Technical Communication Research: A Call for Action

Argues for an increased emphasis on research in technical communication education.

Spilka, Rachel. CPTSC (2005). Presentations>Education>Research

Technical Communicators Shun Research, Yet Research Results Are Applicable In Practice  

Like their colleagues who produce paper documents, few help developers are aware of the research that has been done on topics relevant to the information products they design. This article describes four recent studies that are relevant to help developers, and suggests how help developers can use the knowledge gained from those studies to improve the performance support systems they build. The fact, however, is that there is a lot of good research that addresses topics of concern to practitioners in our field. Moreover, the best research reports always include implications for practice. Finally, if we ignore research results, we won’t learn what we need to know so that we can stop spending all our time putting out fires.

Hayhoe, George F. George Hayhoe Associates (2001). Articles>Documentation>Research

Technical Writing: Simulated Search Activity

This activity is meant to simulate the process of finding and evaluating information on the World Wide Web. We present it as a simulation to aid new Web users, who may feel uncomfortable with conducting an actual search. For detailed information on searching for information on the Web, as well as evaluating and citing sources, see our online guides.

Selber, Stuart A. Addison Wesley Longman (1997). Academic>Course Materials>Research>Search

Technology and Knowledge Transfer: Science and Industry Working Together    

Science and technology are intimately related. The technology sector that drives the modern economy would never have arisen without basic scientific research, and that research is now being funded by companies seeking to gain a technological edge over their competitors. Despite this mutual dependence, technical communication has taken different paths in science and industry. Technology and knowledge transfer, the communication of research results to an audience that can implement the results, bridges these two solitudes and strongly resembles much of the work done by other technical communicators.

Hart, Geoffrey J.S. International Journal for Technical Communication (2006). Articles>TC>Research>Workplace

Theory and Research Stem Overview  

The objective for this stem is to provide a forum for the exchange of ideas so important to the advancement of our profession. Qualitative and quantitative research, theory testing and building, experimentation, and applications testing are foundations of our profession, and this stem offers one venue for consideration of, collaboration about, and discussion of new research ideas and methods. The Theory and Research Stem brings together people from business, industry, and academia for what we hope will be enlightening and stimulating sessions that promote additional research and theory building after the conference.

Porter, Lynnette R. STC Proceedings (1996). Articles>Research

Theory and Research Stem Overview  

In its second year the Theory and Research stem has grown in scope and subject matter. We welcome a myriad of Usability sessions into this stem - new this year! We think you’ll find a natural link between the latest research, new theory, and their application with a focus on the user. Research and its implementation are essential to improving our methods, tools, and response to users’ needs. From planning, to prototyping, to collaborative design, to usability testing, through production, you’ll find topics to pique your interest. This stem provides a forum for discussing fresh ideas and new results, assessing trends, and evaluating research that confirms or revises the way we work.

Logan, Leanne. STC Proceedings (1997). Articles>Usability>Research

Understanding Statistical Significance: A Conceptual History    

Few concepts in the social sciences have wielded more discriminatory power over the status of knowledge claims than that of statistical significance. Currently operationalized as a = 0.05, statistical significance frequently separates publishable from nonpublishable research, renewable from nonrenewable grants, and, in the eyes of many, experimental success from failure. If literacy is envisioned as a sort of competence in a set of social and intellectual practices, then scientific literacy must encompass the realization that this cardinal arbiter of social scientific knowledge was not born out of an immanent logic of mathematics but socially constructed and reconstructed in response to sociohistoric conditions.

Little, Joseph. Journal of Technical Writing and Communication (2001). Articles>Research>Statistics>History

Unraveling the Mysteries of Sampling

The number of surveys to send out depends on how many employees you have and what rate of response you are likely to achieve. If you have a relatively small number of employees, you might need to send out surveys to everyone. If you have over several thousand employees, you would need only 500-600 completed surveys to have fairly reliable results for your population as a whole, assuming the respondents accurately reflect the demographics of the entire group. So, if you expect to have a 100% response rate, you would mail out surveys to a random sample of 600. More realistically, if you typically have a response rate of 50%, you'd need to survey 1,200 people (600 divided by 0.5).

