Examples of media production research

In research there are numerous ways to collect the data and information you require. Some examples are:

Quantitative - Quantitative research is collected using short questions that gather data in numbers and statistics. It is used to get people's opinions without having to sort through multiple long answered questions by being sorted into charts such as pie charts or graphs. Some examples of why quantitative research is used are to collect viewing ratings or see if the demographic audience would watch the media production.

Qualitative - Qualitative research is collecting people's opinions but unlike quantitative research that collects it in charts qualitative collects the long answers. Interviews and questionnaires that have broader questions rather than multiple choice are some examples of qualitative research. Film reviews, audience attitudes to media products and responses to advertising are other sources of qualitative research.

Audience - Audience research is when you collect information from your demographic audience to see how they would react to your product and to see if they are the correct target audience. It is largely used by production companies to help them see what their productions audience sector is and how to market to them. Audience research is also used to not just see who the demographic audience would be but whether there is a slot in the market for the production and if there already is one similar what their customers buying patterns are. There are many factors to consider when categorizing audiences. Age, gender, geodemographics, demographics, hobbies, social-economic classification and and ethnographic are just some examples. Separating the audience into different categories makes it easier for production companies to establish and target their demographic audience. Quantitative and qualitative research are both largely used to collect the data.

Production - Production research is about the media production itself. Finding out whether the productions future income is going to be greater than its creations outcome and if it is viable. As well as the creations costs production research is also used to see which advertising events would be suitable and budgeting the costs of pre-production, production and post-production. Secondary, primary, market and audience research are all great ways to collect the information needed. For example market research would be suitable to find out if there is a slot in the market for the production which relates to the future income by suggesting how popular it would be. 

Market - Market research is used to help a media productions company discover whether or not their production would be popular and receive a strong reception in the current industry. Similar to production research secondary, primary and audience research are usefully methods of research to use to collect the data. For example presenting the media production idea to a focus group of your demographic audience would help the production company gather the information they need.

Secondary - Secondary research is when you gather information from already existing research or products. For example a production company would look at the reception and box office ratings to a similar production. Research boards are another source of collecting secondary research. For example if a production company was creating a TV show they called use boards such as BARB to see how similar shows viewing figures are that are being viewed on BBC, ITV and BSKYB. This is also an example of primary research.

Primary - Primary research is similar to self-generated research. This is when you gather the information directly and not from existing research. Examples of primary research are interviews or questionnaires as well as personally collecting video, photographs or audio.

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Bibliography:
Image taken from - http://grammar.about.com/od/rs/g/researchterm.htm 
Information taken from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Types_of_research_methods_and_disciplines
http://www.slideshare.net/AnnieRose95/audience-research-22808080
http://marketandproductionresearch.blogspot.co.uk/2011/10/market-and-production-research.html

Media Production Research methods

There are many ways media researchers find the information they need. The first stage of research is knowing what the purpose of your research is. For media productions the purpose of the research could be to find out information for the production for example if there is a scientific programme being made the researcher would be asked to double check if the information in the script is correct or where some great locations are. Another reason media productions need a researcher is to conduct audience research for example to find out the demographic audience for their production and whether it would get a good reception. As well as comparing these results to production and market research ways, such as where would be ideal places to promote the production and will the income costs out way the outcome. Once the researcher knows the purpose of their research they then have to pick which method either primary or secondary research would be suitable.  

Primary research:

Primary research is where you personally collect the information. Some examples of primary research that could be used to gather the information required are questionnaires, focus groups, internet forum groups, audience panels and interviews. There are also other primary research techniques such as finding information from data gathering agencies such as BARB and self-generating research for example collecting video, audio or photographic evidence from events.  

Secondary research:

Secondary research is when you find information from existing research. Film archieves, books, newspapers, searching the internet, journals and audio material are some examples of secondary research.

