Action research dissertation resources

Planning your Action Research Project

© 2001 Ian Hughes & Ray William.

Action research projects have twin goals to improve practice and generate knowledge. The increase in knowledge is often (but not always) triggered by a collaborative group (of professionals, community members, administrators or whoever) who are puzzled about the effects (or lack of effect) of an element of professional practice.

Action research is especially useful in situations where you are a member of a group of people who want to improve some part of a health or welfare service. If you are doing something in your work that has effects that puzzle or interest you, or if you do not understand why you are not getting an effect you expected, the action research may be the way to go.

Action research projects run through repeated cycles. Some action research projects start off with fuzzy questions. The first action research cycle may provide fuzzy answers that lead to less fuzzy questions, less fuzzy answers, and so on, until later cycles are able to provide precise answers to specific questions. Other action research projects may start off with quite well defined questions, yielding answers that lead to improved services, new questions and further improvements, in a spiral of continuous improvement.

It is possible to start an action research project at any point in the cycle (plan, act, observe or reflect). A project may start because somebody reflects on their observation that actions have not been as effective as they would like. In a written document I have to start somewhere, so I start with the reflection that precedes planning. It is important to note that in the real world you may start at another point in the cycle.

Many research courses suggest that you start with a research question. Action Researchers have to identify a practical aim as well as a research question. But there are some preliminary steps.

Before you plan: Initial reflection.

Many projects start by defining the topic. One way to do this is to invite stakeholders, including potential members of the action group, to an initial reflection workshop. It may (or may not) be appropriate to distribute the results of any preliminary situation analysis before the workshop.

Choose the best facilitator you have available to you. Start by welcoming people to the workshop, and then invite them to introduce themselves, and say why they are interested in the situation or the potential action research project. Then make very brief comments to introduce the situation, and invite each member to reflect on what they see as the main problem(s), what they think needs to be improved (action aim) and what each thinks we need to find out (research problem). Record these on poster paper.

Another way to get people thinking as they enter the room is to ask them to draw a system representing the issue or problem of concern followed by identifying components, drawing relationships, and looking for leverage in the system; all in about 10 minutes. Soon, someone will ask, "What is leverage?" Senge et al. (1996) define "leverage as the point or points in the system that create the greatest potential impact, either positive or negative." Participants debrief their diagrams by describing "leverages" or actions along with needed research. This Action-Gram technique (William, 2001) encourages immediate participation, relational thinking, and initial suggestions about actions within the context of everyday systems that people already know.

You may decide on a different process that suits your project, but whatever method, avoid getting into arguments or disputes. The aim of the initial reflection is not to reach agreement or consensus, but to explore the dimensions of the situation and learn how various people see it. Record everyone’s comments in an equal way, valuing the contribution of each participant. Provide contact details for people who may like to join an action group.

Before you plan: Literature survey.

Start reading about your project as soon as possible, and continue your survey of relevant literature throughout the project. It is especially useful to look for reports of similar projects, or projects asking similar questions. These may provide possible answers to your research question, and information about how other people have tried to answer similar questions. Reading about other people’s experiences can be very useful in avoiding mistakes. Look for information content, and for guidelines for process and method.

Step 1: Start project notes.

Much of the work of action researchers concerns ordinary everyday events. What turns everyday life into research is data, and what turns ordinary events into data is recording. So, you have started research as soon as you start recording what happens, and what you and others think about what happens. There are various ways of recording, including a research diary, a project journal, a project log, process and content records or a reflective journal. Different styles suit different people for different projects. Whatever type of project record you choose, keep notes so you can find them and they will make sense to you months later. You should keep notes about:

  • What you observe (see or hear),
  • What happens, and what happens next,
  • What you think, guess, wonder about, or conclude,
  • What you feel,
  • What you plan or dream.

Keep these different kinds of notes under headings or descriptions, so that in the future you will know the difference between what you actually saw, what you were told about, and what you dreamed.

Later cycles.
When you plan second or later cycles check that the format for your project notes and data collection are suitable for your purpose, and the best available within the constraints of your project.