Sinickas, Angela D. Sinickas Communications (2001). Articles>Research>Methods>Surveys

Usability Laboratories: A 1994 Survey

This article provides a table with summary statistics for the thirteen usability laboratories described in the papers in this special issue. It also gives an introduction to the main uses of usability laboratories in usability engineering and surveys some of the issues related to practical use of user testing and CAUSE tools for computer-aided usability engineering.

Nielsen, Jakob. Alertbox (1994). Articles>Usability>Research

User Research Doesn't Prove Anything

Quantitative studies, while providing us with a method for estimating user population statistics, cannot provide us with proof. Used carefully, however, they can tell us a great deal--and if not with certainty, at least with a known amount of uncertainty.

Baty, Steve. UXmatters (2007). Articles>Research>Methods

User Research: Subjectivity and Objectivity in Practice

A discussion of concerns about the actual quality of the user research companies are undertaking and the validity of any conclusions they have drawn from the resulting data.

Baty, Steve. UXmatters (2006). Articles>Usability>Research

Using Formal Reference to Enhance Authority and Integrity in Online Mathematical Texts

This ability to provide evidence and evaluate arguments is critical to a liberal arts education or an engineering one. Hence, the interface between the document and the verified repository not only ensures correctness and eliminates error by construction, but also gives depth to the article, from the inserted math to its very foundations.

Lorigo, Lori, Stuart Allen and Robert Constable. Journal of Electronic Publishing (2006). Articles>Scientific Communication>Research>Mathematics

Using Statistics

Statistics are often tossed around as if they could speak for themselves. For example, advertisers claim 'Ivory soap is 99% pure.' (Pure what?) Or a researcher may claim that 'the average American today watches 5.3 hours of TV per day.' (What does 'average' mean?) All facts must be interpreted and presented in your argument; this handout presents five guidelines designed to help you use statistics responsibly.

Purdue University. Academic>Research>Methods

The Value of Research in Technical Communication

Over the years, there has been much debate and discussion in the Society as to whether technical communication is a field, an endeavour, a profession or a discipline, none of the above or all of the above. The topics of professionalism, certification and accreditation have often appeared in the pages of Technical Communication and Intercom. I would like to take the opportunity to review the status of technical communication and to highlight the role of research in technical communication.

Hosier, William J. Boston Broadside (1991). Articles>TC>Research>Body of Knowledge

Web Measurement Strategies for Small Businesses

Tools to build an effective Web measurement strategy on a tight budget.

Mason, Neil. ClickZ (2007). Articles>Web Design>Research>Log Analysis

What Research Should STC Sponsor?  

This session is an open forum moderated by the STC Research Grants Committee; its goal is to elicit and discuss suggestions from STC members for research areas and topic's the STC should sponsor. The input will help guide the members of the Research Grants Committee as they decide which research proposals to approve during the next year.

Rosenbaum, Stephanie L. STC Proceedings (1996). Articles>TC>Research

Which Are More Legible: Serif or Sans Serif Typefaces?

In 1998 when Times New Roman was still widely used on the web, my then boss made sure we always designed our medical web sites with Arial, as she hated the look of serif fonts on the web. Was it the case that sans serif fonts were more legible, or was it just a matter of taste? In an effort to get at the truth, I reviewed over 50 empirical studies in typography and found a definitive answer.

Poole, Alex. Alex Poole (2005). Design>Typography>Research>Usability

Who's Writing Your White Papers? The Never Ending Debate of Technical Knowledge Versus Writing Proficiency

A common mistake that many companies make when starting a white paper project, is the assumption that a technical subject matter expert who has used, developed, or is highly knowledgeable about the topic is automatically assumed to be best qualified as its author.

