MassMedia: Operationalizing Your Variables (W4-P5) [VID] Fa16

Once your variables have been identified, then they will need to be measured, but how?   And, what does an operational definition have to do with it?

What is an operational definition?  What does it mean to operationalize a variable?

"Operational definition" is "a statement that describes the observable characteristics of a concept being investigated…”(Frey, et.al).  Or, put differently, an operational definition “specifies the procedures [or operations] the researcher uses to observe the variables” (Stacks, et.al).  Notice how the second definition indicates why it is called "operatioal."

Both I.V.s & D.V.s need O.D.s.   Operational definitions allow you to measure a variable.

What does the following Jeff Foxworthy comedy have to do with operationalization?  What is Foxworthy doing in his jokes?  Is he operationally defining something?





----
Operationalization Examples:

1. Let's say you are going to do some research on prejudice, how would you operationalize prejudice?

• Start with the conceptual definition or dictionary definition:
• “the irrational hatred or suspicion of a particular group, race, religion, or sexual orientation”(Jandt).
• What would the operational definition be?  How would you measure prejudice?

What are the basic “operational procedures” or ways of measuring variables?

Operational procedures:

1. Self-report 
1. the researcher asks subjects to report about themselves
2. Observer’s ratings 
1. researcher asks subject to observer and rate another
3. Observe behavior
1. researcher observes subject

Which method would you trust more?  Which would give a more valid measure?  Why?

How would you use these procedures with prejudice or violence?  Which would "work" better?



2. Let's say you are going to do some research on violence and video games, how would you operationalize violence?

• Conceptual/dictionary definition of violence: "exertion of physical force so as to injure or abuse" (Merriam-Websters)

• If you are curious, here are some links that are relevant:
• A 2/12/13 NYT news article about recent research on video games and violence
• A longitudinal study of the association between violent video game play and aggression among adolescents.  by Willoughby T, Adachi PJ, Good M.  Developmental Psychology. 2012 Jul;48(4):1044-57.

3. Let's say you are going to do some research on the effects of television on children, what would be the variables you'd study and how would you operationalize them?

• If you are curious, here are some links that are relevant:
• 2013 study:
• Swapping violent shows for educational TV may boost children's behavior (CBS video)
• Certain Television Fare Can Help Ease Aggression in Young Children, Study Finds (NY Times)
• 2012 study in Journal of Communication:
• 'Social Aggression' Plagues Most Kids' Shows (ABC video)

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Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

MassMedia: Research Questions (RQs) & Hypotheses (H) (U4-P4) [VID] Fa16

Research question (RQ): "An interrogative statement exploring the relationship between two or more constructs [concepts, variables, etc.]" (Stewart, 2002, p. 173).

In short, is there a relationship between one variable and another?

In the past I asked students to offer research questions they had a serious interest in answering.  Do the student examples below fit the definition?  Any problems you spot with the examples?

• "Does visual stimuli, or auditory stimuli, in advertisements positively affect a consumers buying behavior, meaning will the consumer be inclined to buy if a stimulating message is communicated across one of the two communication channels."
• "Is there a positive (or a negative) relationship between the amount of violence communicated in cartoons?"
• "Is there an increase in female orgasms in relationships related to the increase in communication?"

What are the types of variables?

• A variable is any concept that takes on two or more values.
• Two types:
• Nominal: Categories
• e.g., gender, profession, race, nationality, etc.
• Ordered: Takes on numerical values
• e.g., age, IQ, a prejudice score, time in conversation, etc.

What's the difference you spot between nominal and ordered?

Note: We'll add other types later, but this will work for now.




Could you generate some RQs based on the variables listed under nominal and ordered?

More importantly, based on the research topic that you identified earlier, what are some possible RQs you could ask?

When thinking of media-oriented RQs make sure of the following:

• RQs are questions that can be answered using research methodologies. (Remember: Ways of knowing?)
• RQs are related to media.  At least one variable/concept should be related to media.

Now, that we've got a grasp on an RQ, what is exactly is an H?  They are related, right?

