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• What Is Action Research? | Definition & Examples

What Is Action Research? | Definition & Examples

Published on January 27, 2023 by Tegan George . Revised on January 12, 2024.

Table of contents

Types of action research, action research models, examples of action research, action research vs. traditional research, advantages and disadvantages of action research, other interesting articles, frequently asked questions about action research.

There are 2 common types of action research: participatory action research and practical action research.

• Participatory action research emphasizes that participants should be members of the community being studied, empowering those directly affected by outcomes of said research. In this method, participants are effectively co-researchers, with their lived experiences considered formative to the research process.
• Practical action research focuses more on how research is conducted and is designed to address and solve specific issues.

Both types of action research are more focused on increasing the capacity and ability of future practitioners than contributing to a theoretical body of knowledge.

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Action research is often reflected in 3 action research models: operational (sometimes called technical), collaboration, and critical reflection.

• Operational (or technical) action research is usually visualized like a spiral following a series of steps, such as “planning → acting → observing → reflecting.”
• Collaboration action research is more community-based, focused on building a network of similar individuals (e.g., college professors in a given geographic area) and compiling learnings from iterated feedback cycles.
• Critical reflection action research serves to contextualize systemic processes that are already ongoing (e.g., working retroactively to analyze existing school systems by questioning why certain practices were put into place and developed the way they did).

Action research is often used in fields like education because of its iterative and flexible style.

After the information was collected, the students were asked where they thought ramps or other accessibility measures would be best utilized, and the suggestions were sent to school administrators. Example: Practical action research Science teachers at your city’s high school have been witnessing a year-over-year decline in standardized test scores in chemistry. In seeking the source of this issue, they studied how concepts are taught in depth, focusing on the methods, tools, and approaches used by each teacher.

Action research differs sharply from other types of research in that it seeks to produce actionable processes over the course of the research rather than contributing to existing knowledge or drawing conclusions from datasets. In this way, action research is formative , not summative , and is conducted in an ongoing, iterative way.

As such, action research is different in purpose, context, and significance and is a good fit for those seeking to implement systemic change.

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Action research comes with advantages and disadvantages.

• Action research is highly adaptable , allowing researchers to mold their analysis to their individual needs and implement practical individual-level changes.
• Action research provides an immediate and actionable path forward for solving entrenched issues, rather than suggesting complicated, longer-term solutions rooted in complex data.
• Done correctly, action research can be very empowering , informing social change and allowing participants to effect that change in ways meaningful to their communities.

Disadvantages

• Due to their flexibility, action research studies are plagued by very limited generalizability  and are very difficult to replicate . They are often not considered theoretically rigorous due to the power the researcher holds in drawing conclusions.
• Action research can be complicated to structure in an ethical manner . Participants may feel pressured to participate or to participate in a certain way.
• Action research is at high risk for research biases such as selection bias , social desirability bias , or other types of cognitive biases .

If you want to know more about statistics , methodology , or research bias , make sure to check out some of our other articles with explanations and examples.

• Normal distribution
• Degrees of freedom
• Null hypothesis
• Discourse analysis
• Control groups
• Mixed methods research
• Non-probability sampling
• Quantitative research
• Inclusion and exclusion criteria

Research bias

• Rosenthal effect
• Implicit bias
• Cognitive bias
• Selection bias
• Negativity bias
• Status quo bias

Action research is conducted in order to solve a particular issue immediately, while case studies are often conducted over a longer period of time and focus more on observing and analyzing a particular ongoing phenomenon.

Action research is focused on solving a problem or informing individual and community-based knowledge in a way that impacts teaching, learning, and other related processes. It is less focused on contributing theoretical input, instead producing actionable input.

Action research is particularly popular with educators as a form of systematic inquiry because it prioritizes reflection and bridges the gap between theory and practice. Educators are able to simultaneously investigate an issue as they solve it, and the method is very iterative and flexible.

A cycle of inquiry is another name for action research . It is usually visualized in a spiral shape following a series of steps, such as “planning → acting → observing → reflecting.”

Sources in this article

We strongly encourage students to use sources in their work. You can cite our article (APA Style) or take a deep dive into the articles below.

George, T. (2024, January 12). What Is Action Research? | Definition & Examples. Scribbr. Retrieved August 21, 2024, from https://www.scribbr.com/methodology/action-research/

Cohen, L., Manion, L., & Morrison, K. (2017). Research methods in education (8th edition). Routledge.

Naughton, G. M. (2001).  Action research (1st edition). Routledge.

Is this article helpful?

Tegan George

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the encyclopaedia of pedagogy and informal education

What is action research and how do we do it?

In this article, we explore the development of some different traditions of action research and provide an introductory guide to the literature., contents : what is action research ·  origins · the decline and rediscovery of action research · undertaking action research · conclusion · further reading · how to cite this article . see, also: research for practice ..

In the literature, discussion of action research tends to fall into two distinctive camps. The British tradition – especially that linked to education – tends to view action research as research-oriented toward the enhancement of direct practice. For example, Carr and Kemmis provide a classic definition:

Action research is simply a form of self-reflective enquiry undertaken by participants in social situations in order to improve the rationality and justice of their own practices, their understanding of these practices, and the situations in which the practices are carried out (Carr and Kemmis 1986: 162).

Many people are drawn to this understanding of action research because it is firmly located in the realm of the practitioner – it is tied to self-reflection. As a way of working it is very close to the notion of reflective practice coined by Donald Schön (1983).

The second tradition, perhaps more widely approached within the social welfare field – and most certainly the broader understanding in the USA is of action research as ‘the systematic collection of information that is designed to bring about social change’ (Bogdan and Biklen 1992: 223). Bogdan and Biklen continue by saying that its practitioners marshal evidence or data to expose unjust practices or environmental dangers and recommend actions for change. In many respects, for them, it is linked into traditions of citizen’s action and community organizing. The practitioner is actively involved in the cause for which the research is conducted. For others, it is such commitment is a necessary part of being a practitioner or member of a community of practice. Thus, various projects designed to enhance practice within youth work, for example, such as the detached work reported on by Goetschius and Tash (1967) could be talked of as action research.

Kurt Lewin is generally credited as the person who coined the term ‘action research’:

The research needed for social practice can best be characterized as research for social management or social engineering. It is a type of action-research, a comparative research on the conditions and effects of various forms of social action, and research leading to social action. Research that produces nothing but books will not suffice (Lewin 1946, reproduced in Lewin 1948: 202-3)

His approach involves a spiral of steps, ‘each of which is composed of a circle of planning, action and fact-finding about the result of the action’ ( ibid. : 206). The basic cycle involves the following:

This is how Lewin describes the initial cycle:

The first step then is to examine the idea carefully in the light of the means available. Frequently more fact-finding about the situation is required. If this first period of planning is successful, two items emerge: namely, “an overall plan” of how to reach the objective and secondly, a decision in regard to the first step of action. Usually this planning has also somewhat modified the original idea. ( ibid. : 205)

The next step is ‘composed of a circle of planning, executing, and reconnaissance or fact-finding for the purpose of evaluating the results of the second step, and preparing the rational basis for planning the third step, and for perhaps modifying again the overall plan’ ( ibid. : 206). What we can see here is an approach to research that is oriented to problem-solving in social and organizational settings, and that has a form that parallels Dewey’s conception of learning from experience.

The approach, as presented, does take a fairly sequential form – and it is open to a literal interpretation. Following it can lead to practice that is ‘correct’ rather than ‘good’ – as we will see. It can also be argued that the model itself places insufficient emphasis on analysis at key points. Elliott (1991: 70), for example, believed that the basic model allows those who use it to assume that the ‘general idea’ can be fixed in advance, ‘that “reconnaissance” is merely fact-finding, and that “implementation” is a fairly straightforward process’. As might be expected there was some questioning as to whether this was ‘real’ research. There were questions around action research’s partisan nature – the fact that it served particular causes.

The decline and rediscovery of action research

Action research did suffer a decline in favour during the 1960s because of its association with radical political activism (Stringer 2007: 9). There were, and are, questions concerning its rigour, and the training of those undertaking it. However, as Bogdan and Biklen (1992: 223) point out, research is a frame of mind – ‘a perspective that people take toward objects and activities’. Once we have satisfied ourselves that the collection of information is systematic and that any interpretations made have a proper regard for satisfying truth claims, then much of the critique aimed at action research disappears. In some of Lewin’s earlier work on action research (e.g. Lewin and Grabbe 1945), there was a tension between providing a rational basis for change through research, and the recognition that individuals are constrained in their ability to change by their cultural and social perceptions, and the systems of which they are a part. Having ‘correct knowledge’ does not of itself lead to change, attention also needs to be paid to the ‘matrix of cultural and psychic forces’ through which the subject is constituted (Winter 1987: 48).

Subsequently, action research has gained a significant foothold both within the realm of community-based, and participatory action research; and as a form of practice-oriented to the improvement of educative encounters (e.g. Carr and Kemmis 1986).

Exhibit 1: Stringer on community-based action research

A fundamental premise of community-based action research is that it commences with an interest in the problems of a group, a community, or an organization. Its purpose is to assist people in extending their understanding of their situation and thus resolving problems that confront them….

Community-based action research is always enacted through an explicit set of social values. In modern, democratic social contexts, it is seen as a process of inquiry that has the following characteristics:

• It is democratic , enabling the participation of all people.

