Action Research :Overview

Action Research :Overview

UCC504 RESEARCH METHODS

byStephen Ong

Visiting Professor, Shenzhen UniversityVisiting Fellow, Birmingham City University Business School, UK

• Introduction to Action Research

• Introduction to Action Research11

• Action Research Process• Action Research Process22

• Action Research Thesis• Action Research Thesis33

Today’s Overview

“No action without research; no research without

action.”

—K. Lewin, cited in Adelman, 1993, p. 8

1.INTRODUCTION TO ACTION RESEARCH

1 - 4

(WHYTE, 1991)

“It is important, both for the advancement of science and for the improvement of human welfare, to devise strategies in which research and action are closely linked”

Brief History

Kurt Lewin (1934) coined “action research” America: Dewey & progressive education

movement United Kingdom: Curriculum reform Australia: Collaborative curriculum

planning

Figure 5.1 The research onionSource: © Mark Saunders, Philip Lewis and Adrian Thornhill (2008), reproduced with permission

Action Research as Research Strategy

What Is Action Research*?

A family of research methodologies which pursue action (or change) and research (or understanding) at the same time. It uses a cyclic process alternating between action and critical reflection

In later cycles, methods, data, and interpretations are continuously refined in light of understanding developed in earlier cycles

*Dick, Bob (1999)  What is action research? Available on line at http://www.scu.edu.au/schools/gcm/ar/whatisar.html

Figure 5.2 The action research spiralSource: © Saunders et al. (2009), reproduced with permission

The Action Research Spiral Cycle Process

Credo for Reflective Practice Everyone needs opportunities for

professional growth. All professionals want to improve. All professionals can learn. All professionals assume responsibility for

professional growth and development. People need and want information about

their performance. Collaboration enriches professional

development.

What Is Action Research?

It is emergent, taking shape as understanding increases

It is iterative, converging towards a better understanding of what happens

In most of its forms Action Research is participative (change is usually easier to achieve when those affected by the change are involved) and qualitative

Types of Action Research

Participatory Action Participants in a

programme or institutions together design and implement a research project in order to make recommendations for changing practice.

Political Action Citizens do research to

work for social change with regards to issues of power.

Always concerned with questions of importance, and encourages progress toward particular

social goals.

Overview of Action Research Action research is deliberate,

solution-oriented investigation that is group or personally owned and conducted.

It is characterized by spiraling cycles of problem identification, systematic data collection, reflection, analysis, data-driven action taken, and, finally, problem redefinition. (Johnson, B. 1993)

The Action Research Cycle

As a research method, action research is cyclical. It assumes that understandings and actions emerge in a constant cycle.

“Action research involves the improvement of practice, of the understanding of practice, and of the situations in which practice occurs”.

The Action Research Cycle

Stages in Action Research 1-3 Stage One: Problem Identification:

Acknowledge an inequity and the need for change. Can be an existing problem,

or a newly emerged issue. Stage Two: Evaluation:

Develop and carry out methods for evaluating the breadth and depth of the inequity

Stage Three: Recommendations: Based on the Evaluation, provide specific

recommendations for change and/or continued evaluation.

Stages in Action Research 4-6 Stage Four: Application/Practice:

Work with the powers that be to take action and institutionalize the recommendations.

Stage Five: Reflection: With changes in place, reflect on ways in which new

practices affect the organization or the issue. Concurrently, reflect on what you, as an individual researcher, and/or the team learned from the process of the research.

Stage Six: Consideration of New Questions: Acknowledge and dialogue about new questions that

have emerged from the changes. Have the changes worked? Are there any shortcomings? Did the team uncover additional issues or inequities in the process of the AR?

