This fully revised edition provides a practical introduction to research methods for anyone conducting and critically reading technical communication research. The first section discusses the role of research in technical communication and explains in plain language how to conduct and report such research. It covers both quantitative and qualitative methods, as well as surveys, usability studies, and literature reviews. The second section presents a collection of research articles that serve as exemplars of these major types of research projects, each followed by commentary breaking down how it corresponds to the information on that research type. In addition to five new chapters of exemplars and commentaries, this second edition contains a new chapter on usability studies. This book is an essential introduction to research methods for students of technical communication and for industry professionals who need to conduct and engage with research on the job.

This fully revised edition provides a practical introduction to research methods for anyone conducting and critically reading technical communication research. The first section discusses the role of research in technical communication and explains in plain language how to conduct and report such research. It covers both quantitative and qualitative methods, as well as surveys, usability studies, and literature reviews. The second section presents a collection of research articles that serve as exemplars of these major types of research projects, each followed by commentary breaking down how it corresponds to the information on that research type. In addition to five new chapters of exemplars and commentaries, this second edition contains a new chapter on usability studies. This book is an essential introduction to research methods for students of technical communication and for industry professionals who need to conduct and engage with research on the job.

Addressing the explosive growth in qualitative research in recent years, this volume represents the first anthology to bring together a representative sample from this growing body of work, and comments on the reasons for the extraordinary interest in qualitative research. Contributors to the volume bring forward reports of significant, structured qualitative research into various aspects of technical communication practice, addressing the questions of what new insights researchers are generating about the working reality of today's technical communicators, and how technical communicators are perceived and treated by managers and by colleagues from other disciplines.

Including examples of qualitative methodologies-including ethnography, case study, focus groups, action research, grounded theory, and interview research- used by technical communicators to strengthen their practice, the result is a rich harmony of perspectives, as diverse as the field of technical communication itself.

This book will be of interest to to students and academics seeking up-to-date information on current industry practices in technical communication, as well as to practitioners in technical and professional communication. The book will also serve as a text in undergraduate seminars and courses at the master's level.

Addressing the explosive growth in qualitative research in recent years, this volume represents the first anthology to bring together a representative sample from this growing body of work, and comments on the reasons for the extraordinary interest in qualitative research. Contributors to the volume bring forward reports of significant, structured qualitative research into various aspects of technical communication practice, addressing the questions of what new insights researchers are generating about the working reality of today's technical communicators, and how technical communicators are perceived and treated by managers and by colleagues from other disciplines. Including examples of qualitative methodologies-including ethnography, case study, focus groups, action research, grounded theory, and interview research- used by technical communicators to strengthen their practice, the result is a rich harmony of perspectives, as diverse as the field of technical communication itself. This book will be of interest to to students and academics seeking up-to-date information on current industry practices in technical communication, as well as to practitioners in technical and professional communication. The book will also serve as a text in undergraduate seminars and courses at the master's level.