Researcher's also use an hourglass structure to research. The stages purpose is to help the researcher use a constructed list to find the information as easy as possible. The stages are:

1. Identification of research 
2. Literature review 
3. Specifying the purpose of research 
4. Determining specific research questions 
5. Choosing methodology 
6. Data collection 
7. Analyzing and interpreting the data
8. Reporting and evaluating research 
9. Communicating the research and, possibly, recommendations 

Research also has three main categories to help researchers pick which type of researching is best.
The three categories are:

Scientific research - Using experiments and theories to collect data and information about a specific topic.

Research in the humanities - Exploring details, issues and opinions about a subject. An example of humanities research is history research. History research is where you use primary sources, something from the time period you are researching to collect information.

Artistic research - Artistic research is when an artist researches about the creative process of art work.

However media researchers don't typically do the research for these categories. Instead they find the results and information already collected and use the secondary data to find out about the topic. Researcher's find the information from multiple places, such as archives, journals, photo libraries and the internet.

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Bibliography: 

Image taken from: http://rebeccalieb.com/tags/research 
Information taken from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Research

Role of a researcher

Job title: Media Researcher 

Salary: £19,000+

Company or freelance: Usually freelance 

Job description: 

A media researcher only typically works on historical films or programmes or ones that need real factual information in them such as Sci-fi's. However a researcher could be employed to work on sports, soaps and dramas, children's and situation comedies. Documentaries are the main common area for a media researcher to work in. They are usually hired on a freelance bases however some companies, mainly ones that only produce one type of films such as documentaries will hire some researchers on a permanent bases.

A researchers job starts in the early stages of pre-production. They will either be given a script to add to or an idea that they have to develop. Once they have received the topic they are instructed to find reliable and correct information. To do this they will search the internet, look through archives, photographs, video and any other films or programmes that are about the same topic that have already been produced. As some information or footage that may be incorporate into the film or programme might be protected by copyright licences you will need to find out how to get permission and correct clearances for them to be included. If there is a location that might be private or off-bounds due to historical reason the researcher will be in charge of finding out how to gain access to them. As well as these responsibilities the researcher will most likely be in charge of the financial aspects of the copyright clearances, information and location. Once all the information is collected it will then be put into a production booklet.

When it comes to the production stage a researcher's job doesn't finish there. Regularly a researcher will be held on so they can work with the set designers to make sure any visual aspects line up with the information they collected. A researcher is also in charge of the transport to the location/s. As well as arranging transport they will also be on set throughout the production stage to make sure nothing gets damaged if it's a historical building as well as showing directors and camera operators the best places to go and confirming any information that was put into the script. After the production stage the researcher's job is to make sure the location is left in the exact way before the crew arrived and transports everyone from the location. 

Requirements:

To become a media researcher you don't need any specific educational qualifications. However most companies prefer that you do. A degree in Art history, film, media or general history are some popular degrees researchers hold. As well as a degree it's good to have some experience in either research, film or TV or media. Many media researchers start as art assistance, working in libraries or collecting archives. Another way to become a researcher is by picking a specialism for example if you want to work or nature documentaries getting a degree and/or experience in natural history, biology or geology would be an advantage. 

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Bibliography: 

Image taken from https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=documentary+researcher+job+description&espv=2&biw=1920&bih=971&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwj15MHk0uDJAhUGuBQKHRA2CQQQ_AUICCgD#tbm=isch&q=documentary+researcher+job&imgrc=_1AcBNLiFC8kmM%3A 

Information taken from: 

https://nationalcareersservice.direct.gov.uk/advice/planning/jobprofiles/Pages/MediaResearcher.aspx 

http://creativeskillset.org/job_roles_and_stories/job_roles/3811_specialist_researcher

http://www.media-match.com/usa/media/jobtypes/researcher-jobs-402767.php

Deductive and inductive research

(Image taken from google images) 

"A deductive approach is concerned with developing a hypothesis (or hypotheses) based on existing theory, and the desugning a research strategy to test the hypothesis" (Wilson,2010,p.7) 

"Inductive research involves the search for pattern observation and the development of explanations - theories - for those patterns through series of hypotheses" (Bernard, 2011,p.7) 

Deductive research is where you start with some information/research that already exists which you then would test to see if it is correct and reliable. An example of deductive research would be an already written article, secondary research. 

