COM 207 Introduction to Communication Inquiry!

COM 207 - Literature Review Assignment 200 points possible Check Course Calendar for Due Date The final paper for this class is a 6-7 page miniature Literature Review. It is designed to empower you to synthesize some of the research conducted around a particular theory. It is meant to provide a coherent and comprehensive treatment of the research that you read this semester in COM 207. Choose a theory that is discussed in the textbook Communication Theories for Everyday Life. Your theory is the topic of your paper. Then search for studies published in peer reviewed scholarly communication journals-- studies that explicitly use the theory you have chosen. Ideally, these are articles you can use or have used for your Coding Sheets and your Annotated Bibliography assignments. Thoroughly read the various studies that use the theory you have chosen. After you have read (and re-read) the articles so that you understand them, consider the following questions: What are the similarities and differences in the findings/results? What are the similarities and differences in the research methods/procedures and in the way the authors conceptualize and/or measure various aspects of the theory? When you look at all the studies as a whole, do they generally support the theory? How so? Based on the studies that have employed the theory, what do we know and what do we not know about communication? These are all questions you will need to address in your paper. Your Literature Review paper must do four primary things: 1. Introduce your theory (your topic) and its importance to the field of communication 2. Summarize and/or explain the theory 3. “Synthesize” the recent communication research on your topic/theory 4. Include a conclusion where you evaluate the research you reviewed and suggest future directions communication researchers might take in exploring the theory. Writing a Literature Review The process of writing a literature review includes finding, reading, and evaluating current research on a specific topic. Again, in this assignment, your topic is your theory. You are required to include the following sections in your paper: 1) Introduction, 2) Theoretical Discussion, 3) Synthesis of Scholarship, 4) Conclusion, 5) References. Below you will find the specific elements that you should include and address in each section. 1. Introduction This part of the paper should include the following: a. Appropriate title for the paper b. Attention getter (i.e., citation that includes a statistic, a relevant current event) c. Introduction of topic/theory: Provide a 1-2 sentence summary of what the theory predicts and/or explains. d. Significance/importance of theory you are covering: Why/how is this theory important to communication scholars? Why/how is this theory important to the general public? Why/how is this theory important to practitioners? e. Preview Statement: Lets the reader know what the sections and/or main points of your paper will be and the order in which they will occur (i.e., theoretical discussion, synthesis of research). This should be the last item, and, therefore, the last sentence in your introduction. The BODY of your paper should have two major sections: the theoretical discussion and the synthesis of scholarship. 2. Theoretical Discussion You should draw upon the text (and other sources) for this section of your paper. a. Summarize and/or explain the theory. What does it explain, describe, and/or predict? What are the key terms and how are they defined? What are the key concepts or principles of the theory? This summary/explanation of the theory needs to be much more detailed than the brief summary you provided in the intro. This summary should be at least one full paragraph, but will most likely be two paragraphs. b. How does the theory conceptualize communication? (Hint: This is connected to the theory’s communication tradition) c. Strengths of the theory? d. Weaknesses of the theory? e. What type of scholarship has the theory generated? In other words, what topics and/or communication phenomenon are studied using this theory? ALSO, are most of the studies that use this theory quantitative, qualitative, or rhetorical? f. Transition into the next section of the paper