III. STUDY FRAMEWORK.

This research will use four theories: Fishers (1989) narrative paradigm theory,
Daft and Lengels (1984) media richness theory, Grices (1981) conversational
implicature theory and
These theories were chosen because they study the narratives in media and their
components, in the context of their ability to convey their messages, while focusing on
the role of the reader. The goals of these theories coincide with those of this research,
which aims to study how people perceive the editorial cartoons of the Collegian as
narratives of social commentary.
A. Theoretical Level.
1. Narrative Paradigm Theory.
A narrative is defined by Oxford as any account of connected events, presented
to a reader or listener in a sequence of written or spoken words, or in a sequence of
(moving) pictures.
The ability of humans to create narrative is a unique, fundamental cognitive
process, which is crucial to the interpretation and reconstitution of cultural, social and
personal reality (Bruner 1986, Fisher 1987).
In fact, Hardy (1968) has this to say about humans and narrative: We dream in
narrative, day-dream in narrative, remember, anticipate, hope, despair, believe, doubt,
plan, revise, criticize, construct, gossip, learn, hate and love by narrative.
The narrative paradigm theory was proposed by Fisher (1989). According to the
theory, all meaningful communication is a form of storytelling, and all forms of
communication are stories.
The stories that we communicate appeal to our reason, and are shaped by the
history, culture, and character of both the producers and consumers of the narrative.
Moreover, these stories can be considered as media in themselves. Connell, Klein
and Meyer (2004) in fact defines stories as a knowledge-bearing medium. Similarly,
Seely Brown (2004) defines narrative as a knowledge medium in organizations.
Moreover, stories are media if we consider Cambridges definition of a medium:
a method or way of expressing something.
The theory presupposes four factors.
First, it presumes that people are essentially storytellers.
Second, we choose from a world of stories in a process of continual re-creation
(Jameson, 2001). Each individual chooses the stories that match ones values and beliefs,
ones good reasons.
Third, decisions depend on judgments about these good reasons, which are
based on the following: (1) the values within a message, (2) the relevance of those values
to the decisions that are made, (3) the consequences of believing in those values, (4) the
overlap of the world view of the audience, and (5) the conformity with what the audience
believes is an ideal basis for conduct.
Fourth, the rationality of the narrative by the quality of the following
characteristics: (1) probability, (2) coherence, and (3) fidelity.
According to Griffin (2009), when someone decides to believe in a narrative, one
does not just affirm shared beliefs, acknowledges that these values will ultimately
influence ones beliefs and value.
2. Media Richness Theory.
The media richness theory was developed by Daft and Lengel (1984).
The theory argues that performance improves when team members use richer
media for equivocal tasks; i.e., if the richness of the communication increases, the
uncertainty will be reduced. In that case, more effective communication will occur
(Dennis and Kinney, 1998).
Daft and Lengel originally drafted the theory for workplace organizational
purposes. It was used to assess the impact and use of different media such as television,
telephone, e-mails or reports, as stories that are commonly considered a form of
communicating (either face-to-face or textual).
However, this study will adapt it to study a specific medium, editorial cartoons of
the Collegian, as a narrative media that is used for predetermined tasks (i.e., the general
goals of CFA as a developmental Christian organization and its specific goals in the
publication of editorial cartoons of the Collegian).
In this context, editorial cartoons of the Collegian is more than just a retelling of
Bible stories. It also becomes a potential communication and education tool that can
teach Christian values effectively.
3. Conversational Implicature Theory
Grices Conversational Implicature (CI) (1981) has been adopted as the
theoretical backbone for the study. The theory has been the most favoured in recent
linguistic studies on cartoons and humour-related discourses like comedies (Abiola,
2011; Khir, 2012; Olowolayemo, 2013). CI is generated as a result of non-observance of
conversational maxims in Cooperative Principle (CP) (Thomas, 1995).
CP asserts that one should make contributions as is required at the stage at which
it occurs, by the accepted purpose or direction of the talk exchange in which one is
engaged (Levinson, 2000). It is illustrated in four sub- principles called maxims. The four
conversational maxims govern inferences in conversations. Grice suggests that
cooperation in a conversation is based on speakers and hearers using the following
guidelines to interpret the inferences necessary to make sense of the conversation:
1. Maxim of quantity: be informative
a) Make your contribution as informative as required.
b) Do not make your contribution more informative than required.
2. Maxim of quality: be truthful
a) Do not say what you believe to be false.
b) Do not say that for which you lack evidence.
3. Maxim of relation: be relevant.
4. Maxim of manner: be perspicuous.
a) Avoid obscurity of expression.
b) Avoid ambiguity.
c) Be brief
d) Be orderly.
Maxims are unstated assumptions people have during verbal interaction, and each
interactant is expected to adhere to the four maxims. When one of the maxims has been
exploited or not observed, an alternative meaning is generated (Thomas, 1995).
4. Multimodal Theory
In his study, Tsakona (2009) examined language and interaction in cartoons,
using multimodal theory of humour as an analytical framework. He indicates that cartoon
humour is a complex process that involves different mechanisms of language interplay
between verbal and nonverbal devices such as exaggeration, contradiction and metaphor.
Audiences need to pay close attention to both verbal and visual details contained in each
cartoon to grasp its meaning.
In fact, cartoons can be considered as a distinct multimodal genre in media
discourse (Kress and van Leeuwen, 2001; Sani et al., 2012). The multimodality of
cartoons is defined by its use of different modes (image, caption, speech, layout) and how
they imply meaning, especially when broken down into its components or modal resource
(visual and textual elements).
B. Conceptual Level.
The integrated narrative paradigm and media richness framework will provide a
basic structure for this study. The users of this framework will be the high school students
and the teachers who use editorial cartoons of the Collegian, the medium that they use as
an communication and educational tool.
The narrative paradigm theory will study the narratives themselves, the editorial
cartoons of the Collegian.
The Collegian uses narratives in the form of editorial cartoons in order to provide
social commentary. This paper seeks to study whether the editorial cartoons are effective
narratives, in such a way that they are relevant to the life narratives of its readers, and
thus effective communication tools.
The theory will study the Collegians editorial cartoons as narratives, as tools
meant to convey a message (social commentary) to its readers.
Meanwhile, the media richness theory will study the effectiveness or richness of
the medium, or how well the message was delivered by the medium. The study will
determine if the editorial cartoons of the Collegian is a rich media, as it is perceived by
its readers.
The theory will study the editorial cartoons of the Collegian, in the context of
their purpose as communication and educational tools for the publications message.
Diagram: Narrative paradigm theory and media richness theory conceptual framework.

