Research Methods By Sophie Oliver

AS CourseworkPrimary research:

I carried out a textual analysis on existing texts. This helped me discover the conventions used so I could use them in my own texts.

I also created a questionnaire. I asked people in person and also posted it on Facebook. This helped me gain information and the thoughts of my target audience quickly. However, posting on Facebook may have given me an biased opinion, as they were my friends answering the questions.

Secondary research:

Using the internet, I collected information about the companies behind the magazines. Although some sources from the internet can be unreliable at times, I believe the information I gained were from reliable sources.

A2 Coursework

Primary research:

I created an internet survey using Survey Monkey. I then posted this on Facebook and an internet forum on the website, The Student Room. Facebook may have given me some biased opinions but The Student Room would have been unbiased as nobody would have known me on there. This was useful as I gained back useful information quickly and inexpensively.

I also analysed existing texts to discover the trends that occur in them. The downside of doing a textual analysis is that it is open to interpretation, so not everyone will have the same opinion I have.

Secondary research:

I used search engines such as Google to learn more about music videos and the history of them.

I also looked at video tutorials on Youtube to learn more about how to create my text. This was helpful for me personally as I prefer to learn things visually.