Researching digital communication
In addition to its own methodological innovation, the research network “Communicative Figurations” has generally been committed to the anchoring and further development of research software in media and communication studies and to addressing the complexities of investigating digital communications. Besides participating in the development of a position paper on research software within the German Communication Association (DGPuK), this includes the publication of a special issue on research software in media and communication studies. This is particularly important for those methodological approaches that deal with digital communication.
Name | Approach to digital communication |
Virtual methods | Adaptation of conventional social science methods of data collection |
Digital methods | native-digital methods of data collection |
Computational methods | native-digital methods of data collection and analysis |
Multi-method designs of digital communication research | Mixed methods approach that combines native digital methods and conventional methods of data collection and analysis |
The objective of the thematic issue is to methodologically contextualize the discussion about research software in media and communication studies. The key argument is that we are “beyond” the computational turn of media and communication research, both in terms of its subject matter (most media have become digital media) and in terms of its theories (which increasingly focus on the digital) and its methods (which are also increasingly digital and computer-based). Accordingly, one can only adequately address the challenges and opportunities of using research software if one understands its establishment as part of this general change in communication and media studies.
Publications
- Hasebrink, U., Hepp, A. & Loosen, W. (2021)(Eds). M&K Medien & Kommunikationswissenschaft, Themenheft Forschungssoftware in der Kommunikations- und Medienforschung, Volume 69, open access available under: https://www.nomos-elibrary.de/10.5771/1615-634X-2021-1/m-k-medien-kommunikationswissenschaft-jahrgang-69-2021-heft-1
- Hepp, A. et al. (2021). Forschungssoftware in der Kommunikations- und Medienwissenschaft: Stand, Herausforderungen und Perspektiven, online available under: https://www.dgpuk.de/sites/default/files/DGPuK%20Positionspapier%20-%20Forschungssoftware%20in%20der%20Kommunikations-%20und%20Medienwissenschaft_0.pdf
- Hepp, A. (2016). Kommunikations- und Medienwissenschaft in datengetriebenen Zeiten [Communication and media studies in data-driven times]. Publizistik, 61(3), 225–246. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11616-016-0263-y
- Strippel, C., Bock, A., Katzenbach, C., Mahrt, M., Merten, L., Nuernbergk, C., Pentzold, C., Puschmann, C., & Waldherr, A. (2018). Die Zukunft der Kommunikationswissenschaft ist schon da, sie ist nur ungleich verteilt [The future of communication studies is already here, it is just unevenly distributed]. Publizistik, 63(1), 11–27. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11616-017-0398-5