What is Action Research

An approach to research in which researchers diagnose a social problem with a view of helping improve the situation, based on the assumption that complex social interactions cannot be reduced for meaningful study. Learn more in: Introducing the COrETeSt Feasibility Analysis in Medical Informatics: A Case Study of a Decision-Support Knowledge System in the Dutch Primary Care Sector

Research method that contributes with practical actions to the organization and generates knowledge about its context simultaneously. The method has five phases: 1) diagnosis where the problematic situation is studied, 2) Action planning during which alternative actions are analyzed, 3) Action taking when the selected plan of action is applied in practice, 4) evaluation where results are analyzed, and 5) learning in which findings and knowledge are generated. These phases are cyclic until the results are satisfactory. Learn more in: Identifying Requirements for Healthcare Information Systems with Focus Groups

A collaborative approach to problem solving which involves taking action, and then evaluated the impact of that action, reflecting of it, taking further modified action. Usually takes place in cycles of action with data collection, evaluation and reflection between each cycle. Learn more in: CAMES: An Approach to Project Management Based on Action Research and the Ideal Speech Situation

Research that takes the aim of theorizing alongside the end goal of social action taking place after the culmination of the research project. Learn more in: Utilizing Mobile Learning for Orphans Aging Out: Orphan Youth Development in Peru With Universal Lessons

Simultaneously a Planned Change approach paradigm and a Research Method , which is about research in action , involving, simultaneously, two goals : solving an organizational problem and contributing to knowledge. The process is based on existing behavioral science knowledge, integrated with organizational knowledge; applied to solve real organizational problems; promoting organizational change and learning and generating new (internal and external) knowledge. As main characteristics , it is developed within natural settings, addressing specific issues, within a spirit of collaboration and co-inquiry, involving the researcher and organizational stakeholders, promoting organizational learning, systems’ improvement, and generating valid knowledge. It requires an ethical positioning , based on a deep understanding of values and norms regarding the cooperation between the researcher and organizational members; preserving special working principles on relationships, communication, participation and inclusion. Learn more in: The Human Side of Information Systems: Capitalizing on People as a Basis for OD and Holistic Change

Is a disciplined process of inquiry conducted by and for those taking the action. The primary reason for engaging in action research is to assist the “actor” in improving and/or refining his or her actions. It is an empowering experience. Action research has this positive effect for many reasons. The most important is that action research is always relevant to the participants. Relevance is guaranteed because the focus of each research project is determined by the researchers, who are also the primary consumers of the findings. Learn more in: Research on Information Literacy and Social Inclusion of Female Inmates

AR is a relatively popular developmental research methodology which has both data collection (research) and change (action) elements ( Piggot-Irvine et al, 2011 ). It has a cyclical orientation (often iterative planning, acting, reflecting and evaluating) and is highly developmental and practical in its intent and it is the latter that makes it suitable as an approach to goal pursuit. Zuber-Skerritt (2012) adds that AR is also democratic, participative and collaborative. Learn more in: Focused Action Research Based Goal Pursuit: The Secret Sauce in Great Performance Review

Collected research methods, the main assumption of which is to recognise the competence of members of the studied community to show its functioning and identify potential issues. Researchers involved in the Action Research stream do not impose their views on members of the studied community, but help the community in diagnosing and solving their problems. Learn more in: Using Action Research for Improvement of Project Knowledge Management in the Public Museum

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An interactive and collaborative process of generating and applying relevant and valid knowledge by “insiders” (usually individuals, organisations, or communities) and “outsiders” (mostly researchers, educationalists, social workers, or consultants) in order to move closer to improving and transforming practice. Learn more in: Using Action Research to Develop a Public Programming Strategy for Heritage Assets, With an Example From South Africa

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Action research is an iterative research process which enables researchers to understand a social or sociotechnical phenomenon with the aim to improve its quality. It consists of several phases of analysis (reflection) and action (interventions) which are alternate and interwoven (cycle of activities): Action research includes a problem diagnosis, action intervention, and reflective learning in real situations, gain feedback from this experience, modify the theory as a result of this feedback, and try it again. Learn more in: Socio-Technical Communities: From Informal to Formal?

