Methods for Assessing Journalistic Decisions, Advocacy Strategies, and Climate Change Communication Practices
Methods for Assessing Journalistic Decisions, Advocacy Strategies, and Climate Change Communication Practices
- Senja PostSenja PostUniversity of Zurich Institute of Mass Communication and Media
Summary
Research in the field of journalistic decisions, advocacy strategies, and communication practices is very heterogeneous, comprising diverse groups of actors and research questions. Not surprisingly, various methods have been applied to assess actors’ motives, strategies, intentions, and communication behaviors. This article provides an overview of the most common methods applied—i.e., qualitative and quantitative approaches to textual analyses, interviewing techniques, observational and experimental research. After discussing the major strengths and weaknesses of each method, an outlook on future research is given. One challenge of the future study of climate change communication will be to account for its dynamics, with various actors reacting to one another in their public communication. To better approximate such dynamics in the future, more longitudinal research will be needed.
Keywords
Subjects
- Communication