Kantor, Jonathan. WhitePaperSource (2006). Articles>Writing>Research>White Papers

The Winning Mindset: Effective Competitive Intelligence Research on the Internet    

Suggests that search engines are useful but limited in their application for competitive intelligence searching on the internet, and highlights the importance and effectiveness not just of structured searching but also of creativity. Explains some of the technical limitations of internet searching and suggests conditions in which a competitive intelligence search may be made more effective, pointing out that the value an information professional adds is in having some idea in advance of what they are likely to find. Gives details of what search engines will and will not retrieve, and illustrates how search strategies can be improved through use of the available filtering syntax. Suggests that using Boolean logical operators and other features directly in the search box is likely to produce better results than simply relying on the search engine's advanced search feature. Concludes by re-emphasizing the need for a creative mindset, building on some structure.

Kendrick, Terry. Business Information Review (2007). Articles>Research>Online>Search

Women and Feminism in Technical Communication--An Update    

The purposes of this study are to determine the current status of scholarship published in five major technical communication journals about women and feminism and to identify changes in focus that may have occurred over the last five years. We begin with a discussion of the frequency of publication for articles whose titles have keywords relating to women and feminism. After identifying 21 articles, we consider the thematic patterns in the narrowed corpus. We conclude that scholarly publication about women and feminism in technical communication has moved from a moderate or radical concern for inclusion to a postmodern concern for critique of visual, verbal, and mechanical "technologies," which previously were not considered political.

Thompson, Isabelle and Elizabeth Overman Smith. Journal of Technical Writing and Communication (2006). Articles>Research>Publishing>Gender

Writing Research Theory and Practice

This course has two related goals. First, the course is an introduction to some of the theoretical and practical approaches to research taken by scholars in composition and rhetoric. Second, the course is designed to help prepare students to write a project proposal which will in turn help them as they begin work on their MA thesis or writing project.

Krause, Steven D. Eastern Michigan University (2005). Academic>Courses>Research

机器与人交流的五大法则

编者：本书最后部分，作者比较了由机器开发的设计原则和由人总结的设计原则。下文中是机器对于如何与人交流的想法。

Norman, Donald A. uiGarden (2008). (Chinese) Articles>Human Computer Interaction>Research

Introduction to Professional Writing Research

English 203 serves as an introduction to research approaches and methods useful for professional writers. The course will focus on developing ideas to guide research; collecting print and online information; interviewing, surveying, and conducting observations; and evaluating, summarizing, analyzing, and reporting research. Perhaps most important, the course will focus on developing your writing skills so that you might not only engage in but also produce quality professional research.

Bay, Jennifer. Purdue University (2008). Academic>Courses>Research>Business Communication

Qualitative Sampling Methods: A Primer for Technical Communicators    

Qualitative sampling methods have been largely ignored in technical communication texts, making this concept difficult to teach in graduate courses on research methods. Using concepts from qualitative health research, this article provides a primer on qualitative methods as an initial effort to fill this gap in the technical communication literature. Specifically, the authors attempt to clarify some of the current confusion over qualitative sampling terminology, explain what qualitative sampling methods are and why they need to be implemented, and offer examples of how to apply commonly used qualitative sampling methods.

Koerber, Amy and Lonie McMichael. Journal of Business and Technical Communication (2008). Articles>Research>Methods

Research in Technical Communication: Perspectives and Thoughts on the Process  

Technical communication can be viewed as both a discipline and a profession. As a discipline, it concerns itself with the pursuit of knowledge and the development of theory. As a profession, it attempts to meet the needs of the individuals it serves through the application of knowledge and theory. Research links the discipline and the profession and sustains both by providing the bases from which to develop new areas of inquiry and to find solutions to problems.

Barclay, Rebecca O. Technical Communication Online (1992). Articles>TC>Research>Body of Knowledge