 Inductive research is where you don't use someone else's research to see if it reliable you develop your own ideas and research. For example you could collect information from questionnaires or surveys, both primary research. 

The differences between deductive research and inductive research is that deductive usually uses quantitative research whereas inductive uses qualitative research.  Another difference is that inductive research is trying to find new data and theories but deductive research tests already existing research to see if it is dependable. 









Information taken from:
http://deborahgabriel.com/2013/03/17/inductive-and-deductive-approaches-to-research/ 
http://2012books.lardbucket.org/books/sociological-inquiry-principles-qualitative-and-quantitative-methods/s05-03-inductive-or-deductive-two-dif.html 

Audience research

(Photo taken from google.co.uk/images)

Audience research is used to collect information about how your demographic audience reacts to your product. It is used largely by production companies as it helps them see what their audience sector will be and how to reach them. For example audience research is used in film and television to see how certain audiences react to their film or television programme. It's also used to see if there is a slot in the market for the the product or production. 

There are many factors to consider when categorizing audiences. Age, gender, geodemographics, demographics, hobbies, social-economic classification and ethnographic are just some examples. Separating the audience into different categories makes it easier for companies to establish and target their demographic audience. 

Companies use a wide range of methods to collect the data they need. BARB is a popular method within television. BARB collects viewing figures for TV channels and programmes. Other methods of audience research are:

• Quantitative and qualitative - Questionnaire and surveys 
• Interviews and focus groups
• Observations and inter-forums - Twitter, Facebook and YouTube

What is a demographic audience? A demographic audience or demographics profile is a large marketing tool used by companies. It is used to find out the products audience and how they can market it. Both product marketing companies and broadcasting groups hugely use demographic profiling. For example you wouldn't advertise a new horror film on a childrens channel as it wont reach the correct demographic audience. Demographic profiles are typical put into groupings of gender, age, ethnicity and social-economic. Social-economic classification is a combination of education, income and occupation. 

There are six main social-economic categories: 

                (Photo taken from nrs.co.uk)

Information taken from:

http://www.slideshare.net/AnnieRose95/audience-research-22808080 

Data gathering research and Self-generated research

Examples of  data gathering techniques:

Interview (direct) - An interview if a formal discussion, usually videoed between one or more people. The interviewer/s ask the person/people question regarding something e.g a interviewer from a film magazine might be asking an actor about their upcoming movie. It is a verbal form of collecting data.

Registration - A form of registration research is getting a customer to fill out a form about their opinion of a product or service. It can also be used to gather peoples personal details.  

Questionnaire (indirect) - A questionnaire is a series of questions but the person/people answer in written form which differs from the interview technique which is verbal. 

Experimental - An example of experimental data gathering is selling a product for a trial based time to see how popular the product is and to see if its worth selling on a permanent basis. Another form of experimental research is some production companies release a film but before deciding on making it a sequel they see how the audience reacts to the first. 

Pros and cons of these techniques: 

Interview (direct) - The pros of doing an interview is that you can easily re-watch it over and over again. The cons of an interview is that it may be hard to find someone to interview or peoples schedules might not be the same. Another disadvantage is that if you want to write quotes or have a copy of the interview in writing you will have to watch it and make your own transcript.

Registration - A good reason to use a registration to collect the data you need is that you will have the information written down. Another pro of registration is you don't have to try and get someone to come to a location at a set time as they can do it from anywhere. 

Questionnaire (indirect) - A pro of collecting date indirecting instead of directly, for example like an interview is the sane reason as registrations the questionnaire can be filled out at anytime. However because of this they answers could be from multiple people. Another con of collecting data by questionnaire is that the answers won't be as detailed or long compared to a interview. 

