Action Research Mervi Kaukko
What is it? A participatory, democratic process concerned with developing practical knowing in the pursuit of worthwhile human purposes, grounded in a participatory worldview. It brings together action and reflection, theory and practice, in participation with others, in the pursuit of practical solutions to issues of concern to people, and more generally the flourishing of individual persons and their communities. (Reason & Bradbury 2002, 1)
Five features Human Flourishing Participation and Democracy Emergent Developmental Form Practical Issues Knowledge in Action (Reason & Bradbury 2001, 1)
History: Kurt Lewin No single founder, but Lewin from Frankfurt School coined the term AR Inspired by John Dewey (Watkins & Shulman 2008, 282) Second World War Introduced the idea of a cyclic form of research: "Action research proceeds in a spiral of steps, each of which is composed of planning, action and the evaluation of the result of action" (Kemmins & McTaggert 1990, 8) A certain goal through an experiment in a holistic social and material situation Example of a project: training housewives to cook tripe for dinner, and surveyed how this training had an effect on their daily cooking habits in their own families
If you want truly to understand something, try to change it. How to conceptualize social change, and how to promote it? The concrete person in a concrete situation can represented mathematically.
Change of direction Early AR positivist and empiricist science (=there is truth only in logical and mathematical science, the society works according to the physical laws [Swantz 2008]) 1997 World Congress trying enrich the dominant paradigm of AR (consistency, scope, productivity etc.) with participatory ones (altruism, social responsibility, autonomy) open paradigm of PAR AR is still considered logical and empirical (through action), but research is an intervention empirical results vary depending on the context, the role of the researcher etc. Many philosophical frameworks, such as critical theory, critical pedagogy, liberal humanism pragmatism, phenomenology, social construction
During the 7 decades of AR In the 1997 Congress, 32 schools or trends defined. For example: Developmental Action Inquiry: empowering local people for transformation (Torbert, 2004) Living theory: How do I improve what I am doing? (Whitehead & McNiff 2006) Participatory Action Research: including the oppressed (Freire 1970, Fals Borda 1991) Cooperative inquiry: research with rather than on people (Reasons & Bradbury 2008) Collaborative Action Research: Multiple data sources, clear role of the researcher (Patterson 2008)
PAR in the spirit of Freire Liberationist perspective, strongest focus on participation on every phase of the research Conscientization: developing consciousness to have the power to transform reality Understanding the context, for example poverty not only an economic problem but connected to political powerlessness Transformative can also be participating within the system instead of fighting against Important to walk shoulder to shoulder with ordinary people rather than one step ahead (Molano 1998, quoted in Swantz 2008) Knowledge between local community and academia
The silenced ( ) are the masters of inquiry into the underlying causes of the events in their world. In this context research becomes a means of moving them beyond silence into a quest to proclaim the world. (Torre et al. 2008, 29) One must read the world in which words exist Literacy-program in Brazil Criticism: spirituality, language, utopist ideas, stressing unequal power relations Still, worth trying as an updated version
My PAR as an example
Connections between variations Disciplined by an attempt at understanding while engaged in a process of improvement and reform (Hopkins 2008) Improves practice, involving action, evaluation, and critical reflection and changes in practice based on the evidence gathered (Koshy et al. 2010) Helps the participants find suitable techniques of action to achieve desirable goals (Costello 2011) Working with people in collaboration creates new communicative spaces and promotes dialogue (Bradbury & Reason 2008) Combines many ways of knowing (academic, grassroots knowledge, professional) while avoiding dichotomies (Bradbury & Reason 2008)
Validity and reliability No longer only measurable values Different rules of testing validity: a research project is an intervention which influences the outcomes Results can t be generalized, but can be repeated (responsibility to proof on the next researcher/facilitator) Reality as socially constructed and dynamic, not external/independent Workability: did the actions solve problems and increase participants control over their own situation? (Koshy 2010, 22) What if not? Avoiding too optimistic reports and reproducing own biases
