Doing research with undergraduate assistants can feel like both a dream and a challenge for faculty who have never engaged with students as research assistants. An extra pair of hands or ears is useful in communication research, but introducing new people to a project comes with a hefty set of unknowns. Nonetheless, organizing the project in a way that encourages and honors the skills of everyone on the team may come more easily than expected.
This summer, Michelle Cowan (faculty mentor), Victoria Bliley (research assistant), and Zachary Puckett (research assistant) conducted a discourse analysis of substance-use and eating disorder recovery videos posted online. Not only was the collaboration fruitful in terms of the data produced, but it also yielded insights that would not have been possible without the involvement of two undergraduate assistants with a fresh take on the subject matter.
Although the research assistants interviewed in person with Michelle prior to the summer, the entire project was completed remotely, as part of the Summer Research Scholars program at Washington and Lee University. In this article, we offer a few tips for faculty and students based on our experience. Each section is subdivided to highlight not only the faculty mentor's point of view, but also the undergraduates' perspectives.
Project Planning
A week before the project started, Michelle sent the assistants an email with links to the project’s shared OneDrive folder, a tentative summer schedule with training instructions and goals, and the Zoom link for meetings. These materials laid the foundation for the project. Ultimately, our schedule changed, but establishing shared plans and objectives helped us begin work quickly.
Michelle
I started with three goals: 1) identifying at least 150 videos for analysis, 2) collecting metadata about those videos, and 3) thematically coding those videos using MAXQDA. I felt sure we would make progress toward all three goals, but I was not sure how many videos we could analyze in a single summer.
I began by creating a week-by-week list of goals for the entire project. The first two weeks were devoted to setting up technology, identifying videos, listing them in a spreadsheet, and training in MAXQDA. The following weeks included tasks for checking intercoder reliability, writing research memos, and looking into particular content creators for in-depth interviews. Ultimately, the interview part of the project was scrapped because our research questions shifted in response to our findings. The focus of the project sharpened during our first month of weekly meetings, in which we refined our codes, code definitions, and the coding process.
The first day of work, I asked Victoria and Zachary to read two articles describing similar research projects. This helped establish our methods as common practice in communication research and showed how our work connected to prior findings. Our initial codes were based on one of our model articles, and although we ended up adapting those codes significantly, it was smart to have a solid starting point.
Victoria
I like how we divided the research process into two distinct parts: collecting video information in a spreadsheet and then watching and coding the videos. It gave us the opportunity to go back-and-forth between tasks. This helped me accomplish a lot of work in one sitting while not overwhelming myself.
It is important to know that there will be ups and downs throughout the research process. For example, I found it pretty easy to find recovery narratives at first, but as time went on, it became increasingly difficult to find new content. It is inevitable for issues to arise during the research process, but it is important to ask questions and brainstorm solutions to help overcome setbacks.
Zachary
Before starting this project, I didn’t know much about what we would be doing or how we would conduct our research. I was excited but also nervous, as I had never had a research position before. Initially, I thought this project would involve many complex components, and I anticipated that the coding portion would be difficult. However, I have learned that it is more straightforward. We have focused on two main components: collecting videos and coding them into different categories. By concentrating on these tasks, I have become very efficient and effective in performing them. This project didn’t overwhelm us with too much content; instead, it ensured we became proficient in one or two research methods.
It's important to be patient and take things week by week. For example, setting up MAXQDA took much longer than expected, and we encountered some technical difficulties. It's essential to set weekly goals, but being open and flexible about not reaching every single goal by the end of the project is important to avoid becoming overwhelmed or stressed. Having weekly meetings is also important to make sure everyone is staying on track, answering any questions, and knowing what tasks to complete for the upcoming week.
New Technology
We used a few key pieces of technology: a shared OneDrive folder, Excel, Zoom, Slack and MAXQDA. We were all familiar with shared drives, Zoom, and Excel, although there were some features of the online version of Excel we all had to get used to. Michelle had used MAXQDA and Slack before, but Victoria and Zachary had not.
Michelle
The spreadsheet was an easy way to start thinking about the different aspects of the videos we were analyzing. Although our spreadsheet collected basic information like titles and number of views, I also created columns for noting things like background music and sponsored content. I applied data validation to most columns to ensure we entered information the same way.
I was concerned about how long it would take the students to get used to MAXQDA. As Zachary mentioned, we had some challenges with the initial MAXQDA setup. I intended to use MAXQDA TeamCloud, but it turned out that MAXQDA student licenses do not include TeamCloud. I had to adjust my file sharing approach. In the end, it was an easy shift, but this did extend the time required for training.
