Dominant objects and methods in communication for development and social change in Spanish PhD theses and research projects (2007-2013)

Abstract

A Barranquero Carretero, N Limón Serrano (2017): "Dominant objects and methods in communication for development and social change in Spanish PhD thesis and research projects (2007)(2008)(2009)(2010)(2011)(2012)(2013) Based on the incipient interest that communication for development and social change has progressively acquired in Spain, the objective of this article is to evaluate the state of the art in research in this field through the content analysis of the PhD theses and R&D projects developed between 2007 and 2013 in the 56 public and private Spanish universities that offer communication degrees. Methods and discussion: After defining the discipline and setting its theoretical boundaries, the article describes the main analytical categories of the sample of PhD theses and R&D projects, which delve into their identifying dimensions -like authorship, university affiliation and year of publication -and their dominant research objects, perspectives and methods. Results and conclusions: The results point to the progressive consolidation of a field whose thematic diversity is related to milestones in contemporary history and certain influence coming from the Latin American school of thought.