of procedure.
Research is a carefully planned attack, a search-and-discover mission explicitly planned in advance. Consider this title:
Practical Research: Planning and Design. The last three words are the important ones. The overall research effort
must be explicitly planned and logically designed. Researchers plan their overall research methods in a purposeful way
– that is, to yield data relevant to their particular research problem. Depending on the specific research question,
different designs and methods will be more or less appropriate.
 
4. Research usually divides the principal problem into more manageable sub-problems.
The whole is composed of the sum of its parts. That is a universal natural law; that is also a good precept to observe in
thinking about one’s principal goal in research. We break down principal problems much more frequently than we
realize.
Let’s take an everyday problem to see how it breaks down into a number of sub-problems. Suppose you want to get
from your town to a town 50 miles away. Your principal goal is to get from one location to the other as expeditiously as
possible. You soon realize, however, that at the outset some sub-problems must be considered. Here is a
structuralization of the problem and its attendant sub-problems:
Main problem: How do I get from Town A to Town B?
Sub-problems:
a. What is the most direct route?
b. How far do I travel on the highway?
c. What exit do I take on the highway?
It is expedient to reduce the main problem to a series of logical sub-problems that, when resolved, will resolve the
main problem.
 
RESEARCH METHODS (cont’d)
5. Research is guided by the specific research problem, question or hypothesis.
Having stated the problem and the attendant sub-problems, each sub-problem is then viewed through a
construct called a hypothesis. A hypothesis is a logical supposition, a reasonable guess, an educated
conjecture. It may direct your thinking to the possible source of information that will aid in resolving the
research problem through the resolution of each attendant sub-problem.
 
6. Research accepts certain critical assumptions.
In research, the assumption must be valid or else the research cannot proceed. For this reason, careful
researchers – certainly in academic research – set forth a statement of the assumptions as the bedrock
upon which the study must rest. In your research, therefore, it is important that others know what you
assume with respect to your project. For, if one is to judge the quality of your study, then the knowledge
of what you assume as basic to the very existence of your study is vitally important.
 
7. Research requires the collection and interpretation of data in attempting to resolve the problem
that initiated the research.
Having now isolated the problem, divided it into appropriate sub-problems, posited reasonable questions
or hypotheses, and recognized the assumptions that are basic to the entire effort, the next step is to
collect whatever data seem appropriate and to organize them in meaningful ways so that they can be
interpreted.
 
RESEARCH METHODS (cont’d)
8. Research is, by nature, cyclical; or more exactly, helical.

The research process follows a cycle and begins simply. It follows logical developmental steps:
a. A questioning mind observes a particular situation and asks, Why? What caused that? How come? (This is the
subjective origin of research.)
b. The answer to those questions becomes formerly stated as a problem. (This is the overt beginning of research.)
c. Data are gathered that seem to bear on the problem.
d. The data seem to point to a tentative solution of the problem. A guess is made; a hypothesis or guiding question is
formed.
e. The quest for more data continues.
f. The body of data is processed and interpreted.
g. A discovery is made; a conclusion is reached.
h. The tentative hypothesis is either supported by the data or is not supported; the question is partially/ completely
answered or not.

Task: Ask students to consider a topic that they are curious about or would like to know about. List topics and
have students research chosen topics.
METHODS OF DATA COLLECTION
These are methods through which the researcher may get valuable data on a topic that the researcher needs more
information on. Data collection methods may take various forms.

1. Questionnaires – these are a collection of questions that the respondents complete on their own. They are used
when factual information is required. A questionnaire is used with all research designs. These are the ways in which
a questionnaire can be administered:
 Face to face
 Via the telephone
 Via the mail
 Via electronic mail

2. Interviews – they are a list of questions administered to the respondent face to face. These can either be
structured or unstructured. The structured interviews comprise a set of precisely formulated questions, which are
asked of a respondent. The unstructured interviews allow the respondent to respond to a stimulus question. It is
very informal and allows for the respondent to speak for as long as (s)he wants. These are used in qualitative
research and case studies, but can be useful in surveys, especially social surveys.

3. Observation Schedule – the researcher records observations in terms of a predetermined schedule. This is used
in action research as well as case studies.

4. Attitude or Sentiment Scales – these are used to measure attitudes, beliefs and opinions of a respondent. They
can be used with all types of research, but more specifically with surveys and action research.
SAMPLE SELECTION

A researcher who undertakes a survey involving large numbers of people will find it impractical or even
impossible to canvas the views of everyone in that population. He has to then ensure that he takes a sample
of the total population. The sample is a portion or fraction or subset of the total population. It is assumed
that the sample is homogenous and that the characteristics found in the sample may reasonably be expected
to be found in the whole. When generalizations are to be made about the total population this sample
should accurately reflect the opinions, beliefs or choices of the population. Therefore, it must satisfy two
basic conditions:
 It must be numerically large enough to correctly reflect the views of the whole population. In other
words; it must be sufficient or adequate.
 All segments of the population indicated by relevant variables such as sex, age, social class, occupation
etc. are to be proportionately included in the sample. In other words it must be representative.

*homogeneous: [adjective] of the same or a similar kind or nature.

TYPES OF SAMPLING

There are two types of sampling – probability and non-probability.

Probability sampling, also known as random sampling, is one way of making sure that the
sample is representative of the population and that the procedure used in your research has validity.
It ensures that no member of the sample is likely to be preferred than another in the selection. The
selection cannot be predicted. Here the researcher’s bias is eliminated and the procedure becomes
more consistent and efficient.

Non-probability sampling, also referred to as convenient sampling is used when the total extent
of the population is not known. The researcher selects the sample at his discretion not randomly.
One cannot guarantee validity and the absence of bias in this kind of selection and the results
gathered using this type of sampling may not be totally reliable. However, it has some advantages;
it is less expensive and uses less time and resources.
PRIMARY AND SECONDARY SOURCES
OF INFORMATION
Primary sources of information allow the learner to access original and unedited information.
A primary source requires the learner to interact with the source and extract information.
Secondary sources are edited primary sources, second-hand versions. They represent someone
else’s thinking.
 
Primary Sources: person, interview, email contact, event, discussion, debate, community
meeting, survey, artifact, observation of object (animate and inanimate).

Secondary Sources: reference material, book, CD-ROM, encyclopedia, magazine,

newspaper, video tape, audio tape, TV.

Primary or Secondary: Internet Web Site, graph, chart, diagram, table.