Hypothesis is a tentative statement about the relationship between two or more variable (the dependent and independent variables).
Null hypothesis is a statement that says there is no relationship between the research variables.

How are RQs and Hs similar?  How are they different?

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MassMedia: How is Doing Research Like Being a Detective? (W4-P3) [VID] Fa16

Use the previous posts on theory and research and the video below to answer this question.

How is doing research like being a detective?

• Theory: an explanation of how something works.  
• A good or well-supported theory is based on evidence.
• Research: "“Disciplined inquiry...studying something in a planned manner and reporting it so that others can replicate the process” (Frey et al.).

Also note that a researcher does research to test and build theories.

What roles do theory and evidence play in this comparison?

From: The Mentalist






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MassMedia: What is Research? (W4-P2) Fa16

Research is:

“Disciplined inquiry...studying something in a planned manner and reporting it so that others can replicate the process” (Frey et al.)

Keywords: planned, reporting and replicate
What do they mean in this context?

Research, as discussed here, is more than "research" done at the library.  Instead of reading through books and online materials for answers that some other researcher has found, you conduct original research on your own to find the answer.  That is, you conduct an experiment or a survey or a textual analysis or use some other research method to find the answer.  Somebody is not telling you an answer in a book or report, you are finding the answer to your research question on your own.

Two types:

• Scholarly 
• conducted to promote public access to new knowledge
• usually conducted by a professor at a university
• Proprietary
• conducted for a specific audience, results not shared
• usually conducted by a research at a company

Why are results not shared in proprietary research?
Could you give examples of each of the two types?
Which of the two types of research would you be more likely to do in the future?

How does this discussion of research relate to the earlier discussion of science?



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The Early Stories of Philip K. Dick (Table of Contents)

I have not found this table of contents information any other place.  So, I decided to compile it myself and post it here for any fan, SF writer or researcher who may have an interest.


Table of Contents for
The Early Stories of Philip K. Dick
(an audio anthology)

Title	Yr Pub	Audio Chap
"Beyond Lies the Wub"	(1952)	1-5
"Beyond the Door"	(1954)	6-8
"The Hanging Stranger"	(1953)	9-16
"Mr. Spaceship"	(1953)	17-31
"The Gun"	(1952)	32-38
"Tony and the Beetles"	(1953)	39-45
"The Eyes Have It"	(1953)	46-47
"The Variable Man"	(1953)	48-83
"Second Variety"	(1953)	84-106
"The Skull"	(1952)	107-118
"The Crystal Crypt"	(1954)	119-129
"Piper in the Woods"	(1953)	130-140
"The Defenders"	(1953)	141-151

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Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
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MassMedia: Operationalizing Your Variables (W4-P4) [VID] Fa15

Once your variables have been identified, then they will need to be measured, but how?   And, what does an operational definition have to do with it?

What is an operational definition?  What does it mean to operationalize a variable?

"Operational definition" is "a statement that describes the observable characteristics of a concept being investigated…”(Frey, et.al).  Or, put differently, an operational definition “specifies the procedures [or operations] the researcher uses to observe the variables” (Stacks, et.al).  Notice how the second definition indicates why it is called "operatioal."

Both I.V.s & D.V.s need O.D.s.   Operational definitions allow you to measure a variable.

What does the following Jeff Foxworthy comedy have to do with operationalization?  What is Foxworthy doing in his jokes?  Is he operationally defining something?




----
Operationalization Examples:

1. Let's say you are going to do some research on prejudice, how would you operationalize prejudice?

• Start with the conceptual definition or dictionary definition:
• “the irrational hatred or suspicion of a particular group, race, religion, or sexual orientation”(Jandt).
• What would the operational definition be?  How would you measure prejudice?

What are the basic “operational procedures” or ways of measuring variables?

Operational procedures:

1. Self-report 
1. the researcher asks subjects to report about themselves
2. Observer’s ratings 
1. researcher asks subject to observer and rate another
3. Observe behavior
1. researcher observes subject

Which method would you trust more?  Which would give a more valid measure?  Why?

