Communication Research: A History
Delia, Jesse. 1987. “Communication Research: A History.” In Handbook of Communication Science, edited by Charles R. Berger and Steven H. Chaffee, 20–98. Newbury Park: Sage.
Overarching Theme:
Initial Coalescence of the field as a distinct domain in the 1940s, and the fragmentation before and after.
Shift from a conception of direct undifferentiated and powerful effect to an understanding of effects as highly limited because of processes of psychological and social mediation
Prelevant of media of mass communication in communication research
Role of public communication media in social and political life
Evolution of professional Practices within and across social science disciplines
American Communication Research 1900 to 1940
Communication Research and Political Issues
Propaganda analysis: Most of the research around mass communication begin with post WWI propaganda. Lasswell's word is an example and it conceives propaganda as direct effect of mass communication.
Analysis of political and social themes in public communication: Those wrok are scattered across disciplines and subfields.
Content analysis and the quantitative analysis of messages: By late 1930s to 1940s, there are work around searching for the tools of systematic content analysis in both Comm and other departments like English department.
Public opinion research: In the 1920s, the connection between propaganda and opinion and attitude processes aeepared in subfields of political science, psychology and sociology, such as Walter Lippmand and Lasswell.
The broader landscape of political communication: The remaining aspects of poliitical communication remains fragmanted.
Communication and Social Life
Communication research in the Chicago school of sociology: Chicago school developed a general approach to social theory that emphasized the role of communication in social life. It is influencial in 1) establishment of scientific sociology 2) promotion of theory-based applied sociological research 3) general impetus given social psychological research in sociology
The broader practice of "Chicago-style" research: The Chicago school influence beyond the Chicago sphere. Most of the research on social impact of communication grew out of concern with the effects of mass communication
The Chicago school, neopositivism, and standard research practices: After WWII the center of sociological communication research shift from Chicago to Columbia. Two major differences are 1) topic of concern (e.g.: intergration of immigrants vs. marketing problems) and 2) implicit models of science. Columbia quantitative sociology somewhat follows neopositivism and promote standard research practices that are more quantitative driven such as stat.
The continuing presence of Chicago-style research: The Chicago-style research lives on to be part of empirical sociological research.
Social Psychological Analyses of Communication
The development of social psychology in psychology: Social and education psychology left a powerful impress on communication from the late 1920s forward. Two major themes are 1) experiemntal course 2) electicism and 3) adoption of concepts treating communication reception and effects in complex mediational terms
Social psychological studies of movies and children: Examplified by the Payne Fund as early 1930s multifaceted social psychological approaches in method and effect conceptualization to research on communication
Social psychological studies of propaganda and persuasion: Similiar pattern to studies of movies and children.
Social psychological studies of interpersonal and group communication: In 1920s and 190s, mostly fragmented work related to social interaction and group processes. Those eventually enter the field of communication in 1950s and 1960s as the coalescence of interpersonal communication as research specialization.
Social psychological research in the speech departments: Speech department had some similiar work to social psychology.
Communication and Education
Educational use of new communication technologies: Mostly just arguments about the usefulness of new technology
Research on basic communication skills: Many researches are done in sppech department on the topic.
Communication strategies and instructional outcomes: More contemporary work focus.
Commercially Focused Communication Research
Research on advertising: Started around post Civil War, but remained at low level until last decades of the 19th century. More popular are more communication (newspaper, radio) emerged. Slowly being accepted by academia as legit work
Lazarsfeld and the institutionalization of applied research: Lazarsfeld's work examplifys the institutionalization of applied research.
Communication Science 1940 to 1965: Consolidation
WWII and Communication Research
WWII advanced the interest of applied social science generally.
It pulled together people like Carl Hovland, Lazarsfeld, Stouffer.
It encouraged exapnsion of American higher education
The Consolidation of Communication Science
The years following WWII communication as a key word and concept start to emerge and the field start to consolidate.
People share the same sense of history of communication from social and political issue based practical research.
There is a drive to detach communication from commercial and political interests and to be more theory driven.
The adoption of a vocabulary of organizing term, the establishment of a core subject matter and the embracing of a standard conception of the basic process (Laswell's framework) all contributed to the emergence of the field.
The Hovland and Lazarsfeld Traditions in the 1950s
Both focus on mediating roles in communication of recipipent predispositions and social processes
Hovland and the Yale attitude change studies became important / exemplary in 1) use of attitude change as dependent variable and 2) standard research paradigm that reflects the transmit stimuli framework of communication process. It also push social psychology and experiment into the forefront of communication research.
Katz, Lazarsfeld, and the social-mediation effects framework focuses on the connections between social organizations / processes and mass communication.
The Communication Science Core and the Broader Field
The particular set of individuals interests gave raise to the emergence of communication field, but also limited its content. For example, historical, cultural, and critical studies were being pushed aside first. It is also primary focus on mass communication and less in public and interpersonal communication.
Relocation and Transformation: Communication Science in the Journalism Schools and Speech Departments
The integration into journalism schools and speech departments produced significant impact.
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