Report on a Group Research Project
Introduction
In an age of information, people have an increasing number of options
to access media for entertainment and information. Yet radio remains
to be one of the most accessible and cost-effective conventional
media, especially for people with limited financial resources such as
university students. However, according to the cursory observation of
the researchers of this project, the radio listening patterns of and
their effects on university students have not been adequately
addressed. Therefore, this research project attempts to look into both
the radio listening habits and music acquisition behaviors of students
in Stirling University and, where possible, to identify the
co-relation between the two sets of behavioral patterns. The findings
of the research provide fairly clear patterns on both the radio
listening and music acquisition behaviors with some definite
co-relations between them. As an empirical research assignment of the
Media Research Methods course, another purpose for this project is to
utilize and test the basic research techniques that the researchers
have learnt in class so as to pave the way for their future academic
researches. Therefore, the last section of this report is devoted to
the reflections on the project in different perspectives.
Methodology
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The research has been conducted in a form of a series of
questionnaire-guided one-on-one interviews of Stirling University
students on both campus and students residences. The planned sample
size is 100 with a balanced gender make-up. Taking into consideration
the factor of cultural proximit...
... middle of paper ...
...at radio listening is the most predominant form
of media exposure among students of UK origin in the University of
Stirling due to its high accessibility. Radio One distinguishes itself
as the most popular station among Stirling Students, also commanding
the highest level of Listener loyalty. Local stations show a lower
level of listener loyalty. BBC Scotland has a small but loyalty
listenership thanks to its good sports programmes. Radio has
established its presence as a medium for music and entertainment but
failed to identify itself as a major news and advertising medium among
students in the Unviersity of Stirling. The predominant means of music
acquisition among Stirling students is through CD purchasing at music
stores. Radio demonstrates the strongest influence on music purchasing
decisions of Stirling students.
Kielburger, M., & Kielburger, C. (2002). Take action!: a guide to active citizenship. Hoboken, N.J.: John Wiley & Sons.
1. Christine’s leadership abilities could benefit by having knowledge of the stages of group development. Specific to her situation, it seems that aside from the very first group meeting, Mike was not present for the forming stage of the group. As a result, questions such as “What can the group offer me?”, “Can my needs be met and still contribute to the group”, and other discovery inquiries did not get answered for Mike so he has not felt part of the team so he has withdrawn from the group. As a leader, Christine could have encouraged to Mike the importance of being present for group meetings so he can be part of the team. For example, at the lunch room incident when Mike walked away, she could have talked with him individually and explained to him that she perceives that he does not feel welcome and has been avoiding team meetings. Christine could address the how important it is to attend the team meetings, explain to him the “WWIFM” (what’s in it for me) aspects and the fact that team needs him as he has so much that could contribute and add value to the team. She could also indicate that the team’s success will only be possible when every member contributes. By doing so, she can help ensure that Mike is able to join the group during the forming stage and hopefully move quickly to the norming and then performing stages.
Domestic violence (DV) is a pattern of behavior used to establish power and control over another person through fear and intimidation, often including the threat or use of violence. Domestic violence can include physical, emotional, psychological, financial, and/or sexual abuse. Abusers may use pressure, fear, intimidation, separation, and other behaviors to gain and retain power over their victims.
Mourning – this may be a fragile stage for some students as it is another ending occurrence for them. Facilitators can encourage students to organise a part to signify the ending as a positive event and to add another memorable life event to their lives.
It is always an amazing experience when you could meet someone and have a conversation with them in less than an hour and learn so much intriguing information about them, like you’ve known them for years. I was fortunate enough to meet a student by the name of Thabo Mochebelele that was kind enough to let me and my group interview him because we was no able to get in contact with our assigned international student. The young man was born in Champagne, Illinois but moved to South Africa at the age of three and resided there for seventeen years.
The group couldn't seem to find time for us to meet and plan our presentation, the first and only time all group members were present to work on the presentation was on the morning of the presentation. We worked on it and at the time I believed we had agreed on our final product, I personally felt all the slides needed at this point was editing and final touches to make it visually appealing for the audience. I went online to the google presentation we were using as a group to prepare our presentation and was surprised to see a different layout, additional slides, and contents which were different from what we as a group had worked on and approved as the final work we were going to present. I confronted the group members as to the changes on the slides and we had a conflict of what our
Action research is a type of research that is initiated to solve a pressing issue or a contemplative process of problem solving led by people working together as part of a community of practice. This method is used to improve the way the group addresses issues and solves problems. In Law Enforcement action research is of great importance because the research and the practices that materialize after the research are critical to discovering and implementing better policing practices. Action Research stands at the heart of community policing and in my paper I will discuss a current issue, prisoner re-entry, which has been alleviated because of action research.
This is only my third class in the Wilkes Instructional Media Program but I can say with certainty that it was the hardest. The class is about Project Based Learning so it only makes sense that part of it would be doing a project. But doing so on the computer with people you have not met and probably never will meet makes it hard. Add to that the fact you’re all teaching in different grade levels and you’re starting with two strikes against you before you even start. At least, that’s how I felt.
