04:192:300 : CHAPTER 3 NOTES.doc
29 Oct 2014
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Document Summary
Paradigms (framework for observation & understanding that shapes both what we see and how we understand it; 4 paradigms of knowing found in comm. rsrch: 1) positivist 2) systems 3) interpretive 4) critical) The positivist paradigm: (assumes we can scientifically discover through objective empirical observation the laws of cause & affect that determine comm. ) The study of variables of a person: attributes (or values; characteristics of communicative behaviors, variables (logical groupings of attributes) *ex: the variable is the level of talkativeness & the attributes are chatty and quiet. The interpretive paradigm: (seeks to understand the webs of meaning that guide human comm. ; human action centered in meanings; believes human behavior is guided by subjective experiences of its participants; ex: finding out what a college education means to students as a way of understanding why they are attending) Semantic relationship: a kernel of meaning, primary unit of analysis for qualitative rsrchers.
