Dear Don and Birger and all,
Discussion about action research is sometimes helped by a positioning
analysis that relocates action research within a PhD
One mistake often made by PhD students undertaking action research in their
PhD is to write up the action research in the body of their PhD. Typically,
if they are good at research methods they start to see all sorts of
methodological and theoretical inconsistencies. These result troubles with
validity and give many opportunities for careful and critical examiners to
provide (justified) adverse comments about the candidate's research and
thesis.
An alternative approach that solves all the above methodological,
theoretical and justificatory problems is to write up the whole of the
action research project as an appendix to the PhD. That way, it role is ONLY
as DATA about the action research process undertaken.
That is, for the PhD research and analyses, the focus shifts to the research
data being the 'data ABOUT the action research project' rather than 'data
collected during the action research project about whatever was the focus of
the action research project'
Then, the focus of the PhD research and the role of the data collection and
analyses in the PhD, become to analyse and critique the data about the
action research project.
All the usual criteria of research are satisfied because it is the analyses
and data processing ABOUT the action research project that are subject to
replicability, reliability and testing etc.
It's an amazing sight to see when PhD candidates get this difference.
Best wishes,
Terry
____________________
Dr. Terence Love, FDRS, AMIMechE, PMACM, MISI
Senior Lecturer
Researcher, Social Program Evaluation Research Unit
Edith Cowan University, Perth, Western Australia
Mob: 0434 975 848, Fax +61(0)8 9305 7629, [log in to unmask]
Senior Lecturer, Dept of Design
Curtin University, Perth, Western Australia
Director, Design Out Crime Research Centre
Member of International Scientific Council UNIDCOM/ IADE, Lisbon, Portugal
Honorary Fellow, Institute of Entrepreneurship and Enterprise Development
Lancaster University, Lancaster, UK
____________________
-----Original Message-----
From: PhD-Design - This list is for discussion of PhD studies and related
research in Design [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Don
Norman
Sent: Friday, 10 February 2012 2:55 AM
To: Dr Terence Love
Subject: Re: Yes, there is a (single) scientific method
Thanks, Birger.
You said that "in Action Research repeatability is not an issue or not
possible because community action situations are unique. At best one talks
of recoverability."
That's an excellent example to further the discussion. I would respond by
saying that Action Research is still not (yet) a candidate for the
scientific method. Repeatability is essential if one is to know what
actually led to any particular result.
This does not mean that Action Research is not important or necessary. it
means it is pre-scientific. That is not a value judgment -- it is a
definition.
That, at least, is my interpretation of what it means to be a scientist. As
usual, you or others may wish to disagree.
Don
|