How would you use these procedures with prejudice or violence?  Which would "work" better?



2. Let's say you are going to do some research on violence and video games, how would you operationalize violence?

• Conceptual/dictionary definition of violence: "exertion of physical force so as to injure or abuse" (Merriam-Websters)

• If you are curious, here are some links that are relevant:
• A 2/12/13 NYT news article about recent research on video games and violence
• A longitudinal study of the association between violent video game play and aggression among adolescents.  by Willoughby T, Adachi PJ, Good M.  Developmental Psychology. 2012 Jul;48(4):1044-57.

3. Let's say you are going to do some research on the effects of television on children, what would be the variables you'd study and how would you operationalize them?

• If you are curious, here are some links that are relevant:
• 2013 study:
• Swapping violent shows for educational TV may boost children's behavior (CBS video)
• Certain Television Fare Can Help Ease Aggression in Young Children, Study Finds (NY Times)
• 2012 study in Journal of Communication:
• 'Social Aggression' Plagues Most Kids' Shows (ABC video)

Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

MassMedia: Research Questions (RQs) & Hypotheses (H) (U4-P3) [VID] Fa15

Research question (RQ): "An interrogative statement exploring the relationship between two or more constructs [concepts, variables, etc.]" (Stewart, 2002, p. 173).

In short, is there a relationship between one variable and another?

In the past I asked students to offer research questions they had a serious interest in answering.  Do the student examples below fit the definition?  Any problems you spot with the examples?

• "Does visual stimuli, or auditory stimuli, in advertisements positively affect a consumers buying behavior, meaning will the consumer be inclined to buy if a stimulating message is communicated across one of the two communication channels."
• "Is there a positive (or a negative) relationship between the amount of violence communicated in cartoons?"
• "Is there an increase in female orgasms in relationships related to the increase in communication?"

What are the types of variables?

• A variable is any concept that takes on two or more values.
• Two types:
• Nominal: Categories
• e.g., gender, profession, race, nationality, etc.
• Ordered: Takes on numerical values
• e.g., age, IQ, a prejudice score, time in conversation, etc.

What's the difference you spot between nominal and ordered?

Note: We'll add other types later, but this will work for now.




Could you generate some RQs based on the variables listed under nominal and ordered?

More importantly, based on the research topic that you identified earlier, what are some possible RQs you could ask?

When thinking of media-oriented RQs make sure of the following:

• RQs are questions that can be answered using research methodologies. (Remember: Ways of knowing?)
• RQs are related to media.  At least one variable/concept should be related to media.

Now, that we've got a grasp on an RQ, what is exactly is an H?  They are related, right?

Hypothesis is a tentative statement about the relationship between two or more variable (the dependent and independent variables).
Null hypothesis is a statement that says there is no relationship between the research variables.

How are RQs and Hs similar?  How are they different?

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Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

MassMedia: How is Doing Research Like Being a Detective? (W4-P2) [VID] Fa15

Use the previous posts on theory and research and the video below to answer this question.

How is doing research like being a detective?


Theory: an explanation of how something works based on evidence.
Research: "“Disciplined inquiry...studying something in a planned manner and reporting it so that others can replicate the process” (Frey et al.).

Also note that a researcher does research to test and build theories.

What roles do theory and evidence play in this comparison?

From: The Mentalist




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Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

MassMedia: What is Research? (W4-P1) Fa15

Research is:

“Disciplined inquiry...studying something in a planned manner and reporting it so that others can replicate the process” (Frey et al.)

Keywords: planned, reporting and replicate
What do they mean in this context?

Research, as discussed here, is more than "research" done at the library.  Instead of reading through books and online materials for answers that some other researcher has found, you conduct original research on your own to find the answer.  That is, you conduct an experiment or a survey or a textual analysis or use some other research method to find the answer.  Somebody is not telling you an answer in a book or report, you are finding the answer to your research question on your own.