• It is equitable , acknowledging people’s equality of worth.

• It is liberating , providing freedom from oppressive, debilitating conditions.

• It is life enhancing , enabling the expression of people’s full human potential.

(Stringer 1999: 9-10)

Undertaking action research

As Thomas (2017: 154) put it, the central aim is change, ‘and the emphasis is on problem-solving in whatever way is appropriate’. It can be seen as a conversation rather more than a technique (McNiff et. al. ). It is about people ‘thinking for themselves and making their own choices, asking themselves what they should do and accepting the consequences of their own actions’ (Thomas 2009: 113).

The action research process works through three basic phases:

Look -building a picture and gathering information. When evaluating we define and describe the problem to be investigated and the context in which it is set. We also describe what all the participants (educators, group members, managers etc.) have been doing.

Think – interpreting and explaining. When evaluating we analyse and interpret the situation. We reflect on what participants have been doing. We look at areas of success and any deficiencies, issues or problems.

Act – resolving issues and problems. In evaluation we judge the worth, effectiveness, appropriateness, and outcomes of those activities. We act to formulate solutions to any problems. (Stringer 1999: 18; 43-44;160)

The use of action research to deepen and develop classroom practice has grown into a strong tradition of practice (one of the first examples being the work of Stephen Corey in 1949). For some, there is an insistence that action research must be collaborative and entail groupwork.

Action research is a form of collective self-reflective enquiry undertaken by participants in social situations in order to improve the rationality and justice of their own social or educational practices, as well as their understanding of those practices and the situations in which the practices are carried out… The approach is only action research when it is collaborative, though it is important to realise that action research of the group is achieved through the critically examined action of individual group members. (Kemmis and McTaggart 1988: 5-6)

Just why it must be collective is open to some question and debate (Webb 1996), but there is an important point here concerning the commitments and orientations of those involved in action research.

One of the legacies Kurt Lewin left us is the ‘action research spiral’ – and with it there is the danger that action research becomes little more than a procedure. It is a mistake, according to McTaggart (1996: 248) to think that following the action research spiral constitutes ‘doing action research’. He continues, ‘Action research is not a ‘method’ or a ‘procedure’ for research but a series of commitments to observe and problematize through practice a series of principles for conducting social enquiry’. It is his argument that Lewin has been misunderstood or, rather, misused. When set in historical context, while Lewin does talk about action research as a method, he is stressing a contrast between this form of interpretative practice and more traditional empirical-analytic research. The notion of a spiral may be a useful teaching device – but it is all too easy to slip into using it as the template for practice (McTaggart 1996: 249).

Further reading

This select, annotated bibliography has been designed to give a flavour of the possibilities of action research and includes some useful guides to practice. As ever, if you have suggestions about areas or specific texts for inclusion, I’d like to hear from you.

Explorations of action research

Atweh, B., Kemmis, S. and Weeks, P. (eds.) (1998) Action Research in Practice: Partnership for Social Justice in Education, London: Routledge. Presents a collection of stories from action research projects in schools and a university. The book begins with theme chapters discussing action research, social justice and partnerships in research. The case study chapters cover topics such as: school environment – how to make a school a healthier place to be; parents – how to involve them more in decision-making; students as action researchers; gender – how to promote gender equity in schools; writing up action research projects.

Carr, W. and Kemmis, S. (1986) Becoming Critical. Education, knowledge and action research , Lewes: Falmer. Influential book that provides a good account of ‘action research’ in education. Chapters on teachers, researchers and curriculum; the natural scientific view of educational theory and practice; the interpretative view of educational theory and practice; theory and practice – redefining the problem; a critical approach to theory and practice; towards a critical educational science; action research as critical education science; educational research, educational reform and the role of the profession.

Carson, T. R. and Sumara, D. J. (ed.) (1997) Action Research as a Living Practice , New York: Peter Lang. 140 pages. Book draws on a wide range of sources to develop an understanding of action research. Explores action research as a lived practice, ‘that asks the researcher to not only investigate the subject at hand but, as well, to provide some account of the way in which the investigation both shapes and is shaped by the investigator.

Dadds, M. (1995) Passionate Enquiry and School Development. A story about action research , London: Falmer. 192 + ix pages. Examines three action research studies undertaken by a teacher and how they related to work in school – how she did the research, the problems she experienced, her feelings, the impact on her feelings and ideas, and some of the outcomes. In his introduction, John Elliot comments that the book is ‘the most readable, thoughtful, and detailed study of the potential of action-research in professional education that I have read’.

Ghaye, T. and Wakefield, P. (eds.) CARN Critical Conversations. Book one: the role of the self in action , Bournemouth: Hyde Publications. 146 + xiii pages. Collection of five pieces from the Classroom Action Research Network. Chapters on: dialectical forms; graduate medical education – research’s outer limits; democratic education; managing action research; writing up.

McNiff, J. (1993) Teaching as Learning: An Action Research Approach , London: Routledge. Argues that educational knowledge is created by individual teachers as they attempt to express their own values in their professional lives. Sets out familiar action research model: identifying a problem, devising, implementing and evaluating a solution and modifying practice. Includes advice on how working in this way can aid the professional development of action researcher and practitioner.

Quigley, B. A. and Kuhne, G. W. (eds.) (1997) Creating Practical Knowledge Through Action Research, San Fransisco: Jossey Bass. Guide to action research that outlines the action research process, provides a project planner, and presents examples to show how action research can yield improvements in six different settings, including a hospital, a university and a literacy education program.

Plummer, G. and Edwards, G. (eds.) CARN Critical Conversations. Book two: dimensions of action research – people, practice and power , Bournemouth: Hyde Publications. 142 + xvii pages. Collection of five pieces from the Classroom Action Research Network. Chapters on: exchanging letters and collaborative research; diary writing; personal and professional learning – on teaching and self-knowledge; anti-racist approaches; psychodynamic group theory in action research.

Whyte, W. F. (ed.) (1991) Participatory Action Research , Newbury Park: Sage. 247 pages. Chapters explore the development of participatory action research and its relation with action science and examine its usages in various agricultural and industrial settings

Zuber-Skerritt, O. (ed.) (1996) New Directions in Action Research , London; Falmer Press. 266 + xii pages. A useful collection that explores principles and procedures for critical action research; problems and suggested solutions; and postmodernism and critical action research.

Action research guides

Coghlan, D. and Brannick, D. (2000) Doing Action Research in your own Organization, London: Sage. 128 pages. Popular introduction. Part one covers the basics of action research including the action research cycle, the role of the ‘insider’ action researcher and the complexities of undertaking action research within your own organisation. Part two looks at the implementation of the action research project (including managing internal politics and the ethics and politics of action research). New edition due late 2004.

Elliot, J. (1991) Action Research for Educational Change , Buckingham: Open University Press. 163 + x pages Collection of various articles written by Elliot in which he develops his own particular interpretation of action research as a form of teacher professional development. In some ways close to a form of ‘reflective practice’. Chapter 6, ‘A practical guide to action research’ – builds a staged model on Lewin’s work and on developments by writers such as Kemmis.

Johnson, A. P. (2007) A short guide to action research 3e. Allyn and Bacon. Popular step by step guide for master’s work.

Macintyre, C. (2002) The Art of the Action Research in the Classroom , London: David Fulton. 138 pages. Includes sections on action research, the role of literature, formulating a research question, gathering data, analysing data and writing a dissertation. Useful and readable guide for students.

McNiff, J., Whitehead, J., Lomax, P. (2003) You and Your Action Research Project , London: Routledge. Practical guidance on doing an action research project.Takes the practitioner-researcher through the various stages of a project. Each section of the book is supported by case studies

Stringer, E. T. (2007) Action Research: A handbook for practitioners 3e , Newbury Park, ca.: Sage. 304 pages. Sets community-based action research in context and develops a model. Chapters on information gathering, interpretation, resolving issues; legitimacy etc. See, also Stringer’s (2003) Action Research in Education , Prentice-Hall.

Winter, R. (1989) Learning From Experience. Principles and practice in action research , Lewes: Falmer Press. 200 + 10 pages. Introduces the idea of action research; the basic process; theoretical issues; and provides six principles for the conduct of action research. Includes examples of action research. Further chapters on from principles to practice; the learner’s experience; and research topics and personal interests.

Action research in informal education

Usher, R., Bryant, I. and Johnston, R. (1997) Adult Education and the Postmodern Challenge. Learning beyond the limits , London: Routledge. 248 + xvi pages. Has some interesting chapters that relate to action research: on reflective practice; changing paradigms and traditions of research; new approaches to research; writing and learning about research.

Other references

Bogdan, R. and Biklen, S. K. (1992) Qualitative Research For Education , Boston: Allyn and Bacon.

Goetschius, G. and Tash, J. (1967) Working with the Unattached , London: Routledge and Kegan Paul.

McTaggart, R. (1996) ‘Issues for participatory action researchers’ in O. Zuber-Skerritt (ed.) New Directions in Action Research , London: Falmer Press.

McNiff, J., Lomax, P. and Whitehead, J. (2003) You and Your Action Research Project 2e. London: Routledge.

Thomas, G. (2017). How to do your Research Project. A guide for students in education and applied social sciences . 3e. London: Sage.