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A cyclic process by which change and understanding an be pursued at one time. Learn more in: 2007 Leadership and Human Resources Training in Rwanda

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Action research is a general term that refers to research developed with and/or by the people being studied and involves both taking and reflecting on actions to solve problems or create desired change. Learn more in: Reimagining Sustainability Leadership: Integral Action Research in a Non-Profit Organization

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Type of research approach in which the researcher attempts to improve the research client, which can be an organization, while at the same time generating relevant academic knowledge. Learn more in: A Web-Enabled Course Partnership

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Research conducted for the purpose of addressing real problems in education and developing transformative solutions. Learn more in: Becoming Teacher Researchers: Using English Learners' Linguistic Capital to Socially Re-Organize Learning

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A systematic investigation of one’s own practice. Learn more in: An Algebra Teacher's Instructional Decision-Making Process with GeoGebra: Thinking with a TPACK Mindset

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An approach to research that seeks to improve practice or outcomes through a cyclical process of observation, reflection, planning, and action. Learn more in: Preparing Critical Educators and Community-Engaged Scholars Through Participatory Action Research

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The process of systematically studying one’s own practice using the tools of research. Learn more in: Increasing Teacher Efficacy Through Rural Partnerships

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A type of research, often done by educators, that seeks to solve problems through observing and collecting data on environments, programs, or human interaction for the purpose of addressing an issue. Learn more in: Ancient Thinking and Modern Challenges: Socratic Education in the 21st Century

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A means of professional growth via dialogue with people and texts in order to reflect upon lived experiences in a strategic and systematic modes that produces both insight and direction for individuals, schools and the system they work within. Learn more in: Teaching and Technology: Issues, Caution and Concerns

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A research method originally proposed by Lewin and influenced by work at the Tavistock Institute. It uses intervention into problematic social situations as a means to develop scientific knowledge. Learn more in: Social, Political and Ethical Responsibility in Broadband Adoption and Diffusion: A German Case Study

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Research initiated to solve a problem or a reflective process of assessing the effectiveness of an instructional strategy or method. Learn more in: Preparing Teachers for Mobile Learning Applications Grounded in Research and Pedagogical Frameworks

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Action research is an interactive inquiry process that balances problem solving actions implemented in a collaborative context with data-driven collaborative research to understand underlying causes, thereby enabling future predictions about personal and organizational change. The theory of action research is far from an integrated or consistent theory. One can see a large variety of theoretical approaches and practical applications (developed dominantly in the past 30 years), but their common characteristics can be unambiguously identified. Reason and Bradbudy (2001) define their ‘participative research’ and ‘action research’ concepts with the same meaning as a collective concept, and offer the following definition: ‘action research is a participatory, democratic process concerned with developing practical knowledge in the pursuit of worthwhile human purposes, grounded in participatory worldview... It seeks to bring together action and reflexion, theory and practice, in participation with others, in the pursuit of practical solutions to issues of pressing concern to people, and more generally the flourishing of individual persons and their communities’ ( Reason and Bradbury, 2001 , p. 2). Learn more in: Eight-Point Project: Action Research, as a Development Tool for Non-Profit Organizations

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The process by which change and understanding can be pursued at the one time. Learn more in: Teaching Creative Problem Solving in Engineering Education

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Research approach in which inquiry is seen as aimed at having a positive impact on the participating organizations and society at the same time the investigation is being conducted. Learn more in: Global Funding of E-Collaboration Research

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A collaborative cyclical inquiry process that involves diagnosing a situation, taking action, and reflecting on the outcome before recommencing the process. Learn more in: Networks of Action for Anti Retroviral Treatment

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A research method particularly useful in educational settings to evaluate the effects of teaching and learning. Learn more in: Fostering Early Entrepreneurial Competencies: An Action Research Approach

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Action research is a form of inductive, practical research that focuses on gaining a better understanding of a practice problem or achieving a real change or improvement in practice context. It follows a cyclical process of planning, acting, observing, and reflecting ( Kuhne & Quigley, 1997 ). Learn more in: Teachers as Researchers and Instructional Leaders

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The use of techniques from social and psychological research to identify group problems regarding active participation involving group efforts to problem solve. Learn more in: Communication Matrices for Managing Dialogue Change to Teamwork Transformation

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A type of inquiry conducted by and for those involved in taking the action. Action research is critical in the continuous improvement cycle. Learn more in: Strategic Leadership: The Windham Elementary Chromebook Initiative

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An informal, qualitative, formative, subjective, interpretive, reflective and experiential model of inquiry in which all individuals involved in the study are knowing and contributing participants (Hopkins, 1993). Learn more in: E-Mail Reflection Groups as Collaborative Action Research

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A cyclical approach to enquiry that involves taking positive action for change, gathering evidence about the action and reflecting critically upon processes and outcomes. Learn more in: Thoughts on Why and How to Promote Sustainable Practices in Early Years Education

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Originated by Kurt Lewin, is conducted by researchers who collect and analyze data with an eye to implementing change and improving their own practice (Chisholm & Elden, 1993). Learn more in: Developing a Receptive and Faculty-Focused Environment for Assessment

