Development Communication: The State of Research in an Era of ICTs and Globalization

From the Abstract of this article in the International Communication Gazette, December 2009, Vol. 71, No. 8: "Through the technique of meta-analysis, this study investigates the scholarly articles appearing in peer-reviewed online and offline journals that address the topic of communication and development from 1998 to 2007 to determine publication trends in the field. The research was prompted by the sense that development was moving off the research agenda of most communication scholars. This seemed surprising in the era of globalization and it was decided to examine the literature for evidence. The study finds that published studies have moved away from mass communication and toward [information and communication technologies] ICTs’ role in development, that they infrequently address development in the context of globalization and often continue to embrace a modernization paradigm despite its many criticisms...."