Acknowledgements : spiral by Michèle C. | flickr ccbyncnd2 licence

How to cite this article : Smith, M. K. (1996; 2001, 2007, 2017) What is action research and how do we do it?’, The encyclopedia of pedagogy and informal education. [ https://infed.org/mobi/action-research/ . Retrieved: insert date] .

© Mark K. Smith 1996; 2001, 2007, 2017

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• Knowledge Base
• Methodology
• What Is Action Research? | Definition & Examples

What Is Action Research? | Definition & Examples

Published on 27 January 2023 by Tegan George . Revised on 21 April 2023.

Table of contents

Types of action research, action research models, examples of action research, action research vs. traditional research, advantages and disadvantages of action research, frequently asked questions about action research.

There are 2 common types of action research: participatory action research and practical action research.

• Participatory action research emphasises that participants should be members of the community being studied, empowering those directly affected by outcomes of said research. In this method, participants are effectively co-researchers, with their lived experiences considered formative to the research process.
• Practical action research focuses more on how research is conducted and is designed to address and solve specific issues.

Both types of action research are more focused on increasing the capacity and ability of future practitioners than contributing to a theoretical body of knowledge.

Prevent plagiarism, run a free check.

Action research is often reflected in 3 action research models: operational (sometimes called technical), collaboration, and critical reflection.

• Operational (or technical) action research is usually visualised like a spiral following a series of steps, such as “planning → acting → observing → reflecting.”
• Collaboration action research is more community-based, focused on building a network of similar individuals (e.g., college professors in a given geographic area) and compiling learnings from iterated feedback cycles.
• Critical reflection action research serves to contextualise systemic processes that are already ongoing (e.g., working retroactively to analyse existing school systems by questioning why certain practices were put into place and developed the way they did).

Action research is often used in fields like education because of its iterative and flexible style.

After the information was collected, the students were asked where they thought ramps or other accessibility measures would be best utilised, and the suggestions were sent to school administrators. Example: Practical action research Science teachers at your city’s high school have been witnessing a year-over-year decline in standardised test scores in chemistry. In seeking the source of this issue, they studied how concepts are taught in depth, focusing on the methods, tools, and approaches used by each teacher.

Action research differs sharply from other types of research in that it seeks to produce actionable processes over the course of the research rather than contributing to existing knowledge or drawing conclusions from datasets. In this way, action research is formative , not summative , and is conducted in an ongoing, iterative way.

As such, action research is different in purpose, context, and significance and is a good fit for those seeking to implement systemic change.

Action research comes with advantages and disadvantages.

• Action research is highly adaptable , allowing researchers to mould their analysis to their individual needs and implement practical individual-level changes.
• Action research provides an immediate and actionable path forward for solving entrenched issues, rather than suggesting complicated, longer-term solutions rooted in complex data.
• Done correctly, action research can be very empowering , informing social change and allowing participants to effect that change in ways meaningful to their communities.

Disadvantages

• Due to their flexibility, action research studies are plagued by very limited generalisability  and are very difficult to replicate . They are often not considered theoretically rigorous due to the power the researcher holds in drawing conclusions.
• Action research can be complicated to structure in an ethical manner . Participants may feel pressured to participate or to participate in a certain way.
• Action research is at high risk for research biases such as selection bias , social desirability bias , or other types of cognitive biases .

Action research is conducted in order to solve a particular issue immediately, while case studies are often conducted over a longer period of time and focus more on observing and analyzing a particular ongoing phenomenon.

Action research is focused on solving a problem or informing individual and community-based knowledge in a way that impacts teaching, learning, and other related processes. It is less focused on contributing theoretical input, instead producing actionable input.

Action research is particularly popular with educators as a form of systematic inquiry because it prioritizes reflection and bridges the gap between theory and practice. Educators are able to simultaneously investigate an issue as they solve it, and the method is very iterative and flexible.

A cycle of inquiry is another name for action research . It is usually visualized in a spiral shape following a series of steps, such as “planning → acting → observing → reflecting.”

Sources for this article

We strongly encourage students to use sources in their work. You can cite our article (APA Style) or take a deep dive into the articles below.

George, T. (2023, April 21). What Is Action Research? | Definition & Examples. Scribbr. Retrieved 21 August 2024, from https://www.scribbr.co.uk/research-methods/action-research-cycle/

Cohen, L., Manion, L., & Morrison, K. (2017). Research methods in education (8th edition). Routledge.

Naughton, G. M. (2001).  Action research (1st edition). Routledge.

Is this article helpful?

Tegan George

Other students also liked, primary research | definition, types, & examples, a quick guide to experimental design | 5 steps & examples, what is an observational study | guide & examples.

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Action research

A type of applied research designed to find the most effective way to bring about a desired social change or to solve a practical problem, usually in collaboration with those being researched.

SAGE Research Methods Videos

How do you define action research.

Professor David Coghlan explains action research as an approach that crosses many academic disciplines yet has a shared focus on taking action to address a problem. He describes the difference between this approach and empirical scientific approaches, particularly highlighting the challenge of getting action research to be taken seriously by academic journals

Dr. Nataliya Ivankova defines action research as using systematic research principles to address an issue in everyday life. She delineates the six steps of action research, and illustrates the concept using an anti-diabetes project in an urban area.

This is just one segment in a whole series about action research. You can find the rest of the series in our SAGE database, Research Methods:

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Article contents

Action research.

• Eileen S. Johnson Eileen S. Johnson Oakland University
• https://doi.org/10.1093/acrefore/9780190264093.013.696
• Published online: 29 May 2020

Action research has become a common practice among educational administrators. The term “action research” was first coined by Kurt Lewin in the 1930s, although teachers and school administrators have long engaged in the process described by and formally named by Lewin. Alternatively known as practitioner research, self-study, action science, site-based inquiry, emancipatory praxis, etc., action research is essentially a collaborative, democratic, and participatory approach to systematic inquiry into a problem of practice within a local context. Action research has become prevalent in many fields and disciplines, including education, health sciences, nursing, social work, and anthropology. This prevalence can be understood in the way action research lends itself to action-based inquiry, participation, collaboration, and the development of solutions to problems of everyday practice in local contexts. In particular, action research has become commonplace in educational administration preparation programs due to its alignment and natural fit with the nature of education and the decision making and action planning necessary within local school contexts. Although there is not one prescribed way to engage in action research, and there are multiple approaches to action research, it generally follows a systematic and cyclical pattern of reflection, planning, action, observation, and data collection, evaluation that then repeats in an iterative and ongoing manner. The goal of action research is not to add to a general body of knowledge but, rather, to inform local practice, engage in professional learning, build a community practice, solve a problem or understand a process or phenomenon within a particular context, or empower participants to generate self-knowledge.

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Action Research

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• Chahid E. Fourali 7  

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Action research is a form of enquiry that integrates theory and action to address real life problems. It enables practitioners to systematically evaluate and improve their practice. The number of types of action researches has multiplied over the last 50 years (Fourali 2016 ) or so and, accordingly, so did the number of definitions offered. These usually refer to the following characteristics of AR:

Use of an iterative model (e.g., Kolb’s model) for systematically analyzing, testing, and reviewing the reality being faced

Involve the participation of stakeholders with a purpose of co-design of solution

Support in depth analysis of faced situation that goes beyond addressing the symptoms

May refer to several disciplines to help understand and address the faced problems

Is inclusive and ethically informed

Various authors were identified as the originators of action-led research and learning. These included Kurt Lewin, Reg Revans, and Kolb. Fourali argued that the...

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Coghlan, D., & Brannick, T. (2005). Doing action research in your own organization . London: Sage.

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Fourali, C. (2016). The promise of social marketing: A powerful tool for changing the world for good . London: Routledge.

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Freire, P. (1970). Pedagogy of the oppressed . New York: Herder & Herder.

McNiff, J., & Whitehead, J. (2011). All you need to know about action research (2nd ed.). London: Sage.

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International Training Centre of the IL, International Labor Organization, Turin, Italy

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Department of Economics, Society and Politics, University of Urbino Carlo Bo, Urbino, Italy

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Fourali, C.E. (2023). Action Research. In: Idowu, S.O., Schmidpeter, R., Capaldi, N., Zu, L., Del Baldo, M., Abreu, R. (eds) Encyclopedia of Sustainable Management. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-25984-5_143

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Participatory

Many ways of knowing, worthwhile purposes, emergent form, first-, second-, and third-person research, methodological practices.

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action research , an overall approach to knowledge and inquiry, concerned with forging a direct link between intellectual knowledge and moment-to-moment personal and social action. Action research seeks to contribute directly to the flourishing of individuals, their communities , and the ecosystems of which they are part.

Action research has two faces: one is practical, concerned with providing processes of inquiry that are useful to people in the everyday conduct of their lives; the other is philosophical and political, part of a movement to ensure that what is taken as knowledge is philosophically sound, participatory, and pragmatic .

Action-research practices aim to open communicative spaces where people can come together in open dialogue to address issues of concern and to engage in cycles of action and reflection, so that ideas that are tentatively articulated in reflection can be examined systematically in phases of active experimentation. Action research can be described in more detail in terms of the following dimensions.

A primary purpose of action research is to produce practical knowledge that addresses issues of concern in personal and professional life. A wider purpose is to contribute through this to the increased well-being—economic, political, psychological, spiritual—of individuals and communities and to a more equitable and sustainable relationship with the wider ecology of the planet of which they are an intrinsic part.

