- COMPREHENSIVE: The book offers an unbiased introduction to all three methodological paradigms: positivist, interpretive, critical/cultural (quantitative, qualitative, critical). - INNOVATIVE: The book includes new sample student papers along with critiques of these papers to that students can model their own work on that of their peers. - FOCUSED ON THE STUDENT: Specific attention is given to presenting conceptual and theoretical information regarding methods, and to providing real-life examples and exercises that put the various methods to use. Each method chapter includes examples of how scholars in the field of communication have used the particular method and how practitioners have used the method.

- COMPREHENSIVE: The book offers an unbiased introduction to all three methodological paradigms: positivist, interpretive, critical/cultural (quantitative, qualitative, critical). - INNOVATIVE: The book includes new sample student papers along with critiques of these papers to that students can model their own work on that of their peers. - FOCUSED ON THE STUDENT: Specific attention is given to presenting conceptual and theoretical information regarding methods, and to providing real-life examples and exercises that put the various methods to use. Each method chapter includes examples of how scholars in the field of communication have used the particular method and how practitioners have used the method.