Awards

The Carl Couch Center operates an ambitious awards program as the primary means of fulfilling its mission to promote interactionist scholarship. Seven unique awards programs honor some of the most important scholars in their fields, focus on various aspects of the interactionist tradition, and recognize scholarship in forms from student papers to published works. The following seven are awarded annually:

The Carl J. Couch Internet Research Award recognizes student-authored papers that apply symbolic interactionist approaches to Internet studies. Participation is open to students at all levels and in all disciplines. The award plaque resides at Luther College, Decorah, Iowa

The Norman K. Denzin Qualitative Research Award is presented to authors who interpret or address Denzin's theoretical or interpretive approaches, demonstrate creative narrative ethnographies or autoethnographies as advocated by Denzin, or develop other aspects of Dezin's scholarship. The award plaque resides at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.

The James W. Carey Media Research Award recognizes works on topics that have been central to Carey's scholarship. Among others, submissions might focus on technology, time, space and communications, the nature of public life, the relation between journalism and popular culture. The award plaque resides at Columbia University.

The Bruce E. Gronbeck Political Communication Research Award recognizes published works that interpret or address theoretical-conceptual, historical, and critical-cultural issues of political communication. The award plaque resides at the University of Iowa.

The David R. Maines Narrative Research Award is presented to recognize works that interpret or address Maines's pragmatist approaches, apply Maines's narrative concepts, or develop aspects of Maines's scholarship in new directions. The award plaque resides at Oakland University (Michigan).

The Stanley L. Saxton Applied Research Award is presented to authors of papers that focus on how theory, research, and/or practice contribute to addressing real, pragmatic, social problems. The award plaque resides at the University of Dayton (Ohio).

The Clifford G. Christians Ethics Research Award recognizes scholarship highlighting important theoretical issues in the areas of ethics, mass communication theory, and the relationship between media and technology and culture. The award plaque resides in the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.