Action research is a participative and democratic process that seeks to do research with, for, and by people; to redress the balance of power in knowledge creation; and to do this in an educative manner that increases participants’ capacity to engage in inquiring lives. At a methodological level, participation is important because one cannot study and improve practice without the deep involvement of those engaged in that practice—the necessary perspective and information are simply not available—and one can study persons only if one approaches them as persons, as intentional actors and meaning makers. But participation is also an ethical and political process: people have the right and ability to contribute to decisions that affect them and to knowledge that is about them, and action research has an important place in the empowerment of people.

Action research draws on a wide range of ways of knowing as one encounters and acts in the world. This “extended epistemology ” starts with everyday experience and is concerned with the development of living knowledge. It thus includes the experiential and the tacit; presentational forms drawing on story, theatre , graphic arts, and so forth; propositional knowing through theory and models; and practical knowing as expressed in skill and accomplishment.

The focus on practical purposes draws attention to the moral dimension of action research—that it is not a values-free process but an inquiry in the pursuit of worthwhile purposes, raising questions of values, morals , and ethics . Here there can be no absolutes; moral choice is always a matter of balance between competing goods. So in the practice of action research, one must continually ask what worthwhile purposes one is pursuing and whether they continue to be appropriate and relevant.

Good action research emerges over time in an evolutionary and developmental process, as individuals develop skills of inquiry, as communities of inquiry develop, as understanding of the issues deepens, and as practice grows, develops, shifts, and changes over time. Emergence means that the questions may change, the relationships may change, the purposes may change, what is important may change. This means action research cannot be programmatic and cannot be defined in terms of hard-and-fast methods but is in a sense a continually emerging work of art.

Action research has encompassed the individual, the small group, and wider organizational and social entities. At an individual level—first-person research—action research has addressed questions of personal and professional change, addressing questions such as “How can I improve my practice?” At the level of the face-to-face group, second-person action research has allowed people to come together to address issues of common concern. Current debate is focused on how action research can address issues at wider social and organizational levels, for example, through networks of inquiry and a variety of large-group processes and dialogue conferences as vehicles of inquiry.

These broad principles of inquiry are applied in practice with different emphases by the various schools and traditions. Included under the broad rubric of action research are variations including action science , action inquiry, appreciative inquiry, cooperative inquiry, participatory action research, and others.

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Action Research: What it is, Stages & Examples

The best way to get things accomplished is to do it yourself. This statement is utilized in corporations, community projects, and national governments. These organizations are relying on action research to cope with their continuously changing and unstable environments as they function in a more interdependent world.

In practical educational contexts, this involves using systematic inquiry and reflective practice to address real-world challenges, improve teaching and learning, enhance student engagement, and drive positive changes within the educational system.

This post outlines the definition of action research, its stages, and some examples.

Content Index

What is action research?

Stages of action research, the steps to conducting action research, examples of action research, advantages and disadvantages of action research.

Action research is a strategy that tries to find realistic solutions to organizations’ difficulties and issues. It is similar to applied research.

Action research refers basically learning by doing. First, a problem is identified, then some actions are taken to address it, then how well the efforts worked are measured, and if the results are not satisfactory, the steps are applied again.

It can be put into three different groups:

• Positivist: This type of research is also called “classical action research.” It considers research a social experiment. This research is used to test theories in the actual world.
• Interpretive: This kind of research is called “contemporary action research.” It thinks that business reality is socially made, and when doing this research, it focuses on the details of local and organizational factors.
• Critical: This action research cycle takes a critical reflection approach to corporate systems and tries to enhance them.

All research is about learning new things. Collaborative action research contributes knowledge based on investigations in particular and frequently useful circumstances. It starts with identifying a problem. After that, the research process is followed by the below stages:

Stage 1: Plan

For an action research project to go well, the researcher needs to plan it well. After coming up with an educational research topic or question after a research study, the first step is to develop an action plan to guide the research process. The research design aims to address the study’s question. The research strategy outlines what to undertake, when, and how.

Stage 2: Act

The next step is implementing the plan and gathering data. At this point, the researcher must select how to collect and organize research data . The researcher also needs to examine all tools and equipment before collecting data to ensure they are relevant, valid, and comprehensive.

Stage 3: Observe

Data observation is vital to any investigation. The action researcher needs to review the project’s goals and expectations before data observation. This is the final step before drawing conclusions and taking action.

Different kinds of graphs, charts, and networks can be used to represent the data. It assists in making judgments or progressing to the next stage of observing.

Stage 4: Reflect

This step involves applying a prospective solution and observing the results. It’s essential to see if the possible solution found through research can really solve the problem being studied.

The researcher must explore alternative ideas when the action research project’s solutions fail to solve the problem.

Action research is a systematic approach researchers, educators, and practitioners use to identify and address problems or challenges within a specific context. It involves a cyclical process of planning, implementing, reflecting, and adjusting actions based on the data collected. Here are the general steps involved in conducting an action research process:

Identify the action research question or problem

Clearly define the issue or problem you want to address through your research. It should be specific, actionable, and relevant to your working context.

Review existing knowledge

Conduct a literature review to understand what research has already been done on the topic. This will help you gain insights, identify gaps, and inform your research design.

Plan the research

Develop a research plan outlining your study’s objectives, methods, data collection tools, and timeline. Determine the scope of your research and the participants or stakeholders involved.

Collect data

Implement your research plan by collecting relevant data. This can involve various methods such as surveys, interviews, observations, document analysis, or focus groups. Ensure that your data collection methods align with your research objectives and allow you to gather the necessary information.

Analyze the data

Once you have collected the data, analyze it using appropriate qualitative or quantitative techniques. Look for patterns, themes, or trends in the data that can help you understand the problem better.

Reflect on the findings

Reflect on the analyzed data and interpret the results in the context of your research question. Consider the implications and possible solutions that emerge from the data analysis. This reflection phase is crucial for generating insights and understanding the underlying factors contributing to the problem.

Develop an action plan

Based on your analysis and reflection, develop an action plan that outlines the steps you will take to address the identified problem. The plan should be specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART goals). Consider involving relevant stakeholders in planning to ensure their buy-in and support.

Implement the action plan

Put your action plan into practice by implementing the identified strategies or interventions. This may involve making changes to existing practices, introducing new approaches, or testing alternative solutions. Document the implementation process and any modifications made along the way.

Evaluate and monitor progress

Continuously monitor and evaluate the impact of your actions. Collect additional data, assess the effectiveness of the interventions, and measure progress towards your goals. This evaluation will help you determine if your actions have the desired effects and inform any necessary adjustments.

Reflect and iterate

Reflect on the outcomes of your actions and the evaluation results. Consider what worked well, what did not, and why. Use this information to refine your approach, make necessary adjustments, and plan for the next cycle of action research if needed.

Remember that participatory action research is an iterative process, and multiple cycles may be required to achieve significant improvements or solutions to the identified problem. Each cycle builds on the insights gained from the previous one, fostering continuous learning and improvement.

Explore Insightfully Contextual Inquiry in Qualitative Research

Here are two real-life examples of action research.

Action research initiatives are frequently situation-specific. Still, other researchers can adapt the techniques. The example is from a researcher’s (Franklin, 1994) report about a project encouraging nature tourism in the Caribbean.

In 1991, this was launched to study how nature tourism may be implemented on the four Windward Islands in the Caribbean: St. Lucia, Grenada, Dominica, and St. Vincent.

For environmental protection, a government-led action study determined that the consultation process needs to involve numerous stakeholders, including commercial enterprises.

First, two researchers undertook the study and held search conferences on each island. The search conferences resulted in suggestions and action plans for local community nature tourism sub-projects.

Several islands formed advisory groups and launched national awareness and community projects. Regional project meetings were held to discuss experiences, self-evaluations, and strategies. Creating a documentary about a local initiative helped build community. And the study was a success, leading to a number of changes in the area.

Lau and Hayward (1997) employed action research to analyze Internet-based collaborative work groups.

Over two years, the researchers facilitated three action research problem -solving cycles with 15 teachers, project personnel, and 25 health practitioners from diverse areas. The goal was to see how Internet-based communications might affect their virtual workgroup.

First, expectations were defined, technology was provided, and a bespoke workgroup system was developed. Participants suggested shorter, more dispersed training sessions with project-specific instructions.

The second phase saw the system’s complete deployment. The final cycle witnessed system stability and virtual group formation. The key lesson was that the learning curve was poorly misjudged, with frustrations only marginally met by phone-based technical help. According to the researchers, the absence of high-quality online material about community healthcare was harmful.

Role clarity, connection building, knowledge sharing, resource assistance, and experiential learning are vital for virtual group growth. More study is required on how group support systems might assist groups in engaging with their external environment and boost group members’ learning. 

Action research has both good and bad points.

• It is very flexible, so researchers can change their analyses to fit their needs and make individual changes.
• It offers a quick and easy way to solve problems that have been going on for a long time instead of complicated, long-term solutions based on complex facts.
• If It is done right, it can be very powerful because it can lead to social change and give people the tools to make that change in ways that are important to their communities.

Disadvantages

• These studies have a hard time being generalized and are hard to repeat because they are so flexible. Because the researcher has the power to draw conclusions, they are often not thought to be theoretically sound.
• Setting up an action study in an ethical way can be hard. People may feel like they have to take part or take part in a certain way.
• It is prone to research errors like selection bias , social desirability bias, and other cognitive biases.