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A reflective process of problem solving led by individuals working with others in teams or as a part of a “community of practice” to improve the way they address issues and solve problems. Learn more in: A Blended Approach to Teacher Education

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As action researchers we collaborate with practitioners to intervene in practice in order to solve concrete problems while expanding scientific knowledge. In the literature, action research represents an overarching class of research approaches, rather than a single monolithic research method. Action research is usually split into a reflective phase where problems and opportunities are analyzed and an intervention is planned, and a phase of action where the intervention is carried out. Learn more in: Fostering Communities in Urban Multi-Cultural Neighbourhoods: Some Methodological Reflections

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Often carried out by teacher researchers, Action Research is an exploration of interventions in the school context, with the ultimate aim of improving student learning. This exploration usually occurs in cycles, with the teacher researcher reflecting on what has occurred during each cycle. Learn more in: Legitimizing Integral Theory in Academia: Demonstrating the Effectiveness of Integral Theory Through Its Application in Research

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The action research is to collect data related to a problem existing in the organization or a possible problem to occur, to analyze the data and to carry out the change activity according to the analysis results. Learn more in: Change and Change Management in Organizations

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Research initiated to solve an immediate problem or a reflective process of progressive problem solving led by individual. Learn more in: Work Stress, Culture, and Leadership: Building a Culture of Health through Mindfulness into Action

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An inquiry process utilized by teacher researchers within their classroom environments in order to gain insight into their teaching, student learning, or how the classroom functions. Learn more in: The Myth of Colorblindness: Helping Educators Recognize the Role of Race in the PreK-12th Grade Classrooms

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A research design that aims to improve and/or modify practices. It is a practitioner research that brings research and practice together and provides the transfer of the research results to the implementation. Learn more in: Action Research and Teacher Portfolio as Two Strong Teacher-Led Professional Development Designs

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Inquiry or research in the context of focused efforts to improve the quality of practice and is typically designed and conducted by practitioners who analyze the data to improve their own practice. Learn more in: Data Speaks: Use of Poems and Photography in Qualitative Research

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Inquiry into how to improve the quality of an organization and its performance within an authentic or simulated context to improve practice. Learn more in: Transdisciplinary Collaborative Development of Healthcare Virtual Simulations

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A methodology that aims to contribute both to the practical concerns of people in an immediate problematic situation and to the goals of social science by joint collaboration within a mutually acceptable ethical framework. Learn more in: The Role of Individual Trust in E-Collaboration

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Research initiated to solve an immediate problem or a reflective process of progressive problem solving led by individual. Learn more in: Problem Solving and Leadership Individual and Organizational Motivation Affected by Stress: The Use of Mindfulness into Action Practices to Encourage Protective Health Behaviors among Individuals and Organizations

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Research initiated to solve an immediate problem or a reflective process of progressive problem solving led by individual. Learn more in: Mindfulness into Action: Applying Systemic Thinking and Exploring the Potential for Developing Reflective Leaders

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A reflective process in which problem solvers engage in research activities to inform the action strategies they adopt Learn more in: Socio-Technical Theory and Work Systems in the Information Age

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Research initiated to solve an immediate problem or a reflective process of progressive problem solving led by individual. Learn more in: Leadership Skills Development: Co-Creating Sustainability through Indigenous Knowledge

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A disciplined process of inquiry conducted by and for those taking the action to assist the “actor” in improving and/or refining his or her actions ( Sagor, 2000 ). Learn more in: Mathematics Teachers' Knowledge-of-Practice with Technologies in an Online Masters' Program: Scoop Action Research Experiences and Reflections

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Self-reflective enquiry made by participants in social sciences to improve the rationality /justify understanding of their own practices. Learn more in: Change Management and Leadership: An Overview of the Healthcare Industry

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Used by teachers to study their own teaching. Learn more in: Systematic Evaluation of Innovative Pedagogies in Teacher Education Courses and Practica

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IS research paradigm encouraging participation between researchers and participants. Learn more in: ECHO: A Layered Model for the Design of a Context-Aware Learning Experience

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A research approach which involves iterations of practical action, followed by reflection. Learn more in: Developing Critical Thinking in Doctoral Students: Issues and Solutions

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A research methodology which addresses practical problems in practice by taking participants through a cyclical process of trying a variety of teaching methods to solve the problem. Learn more in: Teachers as Researchers: Participatory and Action Research

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A reflective cycle of inquiry into practice to effect change. Learn more in: Evolving Pedagogy and Practice: The 1:1 Mathematics Classroom through a TPACK Lens

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Research initiated to solve an immediate problem or a reflective process of progressive problem solving led by individual. Learn more in: Personal Growth and Leadership: Interpersonal Communication with Mindfulness into Action

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