Eastern Communication Association

Special Events

ECA 2021 Virtual Convention

Research Session:  Interpretive Inquiry

This session explores interpretive inquiry as a form of qualitative research in communication.

Ronald C. Arnett, Professor, Duquesne University
Janie M. Harden Fritz, Professor,  Duquesne University
Leeanne Bell McManus, Professor,  Stevenson University 

Friday, 9:00-10:15 AM

Workshops:

Qualitative Research:

Workshop 1:  Qualitative Research Design & Navigating the IRB: Let’s Get it Started!, Friday, 9:00-10:15 AM

1. The unique value of qualitative research 
2. Key aspects of qualitative research, such as bricolage, funnel metaphor, gestalt 
3. Qualitative-friendly research questions and sampling approaches
4. Qualitative logics: inductive, deductive, abductive research approaches
5. Navigating Institutional Review Boards

Workshop 2:   Qualitative Coding and Data Analysis Basics: Forging a Path Through the Maze, Saturday, 12:00-1:15 PM

1. Organizing and preparing qualitative data for analysis.
2. The value and distinctive features of Tracy’s phronetic iterative qualitative approach
3. Choosing a qualitative data analysis technology
4. Primary level coding techniques such as open coding and in vivo coding
5. Moving toward second level codes and interpretation

The workshop material is designed to be valuable to the following audiences: a. Students and scholars new to qualitative research b. Researchers who primarily practice quantitative methods but want to incorporate qualitative data analysis practices into their research repertoire c. Instructors who desire ideas for teaching qualitative data analysis & theory building d. Experienced researchers who want to enhance their qualitative skill set and are curious about how another qualitative scholar conducts and teaches qualitative research design  

Bio and Background of Workshop Leader

Dr. Sarah J. Tracy is Professor of qualitative methodology and organizational communication in the Hugh Downs School of Human Communication at Arizona State University and is an NCA Distinguished Scholar. She has led over 25 qualitative workshops around the world in which participants go beyond learning about methods to practicing specific qualitative crafts and analytic techniques.

Quantitative Research:

Workshop I:  Refreshing and Updating Quantitative Research Methods, Saturday, 9:00 AM-10:15 AM 

Workshop II:  Refreshing and Updating Quantitative Data Analysis, Saturday, 10:30 AM-11:45 AM

Bio and Background of Workshop Leader

Dr. Nick Bowman is an Associate Professor in the College of Media and Communication at Texas Tech University.  A graduate of Michigan State University, his research focuses on entertainment and persuasive applications of interactive media, such as video games, augmented and virtual reality, and social media. He has published over 80 peer-reviewed manuscripts, and presented nearly 200 different works at regional, national, and international conferences, and has co-authored two textbooks - one focused on mediated communication and the other on entertainment media.

He was the editor of Communication Research Reports from 2017 to 2019, and is an associate editor with the Journal of Media Psychology. Nick has taught courses in the US, Germany, and Taiwan. In Spring 2020, he has been awarded a J. William Fulbright grant to teach at the National Chengchi University in Taipei, while conducting augmented and virtual reality research in their Media Psychology Lab. Prior to his academic career, Nick was a journalist in St. Louis, where he covered high school and college sports, before helping found regional news coverage in Missouri, Illinois, and Michigan with Courthouse News Service. He also worked briefly in public relations, and was a registered lobbyist in Missouri.  Dr. Bowman's research broadly considers the cognitive, emotional, physical, and social demands of interactive media, so that we can better understand (a) human motivations to engage interactive media and (b) the effects of that usage on myriad dimensions.