Quantitative Methods
Course Description

Course Description

This course provides an overview of HOW quantitative research in the field of communication is conducted. Various types of research methods will be presented and evaluated in terms of their strengths and weaknesses.

Course Objectives

The principle objectives of this course are to 1) provide knowledge regarding how quantitative methods are used in the field of communication and to 2) develop the ability to critically evaluate the use of these quantitative methods. Specifically, these objectives can be defined as follows:

1. Gain an understanding of the philosophical issues underlying the scientific process of inquiry.
2. Gain an understanding of the similarities and differences between qualitative and quantitative research.
3. Gain familiarity with how variables are measured when doing quantitative research.
4. Gain an understanding of the various sampling procedures and their limitations.
5. Gain familiarity with the following research methods: survey research, experimental designs, and content analysis.
6. Gain an understanding of the statistical analyses commonly used in quantitative research: descriptive statistics, z-scores, t-test, F-test, Chi-square, correlation, regression, etc.
7. Develop the ability to read and evaluate the appropriateness of using various quantitative research methods.
8. Explore ethical issues associated with conducting quantitative research.

Principle Topics Covered

Overview of the process of inquiry
Conceptualization and Operationalization
Measuring variables
Sampling Theory
Overview of Quantitative Research Methods
Surveys
Experiments
Content Analysis
Statistical analyses commonly used in Quantitative Research
Descriptive and Inferential Statistics
item analysis
factor analysis
z-scores
t-test
Anova F-test (post hoc comparisons)
Chi-square
correlation
regression