LEARN ABOUT: Self-Selection Bias

This post discusses how action research generates knowledge, its steps, and real-life examples. It is very applicable to the field of research and has a high level of relevance. We can only state that the purpose of this research is to comprehend an issue and find a solution to it.

At QuestionPro, we give researchers tools for collecting data, like our survey software, and a library of insights for any long-term study. Go to the Insight Hub if you want to see a demo or learn more about it.

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Frequently Asked Questions(FAQ’s)

Action research is a systematic approach to inquiry that involves identifying a problem or challenge in a practical context, implementing interventions or changes, collecting and analyzing data, and using the findings to inform decision-making and drive positive change.

Action research can be conducted by various individuals or groups, including teachers, administrators, researchers, and educational practitioners. It is often carried out by those directly involved in the educational setting where the research takes place.

The steps of action research typically include identifying a problem, reviewing relevant literature, designing interventions or changes, collecting and analyzing data, reflecting on findings, and implementing improvements based on the results.

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Action Research

What is action research.

Action research is a methodology that emphasizes collaboration between researchers and participants to identify problems, develop solutions and implement changes. Designers plan, act, observe and reflect, and aim to drive positive change in a specific context. Action research prioritizes practical solutions and improvement of practice, unlike knowledge generation, which is the priority of traditional methods.  

© New Mexico State University, Fair Use

Why is Action Research Important in UX Design?

Action research stands out as a unique approach in user experience design (UX design), among other types of research methodologies and fields. It has a hands-on, practical focus, so UX designers and researchers who engage in it devise and execute research that not only gathers data but also leads to actionable insights and solid real-world solutions. 

The concept of action research dates back to the 1940s, with its roots in the work of social psychologist Kurt Lewin. Lewin emphasized the importance of action in understanding and improving human systems. The approach rapidly gained popularity across various fields, including education, healthcare, social work and community development.  

Kurt Lewin, the Founder of social psychology.

© Wikimedia Commons, Fair Use

In UX design, the incorporation of action research appeared with the rise of human-centered design principles. As UX design started to focus more on users' needs and experiences, the participatory and problem-solving nature of action research became increasingly significant. Action research bridges the gap between theory and practice in UX design. It enables designers to move beyond hypothetical assumptions and base their design decisions on concrete, real-world data. This not only enhances the effectiveness of the design but also boosts its credibility and acceptance among users—vital bonuses for product designers and service designers. 

At its core, action research is a systematic, participatory and collaborative approach to research . It emphasizes direct engagement with specific issues or problems and aims to bring about positive change within a particular context. Traditional research methodologies tend to focus solely on the generation of theoretical knowledge. Meanwhile, action research aims to solve real-world problems and generate knowledge simultaneously .  

Action research helps designers and design teams gather first-hand insights so they can deeply understand their users' needs, preferences and behaviors. With it, they can devise solutions that genuinely address their users’ problems—and so design products or services that will resonate with their target audiences. As designers actively involve users in the research process, they can gather authentic insights and co-create solutions that are both effective and user-centric.  

Moreover, the iterative nature of action research aligns perfectly with the UX design process. It allows designers to continuously learn from users' feedback, adapt their designs accordingly, and test their effectiveness in real-world contexts. This iterative loop of planning, acting, observing and reflecting ensures that the final design solution is user-centric. However, it also ensures that actual user behavior and feedback validates the solution that a design team produces, which helps to make action research studies particularly rewarding for some brands. 

Designers can continuously learn from users’ feedback in action research and iterate accordingly.

© Fauxels, Fair Use

What is The Action Research Process?

Action research in UX design involves several stages. Each stage contributes to the ultimate goal: to create effective and user-centric design solutions. Here is a step-by-step breakdown of the process:  

1. Identify the Problem

This could be a particular pain point users are facing, a gap in the current UX design, or an opportunity for improvement.  

2. Plan the Action

Designers might need to devise new design features, modify existing ones or implement new user interaction strategies.  

3. Implement the Action

Designers put their planned actions into practice. They might prototype the new design, implement the new features or test the new user interaction strategies.  

4. Observe and Collect Data

As designers implement the action they’ve decided upon, it's crucial to observe its effects and collect data. This could mean that designers track user behaviors, collect user feedback, conduct usability tests or use other data collection methods.  

5. Reflect on the Results

From the collected data, designers reflect on the results, analyze the effectiveness of the action and draw insights. If the action has led to positive outcomes, they can further refine it and integrate it into the final design. If not, they can go back to plan new actions and repeat the process.  

An action research example could be where designers do the following: 

Identification : Designers observe a high abandonment rate during a checkout process for an e-commerce website. 

Planning : They analyze the checkout flow to identify potential friction points.  

Action : They isolate these points, streamline the checkout process, introduce guest checkout and optimize form fields.  

Observation : They monitor changes in abandonment rates and collect user feedback.  

Reflection : They assess the effectiveness of the changes as these reduce checkout abandonment.  

Outcome : The design team notices a significant decrease in checkout abandonment, which leads to higher conversion rates as more users successfully purchase goods.  

What Types of Action Research are there?

Action research splits into three main types: technical, collaborative and critical reflection.  

1. Technical Action Research

Technical action research focuses on improving the efficiency and effectiveness of a system or process. Designers often use it in organizational contexts to address specific issues or enhance operations. This could be where designers improve the usability of a website, optimize the load time of an application or enhance the accessibility of a digital product.  

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2. Collaborative Action Research

Collaborative action research emphasizes the active participation of stakeholders in the research process. It's about working together to identify issues, co-create solutions and implement changes. In the context of UX design, this could mean that designers collaborate with users to co-design a new feature, work with developers to optimize a process, or partner with business stakeholders to align the UX strategy with business goals.  

3. Critical Reflection Action Research

Critical reflection action research aims to challenge dominant power structures and social injustices within a particular context. It emphasizes the importance of where designers and design teams reflect on the underlying assumptions and values that drive research and decision-making processes. In UX design, this could be where designers question the design biases, challenge the stereotypes, and promote inclusivity and diversity in design decisions.  

What are the Benefits and Challenges of Action Research?

Like any UX research method or approach, action research comes with its own set of benefits and challenges.  

Benefits of Action Research

Real-world solutions.

Action research focuses on solving real-world problems. This quality makes it highly relevant and practical. It allows UX designers to create solutions that are not just theoretically sound but also valid in real-world contexts.  

User Involvement

Action research involves users in the research process, which lets designers gather first-hand insights into users' needs, preferences and behaviors. This not only enhances the accuracy and reliability of the research but also fosters user engagement and ownership long before user testing of high-fidelity prototypes.  

Continuous Learning

The iterative nature of action research promotes continuous learning and improvement. It enables designers to adapt their designs based on users' feedback and learn from their successes and failures. They can fine-tune better tools and deliverables, such as more accurate user personas, from their findings.

Author and Human-Computer Interaction Expert, Professor Alan Dix explains personas and why they are important: 

Challenges of Action Research

Time- and resource-intensive.

Action research involves multiple iterations of planning, acting, observing and reflecting, which can be time- and resource-intensive. 

Complexity of Real-world Contexts

It can be difficult to implement changes and observe their effects in real-world contexts. This is due to the complexity and unpredictability of real-world situations.  

Risk of Subjectivity

Since action research involves close collaboration with stakeholders, there's a risk of subjectivity and bias influencing the research outcomes. It's crucial for designers to maintain objectivity and integrity throughout the research process. 

Ethical Considerations

It can be a challenge to ensure all participants understand the nature of the research and agree to participate willingly. Also, it’s vital to safeguard the privacy of participants and sensitive data.  

Scope Creep

The iterative nature of action research might lead to expanding goals, and make the project unwieldy.  

Generalizability

The contextual focus of action research may limit the extent to which designers can generalize findings from field studies to other settings.  

Best Practices and Tips for Successful Action Research

1. define clear objectives.

To begin, designers should define clear objectives. They should ask the following: 

What is the problem to try to solve? 

What change is desirable as an outcome?  

To have clear objectives will guide their research process and help them stay focused.  

2. Involve Users

It’s vital to involve users in the research process. Designers should collaborate with them to identify issues, co-create solutions and implement changes in real time. This will not only enhance the relevance of the research but also foster user engagement and ownership.  

3. Use a Variety of Data Collection Methods

To conduct action research means to observe the effects of changes in real-world contexts. This requires a variety of data collection methods. Designers should use methods like surveys, user interviews, observations and usability tests to gather diverse and comprehensive data. 

UX Strategist and Consultant, William Hudson explains the value of usability testing in this video: 

4. Reflect and Learn

Action research is all about learning from action. Designers should reflect on the outcomes of their actions, analyze the effectiveness of their solutions and draw insights. They can use these insights to inform their future actions and continuously improve the design.  

5. Communicate and Share Findings

Lastly, designers should communicate and share their findings with all stakeholders. This not only fosters transparency and trust but also facilitates collective learning and improvement.  

What are Other Considerations to Bear in Mind with Action Research?

Quantitative data.

Action research involves both qualitative and quantitative data, but it's important to remember to place emphasis on qualitative data. While quantitative data can provide useful insights, designers who rely too heavily on it may find a less holistic view of the user experience. 