I introduced Victoria and Zachary to MAXQDA during a weekly meeting, and they started by coding two videos. I reviewed their work, gave personalized comments, and asked them to code 10 more videos. We then started checking for intercoder reliability, and Victoria and Zachary wrote research memos describing what they were seeing and feeling, which helped us refine the process. We also opened two Slack channels where we could share plans for the week, post how-to videos, and answer group questions.
Victoria
Prior to this project, I had never used MAXQDA and had no experience with this type of coding. At first, it was challenging to figure out how to properly apply the codes to transcripts. Once Professor Cowan showed us how to use the software and explained what information we were looking for with each code, the process became much simpler, and I got comfortable with the coding process soon after I coded a few videos on my own.
In my opinion, the process of learning MAXQDA was made much simpler by our team using Slack for communication. With Slack, our team was able to send messages and videos to one another to help guide our work. In addition, we were able to ask questions and get quick responses. I was worried it might be difficult to troubleshoot since all our team members were working remotely, but Slack made long-distance communication quite simple. I found the app very straightforward and easy to use, even as a person who had never used Slack before.
Zachary
Initially, I found MAXQDA challenging to navigate as there are many components to the app and little steps to remember—for example, importing documents and creating new codes. However, after coding a few videos and taking time to explore the program, I became much more comfortable with MAXQDA. Second, we used Excel to record our sources and document our progress. Although I had used Excel before in some of my classes, this additional experience helped me become more proficient.
Lastly, we have been using Slack to facilitate team communication and to ask our professor questions. Slack is very user-friendly and has worked well for our project, making it easy to stay connected and collaborate effectively.
Time Management
Working remotely can be challenging for any team, but by communicating and staying flexible with our goals, we remained on track to reach our 150-video goal.
Victoria
Initially, I was concerned it would be difficult to organize my time and workload without a solid day-to-day schedule. However, after the first week of work, I decided to build a tentative schedule for myself around my other obligations and time spent with family and friends. On days when I had fewer outside plans, I would spend more time on the project. I found it hard to work for longer than 2-3 hours straight, so on these days, I would divide my day into 2-3 work sessions. Using this strategy, I was able to get a lot of work done without feeling too overwhelmed. On days when I was busier with personal activities, I would allocate time for me to work around my schedule so that I could still get research done while being able to attend to my other obligations.
Zachary
Working independently worked well for me. I enjoyed the flexibility of working on my own schedule rather than being constrained to specific hours. To maintain a balance, I created a daily schedule that included breaks for meals, exercise, and other activities, ensuring I wasn’t sitting at my desk for too long. Although it could be challenging to stay indoors on nice days, I made sure to take some time to enjoy the weather. My typical routine involved starting work in the morning for a few hours, taking a break, and then continuing my work later.
Emotional Labor
Stories about recovery from eating disorders and addiction can be emotionally challenging, but talking about what we were experiencing during the research process has helped us gain insights and avoid burnout.
Michelle
I never wanted my assistants to have to deal with distressing content. My research has always been focused on recovery, not the addictions or eating disorders themselves, so I encouraged Victoria and Zack to skip highly triggering videos or contact me if they felt uncomfortable.
We started out analyzing videos on both TikTok and YouTube, but within the first three weeks, we abandoned TikTok because so much content was not recovery-oriented. Our experience aligns with prior research showing that pro-eating disorder content exceeds pro-recovery content on TikTok, so we moved away from that platform to reduce the emotional load.
Victoria
I alternated between tasks if watching the videos became overwhelming. Many of the videos we watched and coded contained triggering content, so when the work became emotionally taxing, I would often switch over to working on a different task.
Zachary
This project has been somewhat emotionally draining as we are watching and analyzing videos with heavy and intense content. However, I have learned a lot through these videos about different types of eating disorders and addictions. It is interesting to learn about the various ways people have recovered and what has helped each person during the process.
Final Thoughts
Like most qualitative research, our work changed course a few times, but we have now gathered enough data to write a co-authored journal article. Our top pieces of advice include:
- Be ambitious. Don’t underestimate the technology students can learn and the insights they can contribute.
- Support your ambitions with weekly plans and specific long-term goals.
- Reassess your plans each week, stay flexible, and discuss how to move forward in regular meetings.
- Plan multiple tasks for assistants to switch between, accounting for the emotional labor and external pressures of all team members.
- Establish a centralized place, like Slack, for posting questions, answers, and goals.
- Involve research assistants as coauthors. Value their insights and read their research memos with interest.
If you have the opportunity to engage in an undergraduate research assistantship, plan for the best, be good colleagues to each other, and enjoy the process as it unfolds.