Researcher as a subject Objectivity impossible in participatory research How participants see the researcher influence the outcomes (examples RC, teachers at school) Critical subjectivity (Reasons 1994): quality of attention/the state of consciousness vs. naïve subjectivity or attempted objectivity Researcher must acknowledge own perceptions and biases Ontological (theory of being) and epistemological (theory of knowledge) considerations: how is the research design, data collection and analysis influenced by your beliefs? (Koshy et al. 2010, 79) Self-reflexivity (Herr 2005)
Example of early (P)AR Study of income-earning potentials of the school leavers in Tanzania in the 1970s The group started gardening, carpentry and fishing projects all learnt to plan and implement projects, practical skills, consult village authorities How can culture, as the participants view it, foster development? (Vuorenmaa 2002)
Examples from education Improving educational practices (How can I encourage more discussion? Who does more talking, students or teacher? How can I improve questioning skills) Involving students as co-researchers (Can introducing personal research topics enhance students learning?) Addressing special needs (example of gifted children with misbehavior good practices to address their needs, use of multi-professional networks) Involving parents as co-researchers (How can we increase participation at patents meetings? How can parents help fighting bullying?) Developing curricula (older students participating in planning a curriculum) (Koshy 2010)
AR in Bachelor s/master s thesis Requires: time, long-term involvement, connections to the community, ability to work with changing plans and different people (not all happy to have their work examined) Can provide: possibilities to combine theory and practice, possibilities to find a real solution to a real problem, interesting insights to own work (or other research setting), unexpected outcomes
Good books about AR Cammarota, J. & Fine, M. (2008) Revolutionizing education. Youth participatory action research in motion. Routledge Greenwood, D. & Levin, M. (2008) Introduction to Action Research: Social Research for Social Change (Sage) Koshy, V. (2010) Action research for improving educational practice. London: SAGE McIntosh, P. (2010) Action research and reflective practice: creative and visual methods to facilitate reflection and learning (Routledge) Noffke, S. & Somekh, B. (2009) The SAGE handbook of educational action research Reason, P. & Bradbury, H. (2008) The SAGE Handbook of Action Research Also Internet: http://www.aral.com.au/ (hosts a free online course by Bob Dick, very recommendable), http://cadres.pepperdine.edu/ccar/resources.html (list of ARpages)
References Argyris, C. 1993. Knowledge for Action: a Guide to Overcoming Barriers to Organizational Change. San Francisco: Costello, P. (2011) Effective action research. Developing reflective thinking and practice. London: Continuum. Fals-Borda & Rahman 1991 Action and Knowledge. Breaking the Monopoly with Participatory Action-Research. Apex press Freire, P. (1970) Pedgaogy of the Opressed. Greenwood, D. & Levin, M. (2007) Introduction to Action Research: Social Research for Social Change. London: SAGE Herr, K. (2005) The Action Research Dissertation. London: Sage Hopkins (2008) A teacher s guide to classroom research. Buckingham: Open University Press. Kemmins & McTaggert (1990) Action Research in Practice: Partnership for Social Justice. London: Routledge. Koshy, V. (2010) Action research for improving educational practice. London: SAGE Koshy, E; Koshy, V; & Waterman, H. (2010) Action research in health care. London: SAGE Reasons, P. (1994) Participation in Human Inquiry. London: SAGE Reason, P. & Bradbury, H. (2008) The SAGE Handbook of Action Research. London: Sage Swantz, M-L (2008) Participatory Action Research as Practice. In Reason, P. & Bradbury, H. (eds) The SAGE handbook of action research: participative inquiry and practice. London, SAGE Torbert (1991) The Power of Balance: Transforming Self, Society, and Scientific Inquiry Torre et al (2008) Participatory Action Research in the Contact Zone. In Cammarota & Fine (eds.) Revolutionizing education. Youth participatory action research in motion. Routledge Vuorenmaa, E-M. (2002) Minun Afrikkani. Suomen YK-liitto.