Professor Alan Dix explains the difference between quantitative and qualitative data in this video: 

User Needs and Preferences

Designers should focus action research on understanding user needs and preferences. If they ignore these in favor of more technical considerations, the resulting design solutions may not meet users' expectations or provide them with a satisfactory experience.  

User Feedback

It's important to seek user feedback at each stage of the action research process. Without this feedback, designers may not optimize design solutions for user needs. For example, they may find the information architecture confusing. Additionally, without user feedback, it can be difficult to identify any unexpected problems that may arise during the research process.  

Time Allocation

Action research requires time and effort to ensure successful outcomes. If designers or design teams don’t permit enough time for the research process, it can lead to rushed decisions and sloppy results. It's crucial to plan ahead and set aside enough time for each stage of the action research process—and ensure that stakeholders understand the time-consuming nature of research and digesting research findings, and don’t push for premature results. 

Contextual Factors

Contextual factors such as culture, environment and demographics play an important role in UX design. If designers ignore these factors, it can lead to ineffective design solutions that don't properly address users' needs and preferences or consider their context.  

Professor Alan Dix explains the need to consider users’ culture in design, in this video: 

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Overall, in the ever-evolving field of UX design, this is one methodology that can serve as a powerful research tool for driving positive change and promoting continuous learning. Since to do action research means to actively involve users in the research process and research projects, and focus on real-world problem-solving, it allows designers to create more user-centered designs. These digital solutions and services will be more likely to resonate with the target users and deliver exceptional user experiences.  

Despite its challenges, the benefits of action research far outweigh the risks. Action research is therefore a valuable approach for UX designers who are keen on creating a wide range of impactful and sustainable design solutions. The biggest lesson with action research is to ensure that user needs and preferences are at the center of the research process. 

Learn More about Action Research  

Take our User Research: Methods and Best Practices course.  

Take our Master Class Radical Participatory Design: Insights From NASA’s Service Design Lead with Victor Udoewa, Service Design Lead, NASA SBIR/STTR Program. 

Read more in-depth information in 3 things design thinking can learn from action research by Amin Mojtahedi, PhD . 

Find additional insights in What Technical Communicators and UX Designers Can Learn From Participatory Action Research by Guiseppe . 

Discover more insights and tips in Action Research: Steps, Benefits, and Tips by Lauren Stewart .

Questions related to Action Research

Action research and design thinking are both methodologies to solve problems and implement changes, but they have different approaches and emphases. Here's how they differ:  

Objectives  

Action research aims to solve specific problems within a community or organization through a cycle of planning, action, observation and reflection. It focuses on iterative learning and solving real-world problems through direct intervention.  

Design thinking focuses on addressing complex problems by understanding the user's needs, re-framing the problem in human-centric ways, creating many ideas in brainstorming sessions, and adopting a hands-on approach in prototyping and testing. It emphasizes innovation and the creation of solutions that are desirable, feasible and viable.  

Process  

Action research involves a cyclic process that includes:  

- Identify a problem.  

- Plan an action.  

- Implement the action.  

- Observe and evaluate the outcomes.  

- Reflect on the findings and plan the next cycle. 

Design thinking follows a non-linear, iterative process that typically includes five phases:  

- Empathize: Understand the needs of those you're designing for.  

- Define: Clearly articulate the problem you want to solve.  

- Ideate: Brainstorm a range of creative solutions.  

- Prototype: Build a representation of one or more of your ideas.  

- Test: Return to your original user group and test your idea for feedback.  

User Involvement  

Action research actively involves participants in the research process. The participants are co-researchers and have a direct stake in the problem at hand.  

Design thinking prioritizes empathy with users and stakeholders to ensure that the solutions are truly user-centered. While users are involved, especially in the empathy and testing phases, they may not be as deeply engaged in the entire process as they are in action research.  

Outcome  

Action research typically aims for practical outcomes that directly improve practices or address issues within the specific context studied. Its success is measurable by the extent of problem resolution or improvement.  

Design thinking seeks to generate innovative solutions that may not only solve the identified problem but also provide a basis for new products, services or ways of thinking. The success is often measurable in terms of innovation, user satisfaction and feasibility of implementation.  

In summary, while both action research and design thinking are valuable in addressing problems, action research is more about participatory problem-solving within specific contexts, and design thinking is about innovative solution-finding with a strong emphasis on user needs. 

Take our Design Thinking: The Ultimate Guide course. 

To define the research question in an action research project, start by identifying a specific problem or area of interest in your practice or work setting. Reflect on this issue deeply to understand its nuances and implications. Then, narrow your focus to a question that is both actionable and researchable. This question should aim to explore ways to improve, change or understand the problem better. Ensure the question is clear, concise and aligned with the goals of your project. It must invite inquiry and suggest a path towards finding practical solutions or gaining deeper insights. 

For instance, if you notice a decline in user engagement with a product, your research question could be, "How can we modify the user interface of our product to enhance user engagement?" This question clearly targets an improvement, focuses on a specific aspect (the user interface) and implies actionable outcomes (modifications to enhance engagement). 

Take our Master Class Radical Participatory Design: Insights From NASA’s Service Design Lead with Victor Udoewa, Service Design Lead, NASA SBIR/STTR Program.  

Designers use several tools and methods in action research to explore problems and implement solutions. Surveys allow them to gather feedback from a broad audience quickly. Interviews offer deep insights through personal conversations, focusing on users' experiences and needs. Observations help designers understand how people interact with products or services in real environments. Prototyping enables the testing of ideas and concepts through tangible models, and allows for immediate feedback and iteration. Finally, case studies provide detailed analysis of specific instances and offer valuable lessons and insights. 

These tools and methods empower designers to collect data, analyze findings and make informed decisions. When designers employ a combination of these approaches, they ensure a comprehensive understanding of the issues at hand and develop effective solutions. 

CEO of Experience Dynamics, Frank Spillers explains the need to be clear about the problem that designers should address: 

To engage stakeholders in an action research project, first identify all individuals or groups with an interest in the project's outcome. These might include users, team members, clients or community representatives. Clearly communicate the goals, benefits and expected outcomes of the project to them. Use presentations, reports, or informal meetings to share your vision and how their involvement adds value. 

Involve stakeholders early and often by soliciting their feedback through surveys, interviews or workshops. This inclusion not only provides valuable insights but also fosters a sense of ownership and commitment to the project. Establish regular update meetings or newsletters to keep stakeholders informed about progress, challenges and successes. Finally, ensure there are clear channels for stakeholders to share their input and concerns throughout the project. 

This approach creates a collaborative environment where stakeholders feel valued and engaged, leading to more meaningful and impactful outcomes. 

To measure the impact of an action research project, start by defining clear, measurable objectives at the beginning. These objectives should align with the goals of your project and provide a baseline against which you can measure progress. Use quantitative metrics such as increased user engagement, sales growth or improved performance scores for a tangible assessment of impact. Incorporate qualitative data as well, such as user feedback and case studies, to understand the subjective experiences and insights gained through the project. 

Conduct surveys or interviews before and after the project to compare results and identify changes. Analyze this data to assess how well the project met its objectives and what effect it had on the target issue or audience. Document lessons learned and unexpected outcomes to provide a comprehensive view of the project's impact. This approach ensures a holistic evaluation, combining numerical data and personal insights to gauge the success and influence of your action research project effectively. 

Take our Master Class Design KPIs: From Insights to Impact with Vitaly Friedman, Senior UX consultant, European Parliament, and Creative Lead, Smashing Magazine. 

When unexpected results or obstacles emerge during action research, first, take a step back and assess the situation. Identify the nature of the unexpected outcome or obstacle and analyze its potential impact on your project. This step is crucial for understanding the issue at hand. 

Next, communicate with your team and stakeholders about the situation. Open communication ensures everyone understands the issue and can contribute to finding a solution. 

Then, consider adjusting your research plan or design strategy to accommodate the new findings or to overcome the obstacles. This might involve revisiting your research questions, methods or even the design problem you are addressing. 

Always document these changes and the reasons behind them. This documentation will be valuable for understanding the project's evolution and for future reference. 

Finally, view these challenges as learning opportunities. Unexpected results can lead to new insights and innovations that strengthen your project in the long run. 

By remaining flexible, communicating effectively, and being willing to adjust your approach, you can navigate the uncertainties of action research and continue making progress towards your goals. 

Professor Alan Dix explains externalization, a creative process that can help designers to adapt to unexpected roadblocks and find a good way forward: 

Action research can significantly contribute to inclusive and accessible design by directly involving users with diverse needs in the research and design process. When designers engage individuals from various backgrounds, abilities and experiences, they can gain a deeper understanding of the wide range of user requirements and preferences. This approach ensures that the products or services they develop cater to a broader audience, including those with disabilities. 

Furthermore, action research allows for iterative testing and feedback loops with users. This quality enables designers to identify and address accessibility challenges early in the design process. The continuous engagement helps in refining designs to be more user-friendly and inclusive. 

Additionally, action research fosters a culture of empathy and understanding within design teams, as it emphasizes the importance of seeing the world from the users' perspectives. This empathetic approach leads to more thoughtful and inclusive design decisions, ultimately resulting in products and services that are accessible to everyone. 

By prioritizing inclusivity and accessibility through action research, designers can create more equitable and accessible solutions that enhance the user experience for all. 

Take our Master Class How to Design for Neurodiversity: Inclusive Content and UX with Katrin Suetterlin, UX Content Strategist, Architect and Consultant. 

