Selected research journal: Journal of Communication (International Communication Association)
Impact factor: 2.011 (ISSN: 1460-2466)
This journal covers the aspects of communication theory, culture and critique as well as computer-mediated communication (HCI). Just to give an example on what type of articles this journal covers:
- The relation between televions exposure and theory of mind among preschoolers
- Technology use as a status cue: the influences of mundane and novel technologies on knowledge assessments in organizations
In regards to a specific paper I found this great article from Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication (Impact factor 1.778) about Internet and Social Media Use as a Resource Among Homeless Youth (Published 9th of October 2013). The main purpose of this paper is to shed light on the use of social media in homeless youth. The papers findings is essentially that the use of internet and social media in homeless youth is widely used by the homeless youths in the United States. This stands in contrast to the posed hypothesis, stating that "The relative lack of resources facing homeless youth might suggest that homeless youth would have low levels of internet use".
Although this statement is somewhat acceptable to me as grounds for this paper if find It quite vague since the assumption is that "lack of resources" in homeless youth means "low levels of Internet use". I don't really see the connection since there is always a driving factor in homeless people, be it to get food and shelter, but it might as well be to have a functioning phone so you can communicate with your loved ones. You can't deny the possibility of this being a very high priority. You can't underestimate the potential desperation in homeless people when it comes to "get what you need".
Despite this, I still find the authors arguments to align with the research and since there aren't that many papers on the subject (as stated by the authors), they are kind of breaking new grounds here. The data supporting their findings are carried out in a pleasing manner and gives, for example, a clear view of the demographic which accounts for the data of internet use among the homeless. Even if the data seems to be valid, the amount of homeless people questioned to give life to this paper aren't really that many, which gives the result some factor of uncertainty.
Questions regarding theory
- Briefly explain to a first year student what theory is, and what theory is not.
Well, according to Gregor, theory is basically how something should be done in practice. When it comes to physical theory it might suggest how we can explain, and maybe later on, view our world. For example the theories of laws that our planet abides by can help us get a deeper understanding of the world we live in. Theory can also be seen as a statement that can be proven right or wrong, it can be tested. So in summary, information is what theory is based on and for a theory to actually be a theory it has to propose something about the connections and relations about things in our universe.
- Describe the major theory or theories that are used in your selected paper. Which theory type (see Table 2 in Gregor) can the theory or theories be characterized as?
In my selected paper about the use if internet and social media in homeless youth in the US I found that the research rarely extends beyond analysis and description. This doesn't really come as a surprise since the research on this specific topic in general is quite rare. In this case it is about mapping the behavior of a specific group of people and ultimately answering a question. Therefore the major type of theory in this paper is Analysis theory. For it to be an Explanation theory which is not that far away, the paper needs to focus more on questions such as why and when. Something which isn't prevalent in this research.
- Which are the benefits and limitations of using the selected theory or theories?
I would say that there is a benefit in following the "guidelines" of a writing in a Analysis theory type of theme. The research is not really that advanced in terms of mathematical or physical equations and the findings aren't really that "speculative" in the sense that it has to be supported by heavy arguments. It is what is is. This means that the paper is easy to understand and quite light on its feet. The findings and information presented in the paper can be read without a very specific context to understood. The limitations though in having this type of theory is that it lacks further, more in-depth look at the underlying causes of it's findings. For example, why is this specific demographic more represented in the findings of internet and/or social media use? When did this shift happen? These questions aren't brought up in the paper and for it to be relevant, the type of theory being carried out has to be more of a Explanation or Explanation and prediction (EP) type of theme. But the paper would also as a result of that be more intense and maybe not so easy to follow without the right context. That is my opinion.
The subject of the paper seems very interesting in my opinion. Something that springs to mind is a blog post by Laila Bagge, who i think said that homeless people can't have a mobile phone because they shouldn't afford it. This opinion seems to me to lie in line with the hypothesis of this paper. We make weird assumptions of the homeless that isn't true. As you say, we might think that the driving factor for homeless is food and shelter in order to survive, but having the possibility to contact family, relatives or friends might be just as important.
SvaraRaderaThanks for your reply. Your comment about Laila is also in my opinion in line with what the author of my selected paper gave the impression of. I guess the intuitive thought is that poor people (the case with most homeless people one can argue) can't afford modern gadgets like smartphones. But that statement is fairly vague since it is just wrong when you actually observe the reality around us.
RaderaI mostly agree with your explanation of what theory is, although in my opinion I would emphasize that a theory should answer the question "why?" primarily rather than "how?". It has to provide a logical ground for future argument and therefore express something about the reasons behind the statements. However we seem to share the opinion that theory has to contain some sense of interconnectedness.
SvaraRaderaI'm not sure I get your argument. I believe that by questioning things with the mindset of asking "how is this working?" or "how can I explain this?" we develop a set of rules of conditions for which the theory is based on.
RaderaBut then again to answer somethings existence of behaviour in our world I guess we need to be able to both answer to the how? and the why? to give "a logical ground for future argument".