Theoretical and Practical Guidance for Incorporating Auditor-Client Communication in Experimental Research

In this paper, we provide theoretical and practical guidance on experimental design choices when incorporating auditor-client communication in audit research. We structure our discussion around Social Presence Theory, noting how elements of social presence impact theoretical predictions and the related experimental design. We then compare non-interactive, highly-controlled paper/computer-based studies with studies that involve automated interaction, interaction with an actor, or interaction between participants. We provide a discussion of best practices and pitfalls related to these different experimental design choices, including theoretical and logistical considerations, as well as recent innovations in this area. While our methodological discussion is nested in auditor-client communication research, these methods and logistical considerations are applicable to most accounting experiments designed to address research questions steeped in social psychology (i.e., contexts of human interaction).

Culture and Social Norms: Development and Application of a Model for Culturally Contextualized Communication Measurement (MC3M)

Studies of social norms are common in the communication literature and are increasingly focused on cultural dynamics: studying co-cultural groups within national boundaries or comparing countries. Based on the review of the status quo in cross-cultural measurement development and our years of experience in conducting this research among a co-cultural group, this paper describes a Model for Culturally Contextualized Communication Measurement (MC3M) for intercultural and/or cross-cultural communication research. As an exemplar, we report on a program of research applying the model to develop a culturally derived measurement of social norms and the factors impacting the norm-behavior relationship for members of a unique population group (i.e., ethnically Tibetan pastoralists in Western China). The results provide preliminary evidence for the construct validity and reliability of the culturally derived measurements. The implications, benefits, and shortcomings of the MC3M model are discussed. Recommendations for advancing both conceptual and measurement refinement in intercultural and cross-cultural communication research are provided.

Communicating Across Cultures and Languages in the Health Care Setting. Claire Penn & Jennifer Watermeyer. Palgrave Macmillan, UK. 368 Pp. ISBN 978-1-137-58100-6

The book under review presents the challenging and creative research endeavours concerning some peculiar characteristics of multicultural and multilingual communication in South African healthcare settings. The authors of this work – Claire Penn, a professor and director of the Health Communication Research Unit, and Jennifer Watermeyer, an associate professor in the Department of Speech Pathology and Audiology at the University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa, – focus on bridging the gap between the voices of the lifeworld and the voices of medicine via communication characterized by the complexities and pitfalls within culturally and linguistically diverse health care contexts. The research under review is aimed at analyzing the cognitive space of professional medical communication in healthcare settings for applying the results in practice. Research of the cross-language interactions in healthcare facilities (using the evidence from South African medical settings) certainly contributes a lot to establishing an adequate cultural brokers’ role in the professional communication and to describing methods aimed at modifying interactions between a healthcare professional and a patient, which taken together lead to the improvement of medical communication in general. This book is a reasonably valuable source of essential knowledge for both healthcare professionals, linguists, discourse analysis researchers, medical educators and practitioners, and for those people who are interested in the specificities of communication research projects in terms of professional medical discourse on the global scale.

Review of the Monograph “Advertising as an Integral Part of a Film” by Yuliia Shevchuk

The topic of Yu. S. Shevchuk's monograph "Advertising as an integral part of the film"involves the interdisciplinary nature of the study. Its disclosure required the scientist to have a thorough knowledge of film material, the ability to analyze the visual and audiovisual series of cinema in combination with the use of categorical apparatus and methodology of social communication research.

What Creates Listening Online? Exploring Reciprocity in Online Political Discussions with Relational Content Analysis

Democratic governmentsfrequently use online tools to include large numbers of citizens inparticipation processes. Against the backdrop of deliberative theories, suchinitiatives are subject to normative needs. This article examines the equalityof participation. Previous research has mainly focused on equality in terms ofaccess to, and voice within, deliberation processes. However, much less isknown about the factors that influence the distribution of reciprocity inonline political discussions. Proposing a theoretical distinction betweensimple replying and deliberative reciprocity, this study addresses thequestion: What obstructs or promotes deliberative reciprocity online? Drawingon previous online communication research, we assume that communication style,gender and users’ activity are important predictors of simple replying anddeliberative reciprocity. Results of a relational quantitative content analysisindicate that in order to receive deliberative reciprocity users should askquestions, propose arguments, be humorous, have a critical attitude and use amale user name. Storytelling and expressions of emotions show either negativeor not significant effects.

Computational Communication Science: Lessons from Working Group Sessions with Experts of an Emerging Research Field

This chapter provides an overview of computational communication science (CCS) as an emerging and exemplary subfield of computational social science. Based on lessons from working group sessions with 34 experts, we address recent challenges and desiderata of CCS research while reflecting upon its future development and expansion. Four major fields of action proved particularly relevant in these discussions: First, challenges related to a reflected but integrated CCS methodology; second, challenges related to a further elaboration on the theoretical perspectives on CCS; third, challenges related to the formation and further institutionalization of CCS as fundamental basis for further scientific exchange, progress and standardization; and fourth, implications for empirical communication research, particularly highlighting the relevance of wicked problems as research incubators driving further progress.

The Scientific Heritage of Professor O.Ya. Goikhman as a Methodological and Theoretical Basis for the New Section of the Journal

The article presents the methodological and theoretical justification of the new section of the journal. The significance of the ideas of Professor O.G. Gokhman in the formation of communication research as a science, as well as the realization of its spiritual and harmonizing potential in modern crisis socio-cultural conditions is evaluated. The presentation and analysis of the article by religious scholar T.A.Poletaeva, which opens the rubric, is being carried out. The significant methodological and theoretical potential of the proposed synthesis of scientific approaches within the conceptual field of communication research is noted.

Project-Oriented Web Scraping in Technical Communication Research

This article advocates for web scraping as an effective method to augment and enhance technical and professional communication (TPC) research practices. Web scraping is used to create consistently structured and well-sampled data sets about domains, communities, demographics, and topics of interest to TPC scholars. After providing an extended description of web scraping, the authors identify technical considerations of the method and provide practitioner narratives. They then describe an overview of project-oriented web scraping. Finally, they discuss implications for the concept as a sustainable approach to developing web scraping methods for TPC research.