To ensure the reliability and validity of data in action research, follow these steps: 

Define clear research questions: Start with specific, clear research questions to guide your data collection. This clarity helps in gathering relevant and focused data. 

Use multiple data sources: Collect data from various sources to cross-verify information. This triangulation strengthens the reliability of your findings. 

Apply consistent methods: Use consistent data collection methods throughout your research. If conducting surveys or interviews, keep questions consistent across participants to ensure comparability. 

Engage in peer review: Have peers or experts review your research design and data analysis. Feedback can help identify biases or errors, and enhance the validity of your findings. 

Document the process: Keep detailed records of your research process, including how you collected and analyzed data. Documentation allows others to understand and validate your research methodology. 

Test and refine instruments: If you’re using surveys or assessment tools, test them for reliability and validity before using them extensively. Pilot testing helps refine these instruments, and ensures they accurately measure what they intend to. 

When you adhere to these principles, you can enhance the reliability and validity of your action research data, leading to more trustworthy and impactful outcomes. 

Take our Data-Driven Design: Quantitative Research for UX course.  

To analyze data collected during an action research project, follow these steps: 

Organize the data: Begin by organizing your data, categorizing information based on types, sources or research questions. This organization makes the data manageable and prepares you for in-depth analysis. 

Identify patterns and themes: Look for patterns, trends and themes within your data. This might mean to code qualitative data or use statistical tools for quantitative data to uncover recurring elements or significant findings. 

Compare findings to objectives: Match your findings against the research objectives. Assess how the data answers your research questions or addresses the issues you set out to explore. 

Use software tools: Consider using data analysis software, especially for complex or large data sets. Tools like NVivo for qualitative data or SPSS for quantitative data can simplify analysis and help in identifying insights. 

Draw conclusions: Based on your analysis, draw conclusions about what the data reveals. Look for insights that answer your research questions or offer solutions to the problem you are investigating. 

Reflect and act: Reflect on the implications of your findings. Consider how they impact your understanding of the research problem and what actions they suggest for improvement or further investigation. 

This approach to data analysis ensures a thorough understanding of the collected data, allowing you to draw meaningful conclusions and make informed decisions based on your action research project. 

Professor Ann Blandford, Professor of Human-Computer Interaction, UCL explains valuable aspects of data collection in this video: 

Baskerville, R. L., & Wood-Harper, A. T. (1996). A critical perspective on action research as a method for information systems research . Journal of Information Technology, 11(3), 235-246.   

This influential paper examines the philosophical underpinnings of action research and its application in information systems research, which is closely related to UX design. It highlights the strengths of action research in addressing complex, real-world problems, as well as the challenges in maintaining rigor and achieving generalizability. The paper helped establish action research as a valuable methodology in the information systems and UX design fields.  

Di Mascio, T., & Tarantino, L. (2015). New Design Techniques for New Users: An Action Research-Based Approach . In Proceedings of the 17th International Conference on Human-Computer Interaction with Mobile Devices and Services Adjunct (pp. 83-96). ACM. 

This paper describes an action research project that aimed to develop a novel data gathering technique for understanding the context of use of a technology-enhanced learning system for children. The authors argue that traditional laboratory experiments struggle to maintain relevance to the real world, and that action research, with its focus on solving practical problems, is better suited to addressing the needs of new ICT products and their users. The paper provides insights into the action research process and reflects on its value in defining new methods for solving complex, real-world problems. The work is influential in demonstrating the applicability of action research in the field of user experience design, particularly for designing for new and underserved user groups. 

Villari, B. (2014). Action research approach in design research . In Proceedings of the 5th STS Italia Conference A Matter of Design: Making Society through Science and Technology (pp. 306-316). STS Italia Publishing.  

This paper explores the application of action research in the field of design research. The author argues that design is a complex practice that requires interdisciplinary skills and the ability to engage with diverse communities. Action research is presented as a research strategy that can effectively merge theory and practice, linking the reflective dimension to practical activities. The key features of action research highlighted in the paper are its context-dependent nature, the close relationship between researchers and the communities involved, and the iterative process of examining one's own practice and using research insights to inform future actions. The paper is influential in demonstrating the value of action research in addressing the challenges of design research, particularly in terms of bridging the gap between theory and practice and fostering collaborative, user-centered approaches to design.  

Brandt, E. (2004). Action research in user-centred product development . AI & Society, 18(2), 113-133.  

This paper reports on the use of action research to introduce new user-centered work practices in two commercial product development projects. The author argues that the growing complexity of products and the increasing importance of quality, usability, and customization demand new collaborative approaches that involve customers and users directly in the development process. The paper highlights the value of using action research to support these new ways of working, particularly in terms of creating and reifying design insights in representations that can foster collaboration and continuity throughout the project. The work is influential in demonstrating the applicability of action research in the context of user-centered product development, where the need to bridge theory and practice and engage diverse stakeholders is paramount. The paper provides valuable insights into the practical challenges and benefits of adopting action research in this domain. 

1. Reason, P., & Bradbury, H. (Eds.). (2001). Handbook of action research: Participative inquiry and practice . SAGE Publications.  

This comprehensive handbook is considered a seminal work in the field of action research. It provides a thorough overview of the history, philosophical foundations, and diverse approaches to action research. The book features contributions from leading scholars and practitioners, covering topics such as participatory inquiry, critical action research, and the role of action research in organizational change and community development. It has been highly influential in establishing action research as a rigorous and impactful research methodology across various disciplines. 

 2. Stringer, E. T. (2013). Action Research (4th ed.) . SAGE Publications.  

This book by Ernest T. Stringer is a widely recognized and accessible guide to conducting action research. It provides clear, step-by-step instructions on the action research process, including gathering information, interpreting and explaining findings, and taking action to address practical problems. The book is particularly valuable for novice researchers and practitioners in fields such as education, social work, and community development, where action research is commonly applied. Its practical approach and real-life examples have made it a go-to resource for those seeking to engage in collaborative, solution-oriented research. 

3. McNiff, J. (2017). Action Research: All You Need to Know (1st ed.) . SAGE Publications.   

This book by Jean McNiff provides a comprehensive guide to conducting action research projects. It covers the key steps of the action research process, including identifying a problem, developing an action plan, implementing changes, and reflecting on the outcomes. The book is influential in the field of action research as it offers practical advice and strategies for practitioners across various disciplines, such as education, healthcare, and organizational development. It emphasizes the importance of critical reflection, collaboration, and the integration of theory and practice, making it a valuable resource for those seeking to engage in rigorous, transformative research. 

Answer a Short Quiz to Earn a Gift

What is a primary characteristic of action research in UX design?

• It drives practical changes through iterative cycles.
• It focuses solely on theoretical knowledge.
• It relies on external consultants to dictate changes.

Which type of action research improves system efficiency and effectiveness?

• Collaborative Action Research
• Critical Reflection Action Research
• Technical Action Research

What role do stakeholders play in collaborative action research?

• They participate actively in co-creating solutions.
• They provide financial support only.
• They review and approve final designs.

How do users in action research benefit the design process?

• They help make sure designs meet actual user needs and preferences.
• They help speed up the design process significantly.
• They limit the scope of design innovations.

What is the purpose of the reflection stage in the action research process?

• To document the research process for publication only
• To evaluate the effectiveness of actions and plan further improvements
• To finalize the product design without further changes

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Literature on Action Research

Here’s the entire UX literature on Action Research by the Interaction Design Foundation, collated in one place:

Learn more about Action Research

Take a deep dive into Action Research with our course User Research – Methods and Best Practices .

How do you plan to design a product or service that your users will love , if you don't know what they want in the first place? As a user experience designer, you shouldn't leave it to chance to design something outstanding; you should make the effort to understand your users and build on that knowledge from the outset. User research is the way to do this, and it can therefore be thought of as the largest part of user experience design .

In fact, user research is often the first step of a UX design process—after all, you cannot begin to design a product or service without first understanding what your users want! As you gain the skills required, and learn about the best practices in user research, you’ll get first-hand knowledge of your users and be able to design the optimal product—one that’s truly relevant for your users and, subsequently, outperforms your competitors’ .

This course will give you insights into the most essential qualitative research methods around and will teach you how to put them into practice in your design work. You’ll also have the opportunity to embark on three practical projects where you can apply what you’ve learned to carry out user research in the real world . You’ll learn details about how to plan user research projects and fit them into your own work processes in a way that maximizes the impact your research can have on your designs. On top of that, you’ll gain practice with different methods that will help you analyze the results of your research and communicate your findings to your clients and stakeholders—workshops, user journeys and personas, just to name a few!

By the end of the course, you’ll have not only a Course Certificate but also three case studies to add to your portfolio. And remember, a portfolio with engaging case studies is invaluable if you are looking to break into a career in UX design or user research!

We believe you should learn from the best, so we’ve gathered a team of experts to help teach this course alongside our own course instructors. That means you’ll meet a new instructor in each of the lessons on research methods who is an expert in their field—we hope you enjoy what they have in store for you!

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Action Research Faculty Fellowship 2024-25

By Dr. Joel Pruce

The Human Rights Center (HRC) invites applications from faculty of all ranks and from all units and departments across campus for a collaborative opportunity to steer the next phase of the Action Research and Rights Collective (ARRC), a community of practice around participatory research methodologies. We are mapping a new model of faculty leadership for the Collective, to build capacity at the Center and develop a sustainable future for this key initiative. 

