COMM266

Communication professionals need to understand how to create and evaluate knowledge.
Every media/communication job in the market requires strong research and writing skills.
This course exposes students to the logic and conduct of research aimed at producing
broad-based knowledge about human communication so that students can find, read,
understand, and use communication research in their daily work.
By the end of this course, students will be able to identify and analyze communication research
independently. Students will also learn how to create their own research projects, exercising their
knowledge of different methodological approaches and of the steps that go into a professional
body of work. Topics to be explored include: how to choose a research topic; how to craft a

research question; and how to collect sources for their work. Emphasis will also be placed on the
different methods of communication research (e.g. survey, focus group, ethnography, content
analysis, interviews). Finally, students will create their own communication research proposals –
which they may use in their professional portfolios, submit to conferences or expand upon in
future scholarship.