Sunday, 8 November 2009

Research Methodology

In order to find out the information required for the research paper, a mixture of primary and secondary resources were used; a journal, a newspaper extract, a book and a website on the topic of this research paper. When using a book, all of the information which it contains has to be authorised before it is published. This means that it would be sound evidence which has been proven fact, rather than opinion and is the most viable source to prove the hypothesis either right or wrong. Websites are very easy sources of information because it is readily available for use; however care must be taken to ensure that the information is factual instead of opinion-based. Although this applies to quoting from a website, it was interesting to discover the amount of media attention video game violence has received and whether it shows games in a more positive or negative light. Newspaper articles tend to be rather biased however; from time to time there are quotes from creditable professors of the topic which could be useful furthermore in proving a hypothesis. Journals are also useful because they give an insight to the topic being researched and discussed and give the points of view of other people. That way, it is possible to see whether the media has in fact made a difference to public opinions on video games and whether experts’ views which have been shown either on television or in newspapers have had an impact on the gaming industry.

4 comments:

  1. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  2. While it is true that the information in a book is more likely to be factual, keep in mind that the definition of 'fact' can be twisted to suit the author's or authors' needs. Plus, the same fact can be represented in many different ways. Newspapers, I've noticed, tend to use that particular tactic.

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  3. Information within books need to be authorised before they are published - they're not allowed to publish information which isn't proven fact in this context. All information must be/is referenced within books so you can look up the information yourself.

    As for newspapers, they often do express the publisher's opinions however, they do sometimes have good quotes from creditable professors which when you search for them on the internet, there are other sources to back what the newspaper have said up. :)

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  4. As I said, the definition of 'fact' can be twisted to suit a purpose. Different people have different ideas of what a 'fact' is, and can interpret 'facts' in different ways.

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