Research strategies in the field of election campaign communication research are the decisions made concerning the objective, the scope, the sampling and the methodology used within a study of election campaign communication.
Research objective The overall purpose of conducting election campaign communication research is to reveal how election campaigns are organized with regard to communicational aspects as well as to show how and with what effect election campaigns are covered by media reports.cf. Holtz-Bacha (2002), p. 215. A further goal refers to examining if and how country-specific context variables (e.g. history, political system) affect election campaign communication.cf. Holtz-Bacha (2002), p. 217. In comparative election campaign communication research the objective is to analyze whether different countries share common practices with regard to the organization of campaign or the news coverage of elections.
When conducting election campaign communication research, the specific objective needs to be defined, going along with phrasing the research question. The objective as well as the research question is directly linked to the scope of a study.
Scope of election campaign communication research There are two main campaign communication channels, which can be examined when conducting election campaign communication research:cf. Karlsen, 2009; Esser & Strömbäck (2012) party-controlled election campaign communication party-uncontrolled election campaign communication
Party-controlled campaign communication refers to "planned, coordinated communication efforts by candidates [or] parties",Esser & Strömbäck (2012), p. 289. which includes e.g. party advertisements in newspapers or on television as well as party-owned websites or blogs. Based on collected feedback from opinion-polls or media monitoring about party-controlled communication, parties and candidates constantly adjust their communication strategies.cf. Esser & Strömbäck (2012), p. 299.
In contrast to party-controlled messages, media coverage of election campaigns – whether in newspapers, on television or online – is party-uncontrolled.cf. Karlsen, 2009, p. 31. Party-uncontrolled communication can either be journalist-controlled or journalist-uncontrolled.Esser & Strömbäck (2012). Research on party-uncontrolled, journalist-controlled newspapers articles and television reports about an election may detect journalistic interventionism, which affects – whether intended or not – the electorate. Party- and journalist-uncontrolled communication refers to everyday communication about election related topics by the electorate. Often in contrast with national media, political science scholars seek to compile long-term data and research on the impact of political issues and voting in U.S. presidential elections, producing in-depth articles breaking down the issues
A third election campaign communication channel refers to shared control about election related communication between political actors and media actors, i.e. a combination of the two main communication channels.cf. Esser & Strömbäck (2012), p. 299. Partly party-controlled and partly party-uncontrolled campaign communication refers to televised leader debates of election campaigns or talk shows, in which candidates or party-members are questioned by journalists or media actors. The following table illustrates the possible election campaign communication channels that can be analyzed.
+ Election campaign communication channelsThe content of this table is based on Karlsen (2009) and Esser & Strömbäck (2012). party-controlled party-controlled and party-uncontrolled party-uncontrolled party advertising (print/broadcast/online) speeches by campaign candidates/party-members staged events of campaign candidates/ party-members local canvassing online activities (party websites, blogs, presence in social networks)| talk shows with campaign candidates interviews with candidates on broadcast channels leader debates (TV) journalist-controlled journalist-uncontrolled news coverage (print/broadcast/online) e.g. news reports on news shows journalistic blogs websites/ blogs by voters online discussions by voters conversations about the election by voters (face-to-face, telephone)
Apart from party-controlled and party-uncontrolled election campaign communication the attitude and behavior of the electorate can be examined within election campaign research. Voter orientations can be analyzed by looking, e.g., at the "voters' use of the Internet for electoral information".Karlsen (2009), p.29.
Country sampling With regard to election campaign communication research, two general approaches are possible: non-comparative, single-country research comparative research
Non-comparative research Focusing on one single country allows in-depth analysis of the election campaign communication within this country. This way, variables influencing the campaign communication, such as the history and the political system of the considered country, can be taken into account. Joseph Trenaman and Denis McQuail, e.g., conducted a non-comparative, case study concerning the effects of television on political images in the British parliamentary election in 1959.cf. Trenaman & McQuail, 1961.
Comparative research Comparative research can either be spatial, i.e. comparing different countries, or temporal, which means taking a look at the campaign communication over time to examine longitudinal developments.cf. Gurevitch & Blumler (2004), p.334. A temporal analysis examining German newspaper coverage of election campaigns from 1949 to 1998, e.g., was conducted by Jürgen Wilke and Carsten Reinemann in 2001.Wilke & Reineman (2001). Wilke and Reinemann showed an existing trend towards more interpretative coverage.
