Post, post, post

Structuralism to Post-structuralism• Context is relevant• Parts are as important

as the whole and can change meaning of the whole

• How we look at structure change over time, among people and cultures

• Rules are dependent on context, not structure

•Universal truths

•Relationship of parts to a whole are more important that the parts

•Society, culture and the individual hare underlying structures that can be understood by principles

•Structures are governed by laws or rules inherent to them (language, kinship, cognition, development, disciplines)

Rigor

• Trustworthiness– Acceptable and competent– Ethical

• Credibility– Does research represent and come from

participants words, beliefs, actions?– Does researcher reflect on their role and

actions and the impact of these?– Can others see and accept reasoning of

actions?

Rigor

• Systematic– Researcher documents decision-

making – Method is grounded in theory– Reasoning about methods and design

is clear

• Ethics– IRB

Strategies for Rigor & credibility

Triangulation- multiple sources of data, points in times, or methods

Prolonged engagement – multiple interactions over a period of time

Member checking – participant reads, responds to what you are writing reporting or taking action on.

• Peer debriefing – talking or letting someone else read what you are deciding and concluding.

Action Research Explained

Action Research …

• Is Interpretive• Is Qualitative• Is Democratic• Is Generative• Is Contextual• Validates and authenticates theory• Is reflexive• Has limited generalizability

Bridging the Gap

Basic research

Theories Applications Applied research

Applications

Action research Best practice

Model 1: Technical AR

• The practitioner, though a collaborator in the research, is not the main researcher.

• The main researcher identifies the action research problem and proposes an intervention.

• The practitioner is involved in the implementation of any interventions.

Model 2: Practical

• Here the researcher and the practitioner identify the research problem together and discuss underlying causes and possible interventions.

• Example

Model 3: Emancipatory

• Practitioners work together as a group and collectively identify problems and possible solutions.

• Solutions are as much political and consciousness raising as practical.

• There is a strong social element here as well, in that it is expected that participants will emerge with a new view or theory of society.

• Example

Process

• Question => Plan => Act => Observe => Reflect =>• Researcher as instrument of data collection• Creative Problem Solving

– Identify the problem or challenge– Define problem or challenge – Identify factors contributing to problem or challenge

• Means-end analysis– Identify the outcome– Identify goals needed to achieve outcome– Devise a plan of action