I am finding that my own bias and expectation is the greatest hurdle in my research process right now. In an attempt to recognize my assumptions, and eventually subdue them, I have compiled a hypothesis list, per the Dorothy Deasy essay “Non-Assumptive Research”. I also made a list of challenges that I will need to undertake to form a more complete research proposal.

Challenge list:

Find out how people approach music online.

Learn about bias.

Find my own bias and tackle it.

Find how a myspace page design might influence bias and to what extent.

Find an effective research method to tackle the design problem.

Discover the specific design problem through research.

Begin a process of discovery to solve design problem.

Learn about the various groups associated with certain genre’s of music.

Keep open the possibility to limit the design problem further and focus more closely on a certain group.

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Hypothesis list (all things originally assumed to be true, now to be questioned thoroughly):

People go to myspace to experience music.

A myspace page is important for a band to have and maintain.

The design of a myspace page effects a user’s perception of a band.

People are more inclined to spend time with music they perceive as popular.

People judge a band’s popularity based on various metrics on their myspace page.

A band can judge their own popularity based on important myspace metrics.

Important metrics include profile views, total song plays, song plays today, number of friends, number and quality of comments.

If people like a band they discover on myspace, they will be inclined to attend that band’s show (if local).

Unfortunately, there isn’t a whole lot of information written about marketing on Myspace from a fan’s perspective. I found a number of articles, however, that suggests the current wisdom, which my research might challenge or reinforce.

Here are three examples:

Jupiter Research, “Jupiter Research Finds That MySpace Music Community Activity Far Outpaces Online Music Sites”

Unfortunately, the entire study costs $750.00, which is a bit out of my research budget (about $750 out to be precise). However, the press release gives some insight into the study.

Authority
The company’s URL is a .com address, which suggests that this is a for-profit venture, and immediately raises concern. However, Jupiter research is well known in the industry for providing valuable research. There is a copyright logo at the bottom of the screen, which suggests that the company is taking responsibility for the content.

Accuracy
All information is grammatically correct and the presentation is clear. All links work.

Currency
The research is not very current at almost two years old. Since there does not seem to be any current research, I might infer that little has changed in the scope of the research, although I would be more inclined to simply take the research with a grain of salt.

Objectivity
The site is only selling the idea of the research, which suggests objectivity.

Coverage
The information still seems relevant. Although, judging by the price I am fairly certain the intended audience is a marketing company, not an individual.

Electronic Musician “MySpace for Musicians”

Authority
The company is designed for musicians to come and make the most of their business, so a sense authority would obviously be in the interest of this publication. The article has contact information and a copyright at the bottom. Again, the burl is a .com, suggesting a profit venture, which could be problematic. This magazine only seems to be selling their ideas, however.

Accuracy
All information is grammatically correct and the presentation is clear. All links work.

Currency
Again, this article is from 2006. Once again, I would read this article with a grain of salt.

Objectivity
This site seems to be selling their ideas as valuable tools for musicians, so objectivity would be in their best interest to gather eyeballs and sell ads.

Coverage
The intended audience is the same as my intended audience: bands. However, my research would answer questions that this article merely assumes the answers to.

Suite 101 “MySpace Music Promotion Takes Off”

Authority
This company hires freelancers to write its articles, and so loses a certain amount of authority there. The URL is .com again, raising the same concerns as previously raised. Also, the copyright is given to the author, which suggests even less authority.

Accuracy
All information is grammatically correct, although the presentation could be clearer. All links work.

Currency
The article is almost a year old, which is not optimal. However, it is more recent than the other articles I found.

Objectivity
The article seems perhaps a bit heavy in using a particular site as an example. However, there is nothing to suggest any conflict of interest between the author and the example.

Coverage
The scope of this article is too broad to be entirely relevant to my research. It does make some assertions that might be challenged by my research.