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Technical Communication
A Practical Approach
Chapter 9: Technical Research

William Sanborn Pfeiffer

Kaye Adkins

Technical Communication: A Practical Approach, Eighth Edition W. S. Pfeiffer and K. Adkins

Technical Research

Getting Started
Reviewing Published Research
Conducting Primary Research
Using Borrowed Information Correctly
Reporting Your Research

Technical Communication: A Practical Approach, Eighth Edition W. S. Pfeiffer and K. Adkins

Getting Started

Ask yourself the following questions to give direction to your work
What questions must be answered during the research phase?
What print, multimedia, and electronic sources would be most useful?
What is the nature and extent of information that is needed? Should it be scholarly or popular? Current or historical?

Technical Communication: A Practical Approach, Eighth Edition W. S. Pfeiffer and K. Adkins

Getting Started

Ask yourself the following questions to give direction to your work
What are the best strategies and research tools for locating information?
To whom can you talk who might have expertise on the topic?

Technical Communication: A Practical Approach, Eighth Edition W. S. Pfeiffer and K. Adkins

Getting Started

Ask yourself the following questions to give direction to your work
What are the best criteria for critically evaluating information for reliability, validity, accuracy, timeliness, or point of view or bias?
What format must be used to document material borrowed from sources and what copyright permissions must be acquired to use the information?

Technical Communication: A Practical Approach, Eighth Edition W. S. Pfeiffer and K. Adkins

Reviewing Published Research

Searching Online Catalogs
Searching in the Library
Searching the Web

Technical Communication: A Practical Approach, Eighth Edition W. S. Pfeiffer and K. Adkins

Searching Online Catalogs

Author or Title Search
Subject Search
Keyword Search
Advanced Search Techniques

Technical Communication: A Practical Approach, Eighth Edition W. S. Pfeiffer and K. Adkins

Searching In the Library

Library Services
Reference and information
Interlibrary loan
Circulation

Technical Communication: A Practical Approach, Eighth Edition W. S. Pfeiffer and K. Adkins

Searching In the Library

Library Resources
Books
Periodicals
Newspapers
Company directories
Dictionaries, encyclopedias, and other general references

Technical Communication: A Practical Approach, Eighth Edition W. S. Pfeiffer and K. Adkins

Searching the Web

Fundamentals of Web Searching
Using Your Evaluation Skills
Invest time and effort in critically evaluating what you find
Be alert to the following
Obscured authorship
Out-of-date information
Subtle and obvious bias
Poor-quality links
Flawed style and design

Technical Communication: A Practical Approach, Eighth Edition W. S. Pfeiffer and K. Adkins

Searching the Web

Fundamentals of Web Searching
Learning the basics
Uniform resource locator (URL)
Contains important clues to the Web site’s authorship, country of origin or the domain, or the type of organization sponsoring the site

Technical Communication: A Practical Approach, Eighth Edition W. S. Pfeiffer and K. Adkins

Searching the Web

Web Search Options
Searching by URL (uniform resource locator)
Searching by key words using search engines and meta-search engines
Searching with subject directories
Using reviewed and recommended subject guides

Technical Communication: A Practical Approach, Eighth Edition W. S. Pfeiffer and K. Adkins

Conducting Primary Research

Quantitative Research
Research is valid
Research is reliable
Qualitative Research
Interviews
Focus groups
Field observation
Document and analysis

Technical Communication: A Practical Approach, Eighth Edition W. S. Pfeiffer and K. Adkins

Conducting Primary Research

Research with human subjects
Comply with ethical guidelines
Submit a research plan
Using surveys
Can combine qualitative and quantitative research

Technical Communication: A Practical Approach, Eighth Edition W. S. Pfeiffer and K. Adkins

Conducting Primary Research

Usability Testing
How clear are the instructions?
How quickly can a user find information in a help file?
How useful are the illustrations in a user’s guide?

Technical Communication: A Practical Approach, Eighth Edition W. S. Pfeiffer and K. Adkins

Using Borrowed
Information Correctly

Avoiding Plagiarism
Varieties of Documentation

Technical Communication: A Practical Approach, Eighth Edition W. S. Pfeiffer and K. Adkins

Using Borrowed
Information Correctly

Avoiding Plagiarism
Cite sources for all borrowed information used in your final document. This includes quotations, paraphrases, and summaries.

Technical Communication: A Practical Approach, Eighth Edition W. S. Pfeiffer and K. Adkins

Using Borrowed
Information Correctly

Why Should You Document Your Sources Thoroughly and Accurately?
Courtesy
Ethics
The law

Technical Communication: A Practical Approach, Eighth Edition W. S. Pfeiffer and K. Adkins

Selecting and Following a Documentation System

Varieties of Documentation
American Psychological Association (APA)
Council of Biology Editors (CBE)
Modern Language Association (MLA)
Chicago Manual of Style (CMS)

Technical Communication: A Practical Approach, Eighth Edition W. S. Pfeiffer and K. Adkins

Reporting Your Research

ABC Format for Technical Research
Writing Research Abstracts

Technical Communication: A Practical Approach, Eighth Edition W. S. Pfeiffer and K. Adkins

ABC Format for Technical Research

ABC Format for Technical Research
Abstract
Identifies the question, problem, or issue being researched
Reviews the published research about the topic, or secondary sources
Overviews the organizational plan of the document

Technical Communication: A Practical Approach, Eighth Edition W. S. Pfeiffer and K. Adkins

ABC Format for Technical Research

ABC Format for Technical Research
Body
Explains the methodology used to gather information form primary sources
Presents the results, using tables, charts, and graphs as necessary
Interprets the findings through analysis and discussion

Technical Communication: A Practical Approach, Eighth Edition W. S. Pfeiffer and K. Adkins

ABC Format for Technical Research

ABC Format for Technical Research
Conclusion
May include recommendations
May make a prediction

Technical Communication: A Practical Approach, Eighth Edition W. S. Pfeiffer and K. Adkins

Writing Research Abstracts

Types of Abstracts
Informational Abstract
Format
Major points from original document
Purpose
Main findings, conclusions, and recommendations of original document
Length
One to three paragraphs

Technical Communication: A Practical Approach, Eighth Edition W. S. Pfeiffer and K. Adkins

Writing Research Abstracts

Types of Abstracts
Descriptive Abstract
Format
Main topics of document without supporting details such as findings, conclusions, or recommendations
Purpose
Given their lack of detail, helps readers decide whether they want to read the original document
Length
No more than one paragraph

Technical Communication: A Practical Approach, Eighth Edition W. S. Pfeiffer and K. Adkins

Writing Research Abstracts

Guidelines for Writing Research Abstracts
Highlight the Main Points
Sketch Out an Outline
Begin with a Short Purpose Statement
Maintain a Fluid Style
Avoid Technical Terms Readers May Not Know