Results of two studies indicate that the way in which Likert scale data are scored can make a difference when statistical significance tests are used. The studies raise a number of questions about the use of Likert scales in communication research. (GT)

Offers an agenda for the future of mass communication research. Suggests that equating mass communication with mass media invites the risk of economic success for mass media and societal failure for mass communication. Advocates conducting experiments in democratic behavior from a research and development context. (MG)

Reports that the typical communication research study published from 1970 through 1976 was cross-sectional, was carried out in the United States only, cited literature published in the United States only, focused on the individual as the level of analysis, and used only sample survey data. (GT)

A study of the reported sampling methods and respondent/subject characteristics in 297 published communication research studies suggests that the vast majority of published communication research literature does not meet minimal scholarly standards for reporting research results. (GT)

Lays out a systematic analysis of different experimental designs for message effects research. Discusses advantages of designs that include replications. Considers the issue of a fixed- versus random-effects analysis, and argues that replication factors should be treated as random except in very unusual circumstances. Examines in detail two…

Investigates the use of "vague quantifiers" (terms such as "often,""sometimes,""rarely," or "never") in communication research. Finds that these words do not always mean the same thing to different people, and thus may not constitute interval scales. Suggests that research outcomes based upon such…

Presents a social systems framework for mass communications research and traces the evolution of the model. (TO)

Reviews citation networks and discovers that the six major areas of activity in mass communication research are (1) television and politics, (2) sociological studies of journalists, (3) agenda setting, (4) the effects of mass communication, (5) the credibility of various news media, and (6) the characteristics of users and nonusers of mass media.…

Examines current practices in mass communication research with respect to message experiment design, analysis, and interference. Provides a logically consistent framework for mass communication researchers to make experimental design and data analysis decisions. (PRA)

Reports that graduate student research compares favorably to that of faculty research in many respects but that it has less emphasis on theory and on measuring affects. (FL)

Presents an attempt to cross-validate a widely used set of standard credibility scales. Finds that the Meyer modification of the Gaziano-McGrath scales appears to validly and reliably measure credibility per se but that a second set of scales posited to measure community affiliation is not sufficiently reliable in its current form for use without…

Reports on a study designed to determine the proportion of the communication research studies published in seven journals in the 1970s that obtained their data from, and based their conclusions upon, student populations in general and undergraduate college student populations in particular. (GW)

Proves the influence of three variables on election outcomes and demonstrates the potential utility of the panel design for detecting causality in analyses of political data. (RB)

Examines 82 journal articles that dealt with an event or trend in the past to explain the past, classifying each as using a conventional or unconventional approach to the subject covered. Concludes that while articles were generally conventional in approach, there was more experimentation than previously thought. (FL)

Shows that content analysis performed on a database of newspaper stories yielded (in unpredictable ways) results different from the hand search. Cautions researchers to be careful when comparing content-analysis research results of online searches to hand searches, noting that all databases do not provide the same access to information. (SR)