Step 2: Define the action group

Start talking about your rough ideas for an action research project with people you know. Include people involved in the situation as colleagues, citizens, clients, or in some other way. Start to get a feeling for what people see as the problems, what puzzles them, what they don’t understand. Keep a record of whom you talk to and what they say in your project notes.

Start to build a collaborative group of people who are willing to commit some of their time, knowledge and expertise to the action research project. The action group should include only people who are prepared to commit time and energy to the project. (Some projects also have other identified groups of stakeholders). Spend time building an effective action group. Action research varies in the degree of participation by various stakeholders, but is almost always conducted by an action group. It is very risky to attempt action research without a group committed to action. This may be called an action group, collaborative group, inquiry group, action research team, reference group collaborative project team, action research group or by some other name.

If you have not already done so as part of your situation analysis, start to list all the stakeholders in the situation, by name, role or category. Use the categories and roles that apply in your situation. Here are some examples of categories to get you started:

Category / Role / Name
Professionals / Doctors
Nurses
Social Workers
Community members / Opinion leaders
Local business people
Service users / Clients
Families
Later cycles.
Confirm membership of the action group for the next cycle. Invite new members if there the probable benefits outweigh the disadvantages of changing the membership of the collaborative group during the project. Plan activities to support positive group dynamics.

Step 3: Start to map your action research project

Draw a rich picture, loop diagram, or Action-Gram as a way to explore relationships, interactions, feedback, and emergent properties of systems followed by a concept map, a flow diagram, a tree, or a fishbone diagram of your proposed action research project. It is important to have input from the action group members, so do this in a brainstorming session with your action group. If this cannot be done, think how to get input from members of the action group.

Use a format for the project map that is clear and understood by the members of the action group. If your service has a house style, it may be sensible to use it. The style of presentation should be appropriate to the expectations, education and culture of the action group and other stakeholders. Initial mapping should also consider techniques that achieve appropriate learning at that stage. Initially, groups choose techniques that enhance divergent thinking followed by analysis or methods that converge toward decisions. Relational diagrams tend to express divergent thinking techniques while analytical methods foster convergence.

Many participants express lack of confidence when drawing relational diagrams the first time, yet nearly every group draws wonderful maps with just a bit of encouragement and expectation. Beginning with relational diagrams and keeping them in front of the action group as they learn makes systemic inquiry nearly as functional as wholes rather than a sum of the parts. As learning continues, subsequent mapping or diagramming often considers optimisation strategies such as flows of organisational trees followed by using fishbones or force fields that turn obstacles into actions.

Make the project map as clear and specific as you can on the basis of what you know at this stage, and no more specific than that.

Later cycles
Map each cycle as part of the planning process. With each cycle, improve the map so that it becomes a clearer and more precise description of what you will do. If you start with a fuzzy map with lots of clouds or black boxes, aim to specify the clouds and unpack the boxes in succeeding cycles. Always keep these maps in front of the group.

Step 4: Write your action aim and research question.

Action research projects have twin aims, to change a social or professional practice, and to increase knowledge. A successful plan must include a statement of what we hope to change or improve, and what new knowledge we hope to generate.

Often, action research is used when we know (at least in general terms) the outcome we would like, but don’t know how to achieve it. If we can specify the improvement in professional service we would like to see, and we are quite sure how to make the improvement, then there is no need for action research. But if we do not know how to improve, if we are not sure that the improvement will be successful, if we think we know what will work, but lack certainty, then action research can be very useful. In situations like this, the knowledge we need is about how to improve an aspect of professional activity. That is, the research question is derived from the action aim. In such situations the action aim is to improve a service, and the research question is about how to improve the service, but not all action research follows this pattern.

In some cases the action aim may derive from the research question. Action research can provide case studies to throw light on theoretical questions, can be exploratory studies leading to new lines research. A changed professional practice or a social intervention can be designed to generate data relevant to a theoretical question, for example, a question about processes of social change. In all cases, however, in action research, the action aim and the research question involve the same process.

