Research in the School of Communication Arts

Introduction

The School's research is multi-disciplinary and features practice-based research as well as the more usual approaches. This gives the School an excellent opportunity for research productivity. We see the research futures of communication arts study at the university level as a contribution to both knowledge and scholarship.

There is strong claim made between a productive research and development sector in any country and the benefits to society and culture. A similar motivation drives the research practitioner in Communication Arts.

Practice-based research can create new knowledge and contribute to new ways of thinking. The practitioner constructs theories of  “knowing” and in this manner can develop theories about practice, about learning and teaching practice and about the cultural worlds to which practitioners are frequently linked.

Postgraduate Studies

The School facilitates the completion of research degrees offered by the University. We feature a significant group of staff who have successfully supervised Masters (Research), Doctor of Creative Arts and PhD students.
The engendering of new ways of thinking about a topic and the invigoration of the discipline with more compelling theories motivates much research. Our staff and postgraduate students are committed to achieving high standards of postgraduate supervision and research and have made significant contributions to a number of intellectual and creative outcomes.

The range of research in this disciplinary matrix encompasses:

• media and communication theory and analysis
• the professional practices of journalism, advertising and public relations
• media production
• animation
• interactive design
• graphic design
• photomedia
• music (composition and performance)
• musicology
• digital and convergent media
  

 

The School's research orientation highlights community values in the framing of its knowledge interests. There are research opportunities reflected in the strong presence in the School and the University of the Community TV initiative (TVS) and the traditional UWS focus on regional engagement (especially with Greater Western Sydney) which is part of the UWS strategic plan.

Research in this context takes many forms. It includes academic publication in the form of books, chapters in books and refereed journals – including many significant textbooks that have been adopted nationally and internationally in the fields of communication and media. Research may also be theoretical and analytical, such as analysis of how media audiences are researched and quantitative and qualitative studies of media practices. These frequently address globalised media frameworks given the nature of the media in contemporary life. Practice-based research offers insights into the way communication and design have developed over time and offers new perspectives on music composition and performance.

The idea of 'communities of practice' is a means of linking these engagements to the creative practices themselves which fosters an exchange of skills and the opening of knowledge networks. The research activities in this instance may involve:

• case studies of key communication institutions
• an investigation into the use of communication strategies for community advocacy
• an inquiry into professional standards and new developments in the disciplines of communication and design
• the effect of digital music technologies on music composition
• new directions in music performance

Often the research produced in the School has a strong element of dissemination through the use of film and other media. The impact of the School's research, on both the academy and the public, is therefore high. Staff and students have composed and performed music both acoustic and electronic, and have filmed, photographed and designed in the service of practice-based research. Their research works have been publicly disseminated through exhibitions, concerts, broadcasters and streamed on the Internet.

The University has a network of Research Centres, Research Groups and Research Nodes.
Some of our staff are members of the following research centres:

• Centre for Cultural Research
• MARCS Auditory Laboratories
• Centre for Plant and Food Sciences.

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Associated Research Groups

Writing and Society is a research group within the College of Arts which brings together scholars in the humanities, writers, and members of the publishing industry, who have a common interest in exploring the social power of writing.

Convergent Media and Community is a research concentration within the School of Communication Arts

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Global Media Journal - Australian Edition

The Global Media Journal - Australian Edition (GMJ/AU) is a double blind refereed journal as well as a forum for research, commentary and reviews with an interest in both specifically Australian but also International articulations of the local/global nexus. It is hosted by the School of Communication Arts at UWS and is part of a network of similar journals that publish in multiple languages and editions. We welcome the submission of articles, essays, research reports, and book reviews that focus on subjects in the fields of Communication, Media and Journalism. GMJ/AU is also a space for the publication of postgraduate student research and practice-based research in media arts and visual media. We also see the discussion and tracking of Australian media issues as vital to the journal’s interests. As an electronic journal, GMJ/AU prioritises the analysis of globally networked media organisations and new ways of accessing and using convergent media. GMJ/AU intends to showcase multiple perspectives on contemporary media and welcomes your contribution.

Current major research projects

The Power of the Image: Affect. Audience and Disturbing Imagery
Researchers: Virginia Nightingale, Anna Gibbs
Funding Body: ARC Discovery
Period: 2006, 2007, 2008
» Fact sheet (PDF, 26Kb)

The Visual Mediation of a Complex Narrative: TGH Strehlow’s Journey to Horseshoe Bend
Researchers: Hart Cohen, Peter Dallow, Sid Newton (UNSW), Adam Mcfie (Strehlow Research Centre)
Funding Body: ARC Linkage
Period: 2004 - 2007

Reporting Diversity
Researcher: Lynette Sheridan Burns, Suellen Tapsall (UWA), Gail Phillips (Murdoch), Kerry Green, Kathryn Bowd, Ian Richards (UniSA), Julie Posseti (UC) and Jacqui Ewart (Griffith)
Funding Body: Department of Immigration and Citizenship
Period: 2006 - 2008

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For further information on Research and Postgraduate Study please contact:

Associate Head of School (Research)
Associate Professor Hart Cohen
PhD, MA, BA (Hons) McGill, Canada

Associate Professor, Media Policy & Research
Assoc. Prof. Virginia Nightingale

Research Officer, Associate Lecturer
Dr Rachel Morley