The goal of spatial comparative research is to show whether – despite all country-specific context variables – countries share common practices, e.g., with regard to the use of political commercials, the necessity for professional campaign consultants or the emerging importance of the media within election campaigns.
Comparative cross-country research can be differentiated with regard to the selection of particular countries. The possible options are:cf. Przeworski & Teune (1970). most similar systems, different outcome most different systems, similar outcome
Within a most similar systems-design, countries, which have similar media and political systems and thus share similar context variables, are compared to reveal possible differences. An example of a most similar systems-design is Jesper Strömbäck and Toril Aalberg's study on the news coverage of elections in the democratic corporatist countries Sweden and Norway.cf. Strömbäck & Aalberg (2008).
If a most different system-design is used, the countries vary, e.g., with regard to their media system and their political campaign regulations. The research should reveal whether despite the differences similarities exist. The most far reaching study on election campaign communication using a most different system-design was conducted by Gunda Plasser and Fritz Plasser in 2002. Plasser and Plasser examined the attitudes and roles of political campaign consultants in 43 countries around the globe.cf. Plasser & Plasser (2002).
The number of cases In comparative research a minimum of two objects or cases has to be taken into account. Two-country studies considering election campaign news coverage e.g. are Jesper Strömbäck's studies which take a closer look at the similarities and differences between Swedish and U.S. American news coverage during election campaigns.cf. Strömbäck, & Dimitrova (2006); Strömbäck & Shehata (2007). Since the results of two-country studies only have a limited ability to be generalized, further studies take on a rather global perspective and thus compare more than two countries. In general, a distinction can be made between small-N analysis,The N within the terms small-N, medium-N and large-N-analysis refers to the number (N) of cases within the sample of a study. which allows e.g. in-depth analyses of up to ten countries,cf. Esser & Hanitzsch (2012), p. 13. medium-N analysis and large-N analysis, which mostly make use of a quantitative approach with statistical analyses testing a small number of variables in many cases.
Research methods
Methodological developments Political communication, and as a subfield of it election campaign communication, is studied within several disciplines of social sciences including communication studies, political science, psychology as well as sociology. Research across disciplines leads to the development of a variety of different research methods. In the past scholars mainly examined single countries, i.e. conducting non-comparative, case studies. Comparative election campaign communication research arrived in the 1970s.cf. Esser & Pfetsch (2004); Blumler, & Kavanagh (1999). In contrast to simple observation, which was historically used as research method to reveal how political communication is received and which consequences result, today, study methods are more deliberate and systematic.cf. Graber, 2004, p. 45. Quantitative approaches, e.g., include the formulation and testing of hypotheses by sophisticated statistical analyses. Due to the development of new campaign techniques, such as party-controlled digital and data campaigning, or online news coverage, research strategies need to be further adapted.
Methods Commonly used research methods in election campaign communication research are:cf. Graber (2004). content analysis survey research experimental analysis network analysis
Survey research (e.g. interviews with campaign consultants or voters) and content analysis (e.g. of newspaper articles or campaign advertising) are the most widely used research methods in election campaign communication research. Apart from the four research methods, there are further, infrequently used methods in election campaign communication research, such as linguistic analysis, which focuses the wording, meaning and context of chosen words within, e.g., political speeches by campaign candidates.
Election campaign communication can be examined using one single research method or a multitude of methods. A "multimethod study on the role of television during the European election campaign" in 1979 has been conducted by Jay Blumler, combining survey research of party-representatives and voters with a "content analysis of campaign reporting".Holtz-Bacha (2002), p. 217.
All research methods "start with the collection of data and finish with data analysis".Graber, 2004, p. 46. In comparative research, either an emic or an etic approach can be applied.cf. Esser, & Hanitzsch, (2012), p.6-7. In an emic approach data collection measurements are developed culture-specifically, thus, e.g. creating a slightly adapted questionnaire for each considered country with regard to its systemic context. In contrast, an etic approach uses one universal instrument in all considered countries.
Content analysis as research method Content analysis is a "systematic analysis of selected written, spoken, or audiovisual text".Graber (2004), p.50. It "is the most hallowed and most widely used method of political communication research".Graber (2004), p. 46.
Focusing on party-uncontrolled media coverage of election campaigns single news articles or reports (newspaper/television/online) function as unit of analysis. An example of a study on party-uncontrolled communication is Frank Esser's research on the usage of sound and image bites within political news culture in France, (Germany), Great Britain and the United States.cf. Esser (2008).