Trends In Communication Research Research Articles

Using printed texts to communicate information in the South African development context

Brochures are often used in South Africa to disseminate information to disadvantagedcommunities. This article is based on a research project in which the effectiveness ofprinted texts containing information about agricultural practices was tested among atarget audience of small-scale farmers in deep rural areas. The methodology used wasinformed by reception theory. The historical development of reception study is tracedand compared with recent trends in communication research. The findings of thisstudy indicate that considerable interpretation gaps exist between sender and receiver.This is mainly caused by a lack of understanding about the life world of the end-userand results in the absence of a common coda[ system between communicator andreceiver. Empirical studies based on reception theory can make a positive contributiontowards improving development communication in the pluralistic cultural and lingualSouth African society. It may well be used as an instrument to test the effectiveness ofmessages aimed at a specific target audience.

Diez años de investigación en las principales revistas científicas de comunicación. Tendencias y temáticas en las publicaciones de mayor impacto en JCR y SJR.

La comunicación, entendida como campo de estudio y como disciplina, aunque es relativamente joven, ha conseguido una importante madurez en la primera década del siglo XXI como muestra la producción científica y la centralidad que ha conseguido en las sociedades actuales. Este artículo es el resultado de la realización de una Revisión Sistemática de la Literatura científica en las trece revistas académicas del área de la comunicación que ocupan los dos principales rankings de indexación: Journal Citation Reports (JCR) y Scimago Journal & Country Rank (SJR). Tras el análisis de 5.291 textos, ha sido posible encontrar algunos de los patrones y tendencias que se siguen en la publicación de investigaciones académicas en el campo de la comunicación. De este modo, este artículo muestra cómo algunas de las publicaciones privilegian algunos temas frente a otros. Al mismo tiempo, se ha identificado un notable crecimiento de la producción académica gracias, en parte, a la facilidad de difusión a través de la incorporación de plataformas de publicación en línea por parte de las revistas científicas. Además, se ha identificado la presencia y evolución de determinadas temáticas a lo largo de los últimos diez años para entender su desarrollo e importancia. Este texto contribuye a la literatura científica centrada en la comprensión de los patrones de publicación y cita entre investigadores mostrando las principales tendencias en la investigación de la comunicación a lo largo de la última década.

The study of youth online: a critical review and agenda

ABSTRACTThe increasing and pervasive use of online technologies, especially social media, has inspired scholars to investigate how the Internet influences communication. As young people represent the fastest growing adopters of new online technology, much of this research targets youth activity online. But how is the communication discipline taking up this issue, broadly? Typically left to new media and computer-mediated communication scholars, we argue youth online activity raises new and exciting possibilities for researchers across the communication discipline. In this paper, we present a qualitative content analysis of communication research about youth and the Internet. Our analysis of over 700 journal articles provides a clear picture of past and present trends in communication research of youth online activity. Furthermore, we discuss the top four content themes, including: uses and gratifications, engagement, identity, and the uniqueness of youth experience. Critically, we articulate how such research organizes and positions youth in meaningful ways, paving the way for issues of inclusion. We call for a shift from a “difference” framework to one that more explicitly considers “complexity” before suggesting opportunities for future research that crosses and unites subdisciplinary boundaries.

Dissemination and Utilization of Communication Research Findings in Asia and the Pacific

abstractThis article considers the application of communication in the Pacific, principally in the area of development support, and includes a discussion of contemporary trends in communications research in the Asian region.

New trends in communication research in Taiwan

Communication scholars, all over the world in recent years, have been drawing heavily upon allied social sciences for research tools and this is leading to the evolution of the science of communication theory and methodology. Based on the study of 70 published or unpublished communication theses or papers, Dr. Shou-jung Yang traces this evolution in Taiwan.