C. Operational Level
Guided by the aforementioned theoretical and conceptual frameworks, this study
will gather the following information.
First, the perceived effectiveness of editorial cartoons of the Collegian as an
educational tool from the perspective of students will be determined by questionnaires.
Editorial
Cartoons
UP
Collegian
Effectiveness
Richness
Second, the perceived effectiveness of editorial cartoons of the Collegian as an
educational tool from the perspective of teachers will be determined by interviews of key
CFA personnel.
Third, the production and distribution processes of CFA for editorial cartoons of
the Collegian, as well as CFAs perspective on editorial cartoons of the Collegians role
in the classroom will be determined by interviews of the teachers.
D. Operational Definition of Terms
1. cartoons a single-panel drawing showing the features of its subjects in a
humorously exaggerated way, especially a satirical one in a newspaper or magazine.
2. comics sequential art; juxtaposed pictorial and other images in deliberate sequence,
intended to convey information and/or produce an aesthetic response in the viewer.
3. narratives stories that can be considered as forms of media
4. richness ability of medium to enable users to communicate and change
understanding
5. storytelling the practice of sharing narratives with oneself and others.
E. Statement of Hypotheses
This study believes that editorial cartoons of the Collegian is an effective
communication and educational medium for Bible stories and Christian living, according
to its readers.
IV. METHODOLOGY.
A. Research Design and Methods
This study will combine qualitative and quantitative approaches, in order to be
able to study the editorial cartoons of the Collegian in a more in-depth manner.
Moreover, the study will use a cross-sectional method, as it will study editorial
cartoons of the Collegians perceived effectiveness as an educational tool within a limited
timeframe.
B. Variables and Indicators
These will be the variables and indicators used in this research.
Table: Variables and indicators.
Concepts Indicators
Students perception of the effectiveness of
editorial cartoons of the Collegian
Questionnaire responses
Collegian history; goals and contexts of the
editorial cartoons of the Collegian
Interviews
Research