Experimental - The pros of using experimental research to collect  the data is that you can fully see how your demographic audience will react to your product/service/video. A pro to doing a trail run is that it could be costly. 

Self-generated research: 

Self-generated research is collecting data from videos, photography or audio and other forms of media that you create by yourself. 

Examples:

Video
Photography 
Audio 
Articles 
Blog posts

Pros and cons of self-generated research:

The pros of collecting self-generated data is that you now where the information is from because of this you will know that it is reliable. However collecting data personally can also be a con as it may be biased and won't necessarily have a higher credibility. 


Information taken from:
http://people.uwec.edu/piercech/researchmethods/data%20collection%20methods/data%20collection%20methods.htm
http://www.slideshare.net/MrMightyMcD/research-unit-booklet 

What is research and why do we carry it out:

Picture taken from Oxford dictionary 

Research is something you conduct to find out about and understand a specific topic, object, place etc. It is used to answer questions. For example if you had to write a essay about "What films came out in the 80's and what was the most popular?" you would research to find the facts and information you need.

Why do we carry out research? We carry out research because it is behind everything which makes it important. There are many reasons why research is important, for example it helps us develop personally and professionally. Research helps us develop personally and professionally by expanding our knowledge and improving our understanding on the subject. It also helps us improve professionally by finding out how to make our work better by being aware of more then one perspective.   

 There are many different types of research: 

Quantitative - Quantitative research is used to collect peoples opinions on a certain thing. It is usually conducted using questionnaires and surveys. It collects data in numbers and statistics. 

Qualitative - Qualitative research is mainly used for market research. It is used to find out why someone thinks or feels this way about something. 

Primary - Primary research is collecting the research yourself. It could be conducted using questionnaires, surveys or interviews. 

Secondary - Secondary research is using information you have found from existing research. For example archives and information from the internet. 

Research boards - Research boards such as BARB are used to collect data for other people. For example BARB collects television viewing figures for companies such as BBC, BSKYB and ITV. 

Self-Generated - Self-Generated research is where you gather the information yourself through video, photographs or audio. 

Audience - Audience research is where you get information from your demographic audience. For example if you are making a film for a specific age range you would present your idea to them and see what their opinions are.

Production - Production research is mainly used for plays. It is used to help you understand more about a play. For example you could research the influences and context of the play. 


Primary vs Secondary research:

The differences between primary and secondary research is when you conduct primary research you ask the questions and find the answers yourself whereas with secondary the questions have already been asked for you. Some of the advantages of using primary research over secondary is that because you are conducting the research yourself you know that it will be reliable. However an advantage of secondary research is that because someone else has already conducted the research so you wouldn't have to necessarily leave your computer to get the information you need. Another advantage is that the person that has conducted the research may have had access to more and the persific type people you may not have. 

Quantitative vs Qualitative: 

The differences between quantitative and qualitative research is quantitative is based on collecting data to be able to turn into a numerical chart for instance a pie chart whereas qualitative research is gathering someones opinions and a full length answer rather than one word. 

Quantitative or Qualitative questions: 

You have just done a questionnaire looking into how often people visit the cinema. In your opinion, would this be QUANTITATIVE research or QUALITATIVE research?

For a questionnaire regarding how often someone visits the cinema a quantitative formatted questionnaire would be used. This is because the question is how often which would be collected in numbers from a multiple choice e.g 1-3 times a month, 4-6 times a month etc. 

You have just done an interview looking into how often a single person visits the cinema. In your opinion, would this be QUANTITATIVE research or QUALITATIVE research?

An interview is usually used for qualitative research. Even though the question is similar it would generally be asked in an interview as on average how often do you go to the cinema in a month? which would be answered in a full sentence rather than ticking a box on a questionnaire as it is an interview rather than a questionnaire or survey.