My experience with working with a group is that the longer you work together, it feels like the people I work with becomes a family. Sometimes we argue; sometimes we pick each other up when things are tough, but we also work together when things need to be accomplished. Getting a new job is always an adventure; normally, I walk through the door on the first day with fresh eyes and a fresh mind. That is exactly how I entered my first day at CVS Pharmacy (later to be known as CVS Health). Because this was my first retail job, it already seemed better than my experiences with the food and beverage industry. For about four years, I had been in and out of the restaurant business and believed that there had to be something a little more relaxed. Obviously, what I was doing was not my calling, which is why I applied to CVS. It had opportunity for advancement and a relaxed atmosphere. A friends’ wife that works for this particular CVS and helped me get my foot in the door. Walking through the double automatic doors, I could see the cashier, who I would later know as Alyssa, smiling at a customer. My “new” manager approached me with a genuine smile. Just the positive atmosphere and environment set the tone of how it would be working here.
Societies consist of several diverse elements, which are significant in the advancement of social notions. One of those key elements is media. In today’s society we approach countless varieties of media that are constantly influencing the way individuals live their lives. Consuming media on a daily basis has an immense effect on the way people view things within society. A source of media that tends to dominate our daily lives is music. Music is currently presented within every aspect of our lives and has become a commodity more than a cultural aspect. It is existent in every occasion with a variety of genres. It has now become available everywhere at any time of day. With music being such a big commodity in today’s society, popular music developed. Popular music is based upon what is appealing to most individuals throughout society, which is determined by a scale of activity such as music charts. It is considered as a key cultural expression that highlights the attitudes of personalities (Joan Serrà, 2012).
In a team-oriented setting, everyone contributes to how well the group succeeds overall. You work with fellow members of the group to complete the work that needs to be done. Having the right people in the correct roles is an important factor in measuring the success of a team, where you are united with the other members to complete the main goals. Every group is made up of definite strengths and weaknesses. Our team's 3-5 major strengths necessary to work accordingly consist of Informer, Summarizer, Orienter, Piggy-Backer, and Encourager. One of our strengths as a team is that we get input from everyone involved. Every member of our team is a leader in some way. Part of being a good leader is knowing how important it is to receive the best ideas from each member of their team. We attend group meetings where we discuss any challenges, issues, and problems. At these meetings, we often exchange ideas or brainstorm new ones with each other and come up with the best and most creative team solutions as potential answers to those perceived problems.
Throughout this group project, I had an opportunity to observe and reflect how my personality traits contributed to and hindered the success of the team. According to the Big Five Model, I identify myself as low on extroversion, moderate on neuroticism as well as openness and high on agreeableness and conscientiousness.
Working together with other people for an assignment can be a challenging task in some cases but luckily, I worked well with my group members. The decisions we made were anonymous although we paced ourselves individually when it came to completing our separate parts of the essay. As a group I believe that we connected well on an interpersonal level as all four of us were able to make alterations to any problem together . Furthermore, we did not give each other a chance to get angry at one another as we knew that this would only cause conflict that would disrupt our flow as a group. There was an equal divide in the amount of work that we all did; our contributions were fair and no one was lacking behind. In addition, my group members were great at keeping each other informed if one of us were not able to attend a group meeting; emails were sent out informing us what we missed and ideas that were formulated. Everyone in my group worked according to deadlines and in synchronization with each other; we did not have to nag anyone to complete work or wait on a member to complete their task.
Media technologies are becoming an important aspect of today’s society. Each and every day, people interact with media of many different forms. Media is commonly defined as being a channel of communication. Radio, newspapers, and television are all examples of media. It is impossible to assume that media is made up of completely unbiased information and that the media companies do not impose their own control upon the information being supplied to media users. Since many people use media very frequently, it is obvious to assume that it has affects on people. According to the text book Media Now, "media effects are changes in knowledge, attitude, or behavior that result from exposure to the mass media," (386). This leaves us with many unanswered questions about media and its influences. This paper will look at how the effects of media are determined and explore the main affects on today’s society - violence, prejudice, and sexual behavior.
The study asserts that more and more “public radio stations” are becoming commercialized which could be harmful to the development of South Africa as public radio is a popular broadcast medium in South Africa and most South Africans especially rural dwellers depend on it as a source of information. Chapter three of the study zooms into this assertion and develops the argument further. As Fourie (2003:153) notes, “the majority of South Africans relies on broadcasting, usually radio to meet its needs related to information and entertainment”. Locksley (2009) concurs, “In the developing world – especially in rural areas, radio (including community radio) and TV hold the primary roles, particularly where literacy is low. Commercialization of radio stations has a potential to benefit advertisers and neglect the opinion of the general public. Duncan (2000:114) advises that, “one of the fundamental principles of public broadcasting has been that the bulk of the broadcaster’s revenue should not be drawn from