C. Research Instruments
This study will use the following research instruments: questionnaires and
interviews.
First, the study will use interviews to measure the perceived effectiveness of
editorial cartoons of the Collegian as an educational tool. The first part will contain the
respondents basic information (name, school, age).
Next, the respondent will be asked the number of editorial cartoons of the
Collegian issues he/she has read, to determine the readers frequency. To measure their
enjoyment of the publication, they will be asked to rate their enjoyment, with 1 being the
lowest (no enjoyment) to 5 (great enjoyment.
Next, the respondents will be asked to rate the different aspects of editorial
cartoons of the Collegian using the same rating system. They will be asked to rate how
much they like editorial cartoons of the Collegians art and layout, with each specific
item targeting one aspect of that part (for example, proximity of elements, use of
color, use of lines and shapes and variety as aspects of layout).
This will determine editorial cartoons of the Collegians first superficial
richness, if it can catch its readers attention and sustain it. By the part of the rating of
the stories, the questions will measure the deeper richness of the medium, by
measuring how the stories themselves are effective in communicating the message by
being accessible and relatable.
Next, the questionnaire will measure editorial cartoons of the Collegians
perceived effectiveness in the richer context of its goal of communicating Christian
values and guiding its readers to a Christian life. These questions will be guided by
CFAs mission/vision on editorial cartoons of the Collegian.
Next, the respondents will compare editorial cartoons of the Collegian to other
traditional educational materials, and gauge how editorial cartoons of the Collegian
performs as an educational tool compared to them.
The second research tool that the study will use will be interviews. The researcher
will interview relevant CFA personnel and the Christian living professors of the schools
included in the questionnaires.
D. Units of Analysis and Sampling
The data that I will need is readily available in the university, with the
cooperation of the UP Collegian office, as well as my target population, the UP student
community.
The first set of data, which will focus on the nature of the subject, as well as its
context within the publication itself and its publishers and writers, will be gathered from
back issues of the Collegian, as well as interviews (based on guide questions) from key
Collegian personnel.
The second set of data, which will focus on the effectiveness of the subject, will
be gathered using questionnaires administered to a sample from the UP student
community. The study will be limited from the beginning of the school year in 2013 up to
the present, to limit my sample to the fourth-year students of the university.
E. Data Gathering/Generation and Construction
This is Gantt chart of the proposed timetable for this study.
Table: Gantt chart of the research proposal
AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC JAN FEB MAR APR MAY
Thesis proposal
Questionnaire

Printing of
editorial
cartoons of the
Collegian Dec-
Jan issue with
survey

Interviews with
CFA personnel
and expert
sources

Collection of
questionnaires
from selected
schools
Interviews with
teachers
Data analysis
Thesis drafting

F. Data Analysis
The analysis of the data gathered from the interviews (the transcripts) will be
guided by the guide questions in the appendix.
Meanwhile, the questionnaires will use the following statistical treatments:
First, simple means and medians will be used for the simple categorical questions
(the demographics, the number of editorial cartoons of the Collegian issues read, etc.).
Second, to determine the relationship between Likert-scale type data (the rank
according to your preference questions), the study will use the rank-sum test.
Third, to measure the consistency of the data, standard deviations will be used.
Lastly, Spearman's Rho and Pearsons r will be used to measure correlations
between the ranked data.
G. Scope and Limitations.
The study focused on just the perceived effectiveness of editorial cartoons of the
Collegian as a communication and educational tool for Christian values. However, its
actual effectiveness in the context of its format as a comic as compared to other
traditional educational materials is beyond the scope of this study.
Moreover, the scope of the study was limited to just the schools with editorial
cartoons of the Collegian subscriptions in Metro Manila.
Only one publication, editorial cartoons of the Collegian, was studied out of the
four comic publications of CFA. A bigger study involving a larger population can be
done, as the Gospel Komiks series of publications is distributed nationwide.