Two types:

• Scholarly 
• conducted to promote public access to new knowledge
• usually conducted by a professor at a university
• Proprietary
• conducted for a specific audience, results not shared
• usually conducted by a research at a company

Why are results not shared in proprietary research?
Could you give examples of each of the two types?
Which of the two types of research would you be more likely to do in the future?

How does this discussion of research relate to the earlier discussion of science?


Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

MassMedia: How is Doing Research Like Being a Detective? (U2-P2) [VID] Fa14

Use the previous posts on theory and research and the video below to answer this question.

How is doing research like being a detective?


Theory: an explanation of how something works based on evidence.
Research: "“Disciplined inquiry...studying something in a planned manner and reporting it so that others can replicate the process” (Frey et al.).

Also note that a researcher does research to test and build theories.

What roles do theory and evidence play in this comparison?

From: The Mentalist




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Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

MassMedia: What is Research? (U2-P1) Fa14

Research is:

“Disciplined inquiry...studying something in a planned manner and reporting it so that others can replicate the process” (Frey et al.)

Keywords: planned, reporting and replicate
What do they mean in this context?

Research, as discussed here, is more than "research" done at the library.  Instead of reading through books and online materials for answers that some other researcher has found, you conduct original research on your own to find the answer.  That is, you conduct an experiment or a survey or a textual analysis or use some other research method to find the answer.  Somebody is not telling you an answer in a book or report, you are finding the answer to your research question on your own.

Two types:

• Scholarly 
• conducted to promote public access to new knowledge
• usually conducted by a professor at a university
• Proprietary
• conducted for a specific audience, results not shared
• usually conducted by a research at a company

Why are results not shared in proprietary research?
Could you give examples of each of the two types?
Which of the two types of research would you be more likely to do in the future?

How does this discussion of research relate to the earlier discussion of science?


Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

Game Research: WilliamHartPhD spent some time playing The Testament of Sherlock Holmes (360).

WilliamHartPhD spent some time playing The Testament of Sherlock Holmes (360).

Time played: 1 hr

7 hours total

To see what other games I'm currently playing for research purposes (and fun), check out my Now Playing page on Gamespot or the current activity on my Raptr wall.

If you'd like to know about my videogame research, let me know. I do research on adaptation games (i.e., games adapted from novels or films) and mystery/detective games. I'm working on my own detective game now.

Also see: My Xbox profile | My Steam profile | My Playfire profile | My Gamespot profile

Or see my complete game collection on Gamespot.

If you share some similar interests, let me know.

Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog. See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

Game Research: WilliamHartPhD spent some time playing Call of Duty: Black Ops (360).

WilliamHartPhD spent some time playing Call of Duty: Black Ops (360).

Time played: 2 hrs

131 hours total

To see what other games I'm currently playing for research purposes (and fun), check out my Now Playing page on Gamespot or the current activity on my Raptr wall.

If you'd like to know about my videogame research, let me know. I do research on adaptation games (i.e., games adapted from novels or films) and mystery/detective games. I'm working on my own detective game now.

Also see: My Xbox profile | My Steam profile | My Playfire profile | My Gamespot profile

Or see my complete game collection on Gamespot.

If you share some similar interests, let me know.

Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog. See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

Game Research: WilliamHartPhD managed to fit in a quick game of Call of Duty: Black Ops II (360).

WilliamHartPhD managed to fit in a quick game of Call of Duty: Black Ops II (360).

Time played: 23 mins

66 hours total

To see what other games I'm currently playing for research purposes (and fun), check out my Now Playing page on Gamespot or the current activity on my Raptr wall.

If you'd like to know about my videogame research, let me know. I do research on adaptation games (i.e., games adapted from novels or films) and mystery/detective games. I'm working on my own detective game now.

Also see: My Xbox profile | My Steam profile | My Playfire profile | My Gamespot profile

Or see my complete game collection on Gamespot.

If you share some similar interests, let me know.

Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog. See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

Game Research: WilliamHartPhD spent some time playing Call of Duty: Black Ops II (360).

WilliamHartPhD spent some time playing Call of Duty: Black Ops II (360).