Methods You can collect qualitative or

quantitative data Quantitative makes comparisons

between variables Qualitative tries to describe a

phenomenon Action Research is most often

qualitative

How to Study the Problem

Describe your plan, including the materials and methods you will use

Describe learning theories or perspectives embedded in your plan

Justify how your plan is consistent with a specific issue perspective

The Participants Include the numbers and

characteristics of participants in your project

Explain how the makeup of your sample compares to the population

Include special characteristics of population / variables or issue that might be of interest

The Setting Describe the environment where you

will conduct your project

Include the location, size, and any information that might of interest to the reader

Your Methods Describe details of how your plan will

unfold and who will be responsible for the various parts of the plan

Be specific enough to give a good idea of how you envision your plan happening

Reflection/Analysis

Reflect on ways in which new practices affect the issue

Reflect on what you learned from the process of the research

Consideration of New Questions

Acknowledge and dialogue about new questions that have emerged from the changes

Have the changes worked? Are there any shortcomings? Did you uncover additional

issues or inequities in the process

Issues & Recommendations Be explicit about the research method.

Action Researchers must be clear about their framework of ideas, the method, techniques that they are developing, and provide rich and clear evidence from their reflections

Proper documentation is important Explicit criteria should be defined

before performing the research in order to later judge its outcomes.

2.THE

ACTION RESEARCHPROCESS

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Action Research Steps

1. Identify a problem or

research topic

2. Set the problem or research

topic in a theoretical context

3. Make a plan for data

collection4. Begin to collect and analyze

data

5. If necessary, allow the

question or problem to

change as you collect data

6. Analyze and organize the data

7. Report the data8. Make your

conclusions and recommendations

9. Create a plan of action

10. Put your plan into action and evaluate

1. Finding the Problem

1. Problems must first be identified

2. Define the problem – seek to understand the nature of the situation and understand causal factors

3. A problem is a difference between present state and desired state

Problem Definer Present state:

Desired state:

Objective Facts Consequences Relevant or Related Facts

The problem:

Restate the problem:

2. Review Literature / Theoretical Context

1.Find a good library or journal database

2.Locate possible sources

3.Peruse your sources

4.Read and take careful notes

6.Organise notes and look for emerging

themes7.Express emerging

themes with declarative sentences

8.Create an extremely rough first draft

9.Start the revision process

3. TYPES OF DATA COLLECTION

1. Log or research

journal

2. Field notes

3. Checklists

4. Rating checklists

5. Rubrics

6. Conferences and

interviews

7. Video and audio

recordings

8. Data retrieval charts

9. Maps

10.The arts

11. Archival data

12.Surveys

13. Attitude and rating

scales

14.Online platforms and

class journals

Qualitative Data Collection Techniques

4. DATA ANALYSIS : ACCURACY AND CREDIBILITY

1. Record your observations carefully and precisely

2. Describe all phases of data collection and analysis

3. Make sure you record and report everything that is

of importance

4. Be as objective as possible in describing and

interpreting what you see

5. Use enough data sources6. Use the right kinds of data sources

7. Look long enough and deep enough

4. DATA ANALYSIS : Validity, Reliability, and Triangulation

Validity = the degree to which a thing measures what it reports to measure

Triangulation = looking at something from more than one perspective

Reliability = the degree to which a study or experiment can be repeated with similar results

4. DATA ANALYSIS : Generalizability

Degree to which behaviour of one group can be used to explain the behaviour of a wider group

Generalizability is not the goal of action research. Instead, it is to: understand what is happening in

your organisation or team determine how to improve things in

that context

5. Inductive Analysis Inductive analysis = to look at a field or

group of data and try to induce or create order by organizing what is observed into groups

Look for repeating patterns and themes to help them understand it the bit of reality that you are observing

In using inductive analysis, initial categories should be flexible as later data may change their nature and composition.

Correlational : Seeks to determine whether and

to what degree a statistical

relationship exists between 2 or

more variables . Used to describe an existing

condition or event in the past.