Write down the action aim and the research question in two paragraphs. Make each as clear ands specific as you are able to, but not more than that (avoid false or misleading accuracy). Add a justification to each, which makes it clear why you choose this aim and that question, and how the action aim and research question are related.

Action research projects often are embedded within larger or more complex systems. Thus, the twin aims mentioned above interact with other aims or objectives. Mapping and keeping the map in front of the group during action research helps groups consider consequences within the context of a dynamic or functional system with multiple components that interact over time.

Later cycles
Keep to the same action aim and research question for as long as you can. Change them only when emerging information leave you with no alternative. The action aim and research question give overall direction to the project. Change direction when it is necessary, but not otherwise.
Keep the map in front of the group to consider interactions while focused on one action aim or research question at a time.

Step 5: List Planned changes

Describe each of the specific changes you plan to make in the situation, explaining how each specific change relates to the action aim and/or research question. While your action group will decide what changes are appropriate in your project, Kemmis & McTaggart (1988) suggest that changes should be made across three categories:

  1. Language and discourse (what is said in the situation)
  2. Activities and practices (what is done in the situation)
  3. Social relationships and organisation (who says and does what to whom)

Step 6: Plan data collection

Describe how the project notes will be used to provide information useful in reporting the project and answering the research question. Consider how various data collection methods may contribute to answering the research question.

In planning data collection it is useful to think backwards. Imagine the kind of information you want to include in your final report. Ask how you would get that information, what kind of data analysis will produce the results you are looking for. Then ask what data is needed for that analysis, and how those data can be collected in this project.

Describe how you will:

  • Collect the data that will count as evidence in answering the research question.
  • Record what is said, including changes in language and discourse in the situation.
  • Record what happens, including changes in practices and effects of practices.
  • Record social relationships, including changes in relationships and social organisation.
  • Monitor the progress of the project, including changes in the action group and overall situation.
  • Monitor the environment, including external changes that impact on the project, action aim and research question.

Later cycles:
Note how well the data you are collecting addresses the research question. Retain data collection methods for repeated observations over time. Improve or change data collection methods and techniques to provide more valid and reliable answers to the research question.

Step 7: Analysis of data.

Describe how the data you collect will be analysed to answer the research question and contribute to the action aim. State what instruments, methods and tools you plan to use. Be clear about the logical connections between the data you collect, how you will process it, how it will be presented and answering the research question.

While project notes and participant observations are widely used in action research, almost any qualitative or quantitative method for collection and analysis of data may be used, if appropriate to the situation and project. Refer to other sources for information on data collection and analysis.

Later cycles
Ensure that the data and analysis of it contributes to answering the research question. Modify data analysis and presentation only if necessary.

Step 8: Action planning.

List specific things that are to be done, with the person responsible for each and a completion date. A form like the one below may be useful.

Action Plan / Project
Date
# / Action / Who / When
1
2
3
Later cycles
Make a new action plan for each cycle. File these as part of your project notes.

Step 9: Write your action research plan.

The headings or sections you use may vary from those listed below. These are provided as a guide to what to include.

  1. Situation and concern:
    Briefly describe the problem situation, and what concerns or worries the members of the action group. Include a relational map or diagram for clarity.
  2. Action aim and research question:
  3. Describe the changes you plan to make. State the outcomes you hope to achieve, and the linkages you believe exist between your planned action and intended outcomes. Be a specific as you are able to be, and no more specific.
  4. Ask the research question, being as clear and specific as you can. State why the answer to this question will be useful, what difference this knowledge will make to the situation. Explain how the research question is linked to the action aim.
  5. Action group:
    Describe the action group and it’s membership. Outline the commitment of the action group, and why this is an appropriate group to work with. Describe the composition and role of any other groups of stakeholders, and how the action group will relate to them.
  6. Planned changes:
    Describe each of the specific changes you plan to make in the situation, explaining how each specific change relates to the action aim and/or research question.
  7. Data collection:
    Describe how you will collect the data that will count as evidence in answering the research question.
  8. Action plan
    List specific actions, with who will do each, and when they will be done.

Later cycles
Revise the project plan in each cycle.

Before you act

There are some other tasks that must be completed before you start acting and observing.