An Overview of Experimental and Quasi-Experimental Research in Technical Communication Journals (1992–2011)

Boettger, Ryan K.; Lam, Chris

doi:10.1109/tpc.2013.2287570

Cited by 43 publications

(39 citation statements)

References 37 publications

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“…In regards to methods, scholars have noted a plurality of methods as a positive characteristic of technical communication research [4], [25]- [28]. In a survey of technical communication scholars, 25 different methods were reported as being regularly used [24].…”

Section: Research Methods and Identity Of The Fieldmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…MacNealy reported that only 4.25% of all conference proceedings over a 20-year period used an empirical method [32]. Boettger and Lam point out that only 6.2% of all articles published from 1992 to 2011 employed an experimental or quasiexperimental design [4]. Rainey examined 20 years of doctoral dissertations in technical, scientific, and business communication and found that less than 4% of all dissertations used a quantitative research method.…”

Section: Research Methods and Identity Of The Fieldmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The approach is designed specifically for complex categorical-only datasets. CA has been widely used in fields such as marketing (see [42], [43]), but the technique has been introduced only recently in technical communication research [4]. Due to its exploratory approach, CA does not test hypotheses.…”

Section: Choice Of Samples To Study I Examined Articles Published In mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Where Did We Come From and Where Are We Going? Examining Authorship Characteristics in Technical Communication Research

Lam

2014

IEEE Trans. Profess. Commun.

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This study explores the characteristics of authors who have published in technical communication journals between 2008 and 2012 to generate insights into who is actively contributing to scholarship in the field. These insights drive a broader discussion regarding programmatic implications and interdisciplinary approaches to research. Research questions: (1) Who is publishing in technical communication journals? In which departments are they housed and in which departments did they receive their Ph.D. training? (2) What relationship exists between an author's departments (current and Ph.D.) and the publication venues he or she chooses? (3) What relationship exists between an author's department (current and Ph.D.) and the type of research he or she produces? (4) What relationship exists between an author's department (current and Ph.D.) and collaboratively authored articles? Also, is there a relationship between doctoral training outside the US and collaboratively authored articles? (5) Among authors with Ph.D.'s in technical communication, is there a relationship between doctoral program and research output (collaboratively authored articles and research method)? Literature review: All disciplines, especially maturing disciplines, must examine and evaluate the research its scholars produce in order to identify trends that signal growth and areas that require additional growth. Previous research indicates that departments in which people trained and where they work influence the research profiles of individuals, and by extension, the field. This is particularly true in technical communication, whose research features a plurality of methods, a positive attribute of the field. However, an uneven distribution of research methods used in the field also presents potential areas for growth. Methodology: A data set of 674 authors who have published in the IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON PROFESSIONAL COMMUNICATION (TPC), Technical Communication Quarterly, and Journal of Business and Technical Communication (JBTC), between 2008 and 2012 was coded for current department, Ph.D. department, department with a technical communication degree program, research method, and collaboratively authored articles. Data were analyzed using contingency table analysis and correspondence analysis. Results and discussion: Authors from English departments constitute nearly 30% of the sample; authors from information systems and technology departments and management, business, and economics departments made up more than 20% of the total sample. A little over 20% of the sample received a Ph.D. degree in technical communication. Authors from information systems and technology departmentsand management, business, and economics departments are highly associated with TPC. Authors from English departments and writing departments were associated with TCQ and JBTC. TC is associated with authors from education departments and human-centered design departments. Authors from information systems and technology departments and management, business, and economics d...

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Section: Research Methods and Identity Of The Fieldmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Research Methods and Identity Of The Fieldmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Choice Of Samples To Study I Examined Articles Published In mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Where Did We Come From and Where Are We Going? Examining Authorship Characteristics in Technical Communication Research

Lam

2014

IEEE Trans. Profess. Commun.

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“…The mathematical foundations for CA cannot be fully discussed in this article, but additional resources are available [3] - [5]. CA is widely used in corpus linguistics, marketing, and ecological research, but it has only recently been introduced to the field of technical communication [1]. The approach reveals patterns in complex data sets and provides output that can help researchers interpret these patterns.…”

Section: Defining Correspondence Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

“…It is not uncommon for technical communication researchers to study variables that have significantly more than three categories. For instance, a recent study examined categorical variables-one with 13 categories and another with 5 categories [1]. Analyzing these two variables results in a 65-cell table-a table that would be virtually impossible to spot trends with using simple observation.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Visualizing categorical data: An introduction to correspondence analysis for technical communication researchers

Lam

2014

2014 IEEE International Professional Communication Conference (IPCC)

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Technical communication researchers often collect categorical, or non-numerical, data. However, when analyzing this type of data, researchers are typically limited to reporting descriptive statistics or simple contingency tables. One advanced statistical technique that allows researchers to more powerfully explore complex categorical data sets is correspondence analysis. This article will first define correspondence analysis and then walk through a tutorial for conducting correspondence analysis in XLSTAT.

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Required Templates: An Assemblage Theory Analysis of How Template Character Limits Influence the Writing of DIY Online Grant Proposals

Gallagher

Wysocka

Holmes³

2022

Technical Communication Quarterly

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An Overview of Experimental and Quasi-Experimental Research in Technical Communication Journals (1992–2011)

Cited by 43 publications

References 37 publications

Where Did We Come From and Where Are We Going? Examining Authorship Characteristics in Technical Communication Research

Where Did We Come From and Where Are We Going? Examining Authorship Characteristics in Technical Communication Research

Visualizing categorical data: An introduction to correspondence analysis for technical communication researchers

Required Templates: An Assemblage Theory Analysis of How Template Character Limits Influence the Writing of DIY Online Grant Proposals

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