Time played: 2 hrs

66 hours total

To see what other games I'm currently playing for research purposes (and fun), check out my Now Playing page on Gamespot or the current activity on my Raptr wall.

If you'd like to know about my videogame research, let me know. I do research on adaptation games (i.e., games adapted from novels or films) and mystery/detective games. I'm working on my own detective game now.

Also see: My Xbox profile | My Steam profile | My Playfire profile | My Gamespot profile

Or see my complete game collection on Gamespot.

If you share some similar interests, let me know.

Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog. See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

Game Research: WilliamHartPhD spent a chunk of time playing Minecraft (XBLA).

WilliamHartPhD spent a chunk of time playing Minecraft (XBLA).

Time played: 1 hr

285 hours total

To see what other games I'm currently playing for research purposes (and fun), check out my Now Playing page on Gamespot or the current activity on my Raptr wall.

If you'd like to know about my videogame research, let me know. I do research on adaptation games (i.e., games adapted from novels or films) and mystery/detective games. I'm working on my own detective game now.

Also see: My Xbox profile | My Steam profile | My Playfire profile | My Gamespot profile

Or see my complete game collection on Gamespot.

If you share some similar interests, let me know.

Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog. See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

Game Research: WilliamHartPhD spent a chunk of time playing The Testament of Sherlock Holmes (360).

WilliamHartPhD spent a chunk of time playing The Testament of Sherlock Holmes (360).

Time played: 1 hr

6 hours total

To see what other games I'm currently playing for research purposes (and fun), check out my Now Playing page on Gamespot or the current activity on my Raptr wall.

If you'd like to know about my videogame research, let me know. I do research on adaptation games (i.e., games adapted from novels or films) and mystery/detective games. I'm working on my own detective game now.

Also see: My Xbox profile | My Steam profile | My Playfire profile | My Gamespot profile

Or see my complete game collection on Gamespot.

If you share some similar interests, let me know.

Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog. See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

Game Research: WilliamHartPhD managed to fit in a quick game of Call of Duty: Black Ops II (360).

WilliamHartPhD managed to fit in a quick game of Call of Duty: Black Ops II (360).

Time played: 28 mins

63 hours total

To see what other games I'm currently playing for research purposes (and fun), check out my Now Playing page on Gamespot or the current activity on my Raptr wall.

If you'd like to know about my videogame research, let me know. I do research on adaptation games (i.e., games adapted from novels or films) and mystery/detective games. I'm working on my own detective game now.

Also see: My Xbox profile | My Steam profile | My Playfire profile | My Gamespot profile

Or see my complete game collection on Gamespot.

If you share some similar interests, let me know.

Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog. See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

Game Research: WilliamHartPhD played Tomb Raider (2013) (360) and earned One Smart Cookie.

WilliamHartPhD played Tomb Raider (2013) (360) and earned One Smart Cookie.

One Smart Cookie

Complete one optional tomb.

86.1 of users earned this

To see what other games I'm currently playing for research purposes (and fun), check out my Now Playing page on Gamespot or the current activity on my Raptr wall.

If you'd like to know about my videogame research, let me know. I do research on adaptation games (i.e., games adapted from novels or films) and mystery/detective games. I'm working on my own detective game now.

Also see: My Xbox profile | My Steam profile | My Playfire profile | My Gamespot profile

Or see my complete game collection on Gamespot.

If you share some similar interests, let me know.

Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog. See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

Game Research: WilliamHartPhD spent some time playing The Testament of Sherlock Holmes (360).

WilliamHartPhD spent some time playing The Testament of Sherlock Holmes (360).

Time played: 32 mins

5 hours total

To see what other games I'm currently playing for research purposes (and fun), check out my Now Playing page on Gamespot or the current activity on my Raptr wall.

If you'd like to know about my videogame research, let me know. I do research on adaptation games (i.e., games adapted from novels or films) and mystery/detective games. I'm working on my own detective game now.

Also see: My Xbox profile | My Steam profile | My Playfire profile | My Gamespot profile

Or see my complete game collection on Gamespot.

If you share some similar interests, let me know.

Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog. See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.