Quasi-experimental: Like true experiment; but

no random assignment of subjects to groups

Pre-tests and matching used to ensure comparison groups are relatively similar

6. Quantitative Research Designs3 Quantitative research designs fit the AR paradigm:

Causal-comparative:

Used to find reason for

existing differences between

2 or more groups Used when random

assignment of participants

for groups cannot be met Like correlational research,

used to describe an existing

situation Compares groups to find a

cause for differences in

measures or scores

Quantitative Data Collection Techniques

1. Researcher-made tests

2. Standardized tests

3. Institution-generated reports

4. Attitude scales

5. Likert scales

6. Semantic differential

7. Action Research Report

Reporting Qualitative Data

Create a picture

Transform data into a digestible whole

Describe meaningful trends, patterns, and categories

Reporting Quantitative Data Use numerals to report

dates, time, counts, quantities, scales, money …

Arithmetic data are reported in descending order.

Tell what you are observing first; the total number before you report categories; be consistent with the order of gender or other categories

Outline of Action Research Report

1. Area-of-focus statement

2. Related literature3. Definition of

variables4. Research

questions5. Description of

intervention or innovation

6. Data collection7. Data

considerations8. Data analysis

and interpretation

9. Action plan

8. CONCLUSIONS & RECOMMENDATIONS

1. Conclusion = reasoned

deduction

2. Based on data you have

collected and reported

3. Synthesizes and explains

important data

4. Recommendation = general

suggestion for choice or

action based on findings

5. Conclusion and

recommendations often

similar

Implications for Future Research Good research often results

in many new questions Describe possible future

related research projects

Evaluation of the Study No such thing as a perfect

result Evaluate the effectiveness of

the current study Describe how it might be done

differently Strengths, weaknesses,

limitations

9. DESIGNING A NEW PLAN OR PROGRAMME

Five possible outcomes of an Action Research project:

1. Greater understanding of the situation, employees or persons in general

2. The discovery of a problem 3. A plan, programme, or method is found to be

effective 4. A plan, programme, or method is found to need

modification 5. A plan, programme, or method is found to be

ineffective

10. Developing Action Plans

Reflect: “Based on what I have learned from this investigation, what should I do now?”

Steps to Action

1. Summarizing findings

2. Recommending action

3. Determining responsibilities

4. Sharing findings with colleagues

5. Ongoing monitoring (data collection)

6. Creating timeline

7. Developing resources

Steps-to-Action Chart

Levels of Action Planning Individual

curriculum development, implementation

instructional & assessment strategies group management strategies/plans community involvement

Team colleagues, administrators,

stakeholders Organisation-wide

Action Should Be Ongoing

Taking action is a regular part of work based on formative feedback often intuitive and informal

Reflection What were the intended and unintended

effects of your actions?

What work issues arise from what you have learned about your practice?

3.THE

ACTION RESEARCHTHESIS

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THE ACTION RESEARCH THESIS Format

Abstract

CHAPTER I – INTRODUCTION

CHAPTER II - REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE

CHAPTER III – METHODOLOGY

CHAPTER IV – FINDINGS

CHAPTER V - DISCUSSION

CONCLUSION

“Action research is a process that gives credence to the development

of powers of reflective thought, discussion, decision and action by

ordinary people participating in collective research on ‘private

troubles’ that they have in common.”

(Adelman 1993)

Core Reading MILLS, GEOFFREY E. (2011) ACTION RESEARCH, 4TH

EDITION, PEARSON JOHNSON, ANDREW P.(2012) A SHORT GUIDE TO

ACTION RESEARCH, 4TH EDITION, PEARSON COOPER, D.R. AND SCHINDLER, P.S. (2011) BUSINESS

RESEARCH METHODS, 11TH EDITION, MCGRAW HILL SAUNDERS, M., LEWIS, P. AND THORNHILL, A. (2012)

RESEARCH METHODS FOR BUSINESS STUDENTS, 6TH EDITION, PRENTICE HALL.

SAUNDERS, M. AND LEWIS, P. (2012) DOING RESEARCH IN BUSINESS & MANAGEMENT, FT PRENTICE HALL.

LEEDY, P.D. AND ORMROD, J.E. (2013) PRACTICAL RESEARCH, 10TH EDITION, PEARSON

GLESNE, C.(2011) BECOMING QUALITATIVE RESEARCHERS, 4TH EDITION, PEARSON

QUESTIONS?