Ideal for research methods courses covering multiple methodologies, Communication Research Methods is the only text that uses a research-as-argument approach to help students not only become more effective researchers but also more insightful consumers of research. It expertly balances the interpretive, critical, and discovery paradigms. No other research methods book on the market better reflects actual research practice and provides methodological choices based not on ideological constraints but rather on the nature of the research question. Merrigan and Huston treat communication research comprehensively, discussing a broad range of traditional and contemporary methods and considering ethics in designing, conducting, and reporting research.