CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS

Roundtables on Research in Progress
NCA 97th Annual Convention,  
New Orleans, LA, November 17-20, 2011 

The purpose of the Roundtables on Research in Progress (RTRP) is to facilitate conversations about the direction and challenges of current research projects in progress. Groups of four to six scholars who examine the same or similar object of study will meet in round table discussion groups for 75-minute sessions to discuss informally their current research projects. At the roundtable discussion, each presenter briefly will summarize his/her project for the table, talking for 5-7 minutes each, and posing questions to which s/he would like feedback. Next, the roundtable participants will provide approximately 10 minutes of peer feedback and suggestions to each presenter, following a set of suggested discussion questions provided by the planners. 

If you would like to present your current research in progress to colleagues with similar interests to receive helpful feedback, please consider submitting an abstract proposal to RTRP. Your project may be in the development stage, research/data collection stage, or draft stage, but should be a current project that has not been previously presented at a conference or published. Full papers are not required or even desired for RTRP. You may present your project as a completed paper at a later date, perhaps at next year’s NCA convention. 

The RTRP format provides an additional convention experience, addressing the needs of members who seek feedback on their research in progress from colleagues investigating similar phenomena and/or members whose research development did not synchronize with the NCA submission date. We hope RTRP will attract scholars who are not scheduled to present a research paper at the convention. For this reason, we ask that the sole or first listed author (presenter/participant) not have already submitted a research paper to the convention, although sole or first authors serving solely as session chairs or respondents are welcome to submit. Proposals may have multiple authors, including student and/or faculty authors, and all authors are welcome to attend the session.  

We invite brief abstracts (three pages or less) until July 1, 2011, 11:59pm Pacific. Proposals will be competitively reviewed. Submitters will receive acceptance or rejection notices by August 1, 2011. Accepted proposals will be organized into roundtables by similarity of topic. Authors and the names of their projects will be listed in the convention program 

CRITERIA FOR ACCEPTANCE:

     1. Clarity of research question.
     2. Clarity of thesis and direction for research.
     3. Explanation of significance of research.  
     4. Evidence the research is in progress (e.g., brief literature review).
     5. Evidence of unique contributions to research.  

SUBMISSION GUIDELINES:

Proposals should include no more than three (3) pages. Be advised that any and all submissions exceeding the 3-page limit will be immediately rejected. Please be certain to include the following items in your proposal: 

1. All authors’ full names and affiliations (Note: The sole or first author/presenter may not have already submitted to the 2011 NCA convention).
2. Contact information for all authors (name, affiliation, postal address, email address, phone number).
3. An abstract/proposal of no more than three (3) pages describing the project uploaded with submission (Note: a completed paper is not required for submission or at presentation).

Please submit your proposal as a Word attachment through NCA Submission Central. Please direct questions to RTRP Planner Tina M. Harris (University of Georgia, Department of Communication Studies) at tmharris@uga.edu.