The Collective emerged from the HRC’s Strategic Vision that rationalizes this program with stated principles that include,

• “Making the education-research-advocacy nexus central to all our practice”;
• “HRC promotes research that is action oriented, community-led, and directed to support transformational advocacy with evidence and insights, but also by strategically learning from all we do“;
• “Root our work in genuine, horizontal and sustainable partnerships”; and
• “Intersectional, anti-racist and decolonial approaches.”

The implementation of these principles is diffused throughout the visioning document and revolves around the establishment of a research network. The framework of “action research” compels us to prioritize the production of knowledge that centers lived experience as an indispensable source of expertise and democratize knowledge production.

In Spring 2022, following the adoption of the Strategic Vision, we began planning and building the ARRC with a book club and workshop. Through Summer and Fall 2022, we drafted and issued a Call for Collaborators that expanded the network. Fellowship stipends were awarded and we hosted a second workshop in late Spring 2023. In Fall 2023, the Collective sponsored research presentations at the Social Practice of Human Rights conference.

Fellows will build on this foundation and chart a way forward for the ARRC utilizing action research tools. We seek applicants with exposure to participatory methods, commitment to interdisciplinary collaboration, and experience with community-based research. 

If selected, fellows will work with HRC Director of Applied Research and Learning to develop a plan for the Collective over the fall semester that can launch in the spring. Fellows will be responsible for work in the following areas:

• Reinvigorating the Collective by engaging past participants and recruiting new ones; 
• Determining and articulating the Collective’s purpose moving forward and the needs it has as such; and
• Pursuing opportunities to further define and sustain the Collective, including through extramural fundraising.

We hope to select 2-3 fellows who will each receive a $4000 stipend, which is expected to occupy ~3 hours per week over the academic year. The team will operate with a budget of $2000 to execute the plan they develop together. Fellows will be invited to participate in the life of the Human Rights Center, expected to attend at least one weekly staff meeting per month, and welcome to use work and meeting space at the Center. These positions may be renewed, contingent upon contribution and budget availability.

Interested individuals can submit a current CV and cover letter detailing their qualifications and approach to this role by September 6. Interviews will take place thereafter and a team will be assembled. Work will begin with an initial development phase, and execution of the plan will begin Jan 2025 with deliverables completed by June 1, 2025. Inquiries and submissions can be addressed to Joel R. Pruce ( [email protected] ).

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Equal Rights and Protections in Human Subjects Research – A Call to Action with Leslie E. Wolf

Monday, October 14th, 2024 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM

Add to Calendar: Add to Calendar: 2024-10-14 12:00:00 2024-10-14 13:00:00 Equal Rights and Protections in Human Subjects Research – A Call to Action with Leslie E. Wolf Event Description The Elena and Miles Zaremski Law Medicine Forum presents: Equal Rights and Protections in Human Subjects Research – A Call to Action with Leslie E. Wolf The COVID-19 pandemic provided a stark reminder of the critical role of biomedical research in saving human lives. But it also highlighted an urgent need for research that expands the evidence base in ways that reduce health disparities and promote equity. But the inclusive research needed to achieve these goals may be hampered by the fact any efforts to achieve these goals are embedded in a system that treats research participants unequally. The federal regulations governing human subject research do not apply to all research, leaving some participants unprotected. In addition, because of variation in state laws, participants in the same study may have different rights and protections. Congress has the power to provide additional procedural and substantive research protections that would uniformly apply to all participants, and Wolf will provide some recommendations for changes Congress should consider. Speaker Bio Leslie E. Wolf is the Ben F. Johnson Jr. Chair in Law, Distinguished University Professor, and Director of the Center for Law, Health & Society at Georgia State University’s College of Law, jointly appointed in the School of Public Health, and an adjunct professor in the Department of Family and Community Medicine, Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University. She was on faculty at the University of California, San Francisco from 1998-2007.   Wolf conducts research in a variety of areas in health and public health law and ethics, with a particular focus on research ethics. She previously served on the Secretary’s Advisory Committee on Human Research Protections (SACHRP). She continues to serve on the SACHRP Subcommittee.   She is a graduate of Johns Hopkins School of Public Health, Harvard Law School and Stanford University. She also was a Greenwall Fellow in Bioethics and Health Policy and a Greenwall Faculty Scholar.   Students only: Case Western Reserve University School of Law George Gund Hall Room A59, Moot Courtroom 11075 East Blvd., Cleveland, OH 44106 Virtual for non-students. School of Law School of Law America/New_York public

Elena and Miles Zaremski Law Medicine Forum

In-person for students; Virtual for all others.

Event Description

The Elena and Miles Zaremski Law Medicine Forum presents: Equal Rights and Protections in Human Subjects Research – A Call to Action with Leslie E. Wolf

The COVID-19 pandemic provided a stark reminder of the critical role of biomedical research in saving human lives. But it also highlighted an urgent need for research that expands the evidence base in ways that reduce health disparities and promote equity. But the inclusive research needed to achieve these goals may be hampered by the fact any efforts to achieve these goals are embedded in a system that treats research participants unequally. The federal regulations governing human subject research do not apply to all research, leaving some participants unprotected. In addition, because of variation in state laws, participants in the same study may have different rights and protections. Congress has the power to provide additional procedural and substantive research protections that would uniformly apply to all participants, and Wolf will provide some recommendations for changes Congress should consider.

Speaker Bio

Leslie E. Wolf is the Ben F. Johnson Jr. Chair in Law, Distinguished University Professor, and Director of the Center for Law, Health & Society at Georgia State University’s College of Law, jointly appointed in the School of Public Health, and an adjunct professor in the Department of Family and Community Medicine, Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University. She was on faculty at the University of California, San Francisco from 1998-2007.   Wolf conducts research in a variety of areas in health and public health law and ethics, with a particular focus on research ethics. She previously served on the Secretary’s Advisory Committee on Human Research Protections (SACHRP). She continues to serve on the SACHRP Subcommittee.   She is a graduate of Johns Hopkins School of Public Health, Harvard Law School and Stanford University. She also was a Greenwall Fellow in Bioethics and Health Policy and a Greenwall Faculty Scholar.  

Event Location

Students only:

Case Western Reserve University School of Law George Gund Hall Room A59, Moot Courtroom 11075 East Blvd., Cleveland, OH 44106

Virtual for non-students.

Considering Your CAPAs from a Quality Management Perspective

Blog August 21, 2024

Viswakanth Makutam, PharmD, MS, ACRP-CP, Clinical Research Quality Associate

One of the most common and important types of quality management measures in clinical research is the Corrective and Preventive Action (CAPA) plan. Learning the CAPA process will provide insight into how corrective and preventive actions are handled, along with creating an effective game plan for your use of CAPAs.  

The CAPA template can be used by manufacturers or providers of products, services, or goods who have identified a potential issue that may lead to compliance failures. CAPAs protect clinical research participants, taking into account their rights and welfare during a trial while also ensuring the accuracy and credibility of the data collected from their study experiences. Meanwhile, pharmaceutical firms rely on quality as the core of their operations, and one should not lose sight of this fact when implementing CAPAs because, with proper application, high standards will always be upheld.  

What is CAPA in Clinical Research?  

CAPA plans are essential for conducting clinical trials in terms of minimizing risks to participants and ensuring that their rights, as well as welfare, are protected. Moreover, these plans safeguard the study data by preventing any sort of breach affecting safety and efficacy, which is essential for upholding high-value research. Incorporating CAPAs in an organization allows for identifying the root cause of problems that arise, thereby preventing recurrence and providing effective project management.  

Several basic steps constitute the CAPA process:  

• Detection: The first step is to detect a potential concern. It all starts with a dissection of the issue in terms of its history and its consequence.  
• Root Cause Analysis : Identify and perform a deep dive investigation of the root cause of issues. To do this, one must ask how the problem came to be.  
• Prevention: As always, the next step after identifying the root cause is to determine how you will prevent this issue from surfacing again. This means enacting steps for improvement.  
• Documentation: Finally, we need to document the whole process in a structured, sequential way. This provides an evidence trail that secures an implemented CAPA plan.  

Corrective Actions  

These are immediate responses taken to correct a problem/quality issue which has already occurred. One vital method involved is the utilization of tools such as the 5 WHYs to investigate whether a particular problem that arose was incidental, or if it might lead to some serious impacts in the future (more about this below). Important considerations when establishing corrective actions include distinguishing between real and perceived problems and understanding how big the problem is. Situation-specific details regarding a CAPA plan’s use must be recorded once any corrective action has been made. This documentation serves as a future reference while ensuring that corrective actions can be validated as working as intended and that duplicate issues do not occur.  

The 5 WHYs Method  

The 5 WHYs method is a problem-solving tool where you ask “Why?” five times to find the root cause of an event. In this example, the cause of a site coordinator’s failure to ship a blood sample is being investigated by a sponsor:  

• Sponsor’s Q: Why did the site coordinator fail to ship out a routine blood sample? Site’s A: She forgot.  
• Q: Why did she forget? A: She was doing something else.  
• Q: Why was she so occupied with other activities? A: She had two trials to manage.  
• Q: Why was she tasked with two trials? A: The site was understaffed at the time.  
• Q: Why is there a staffing shortage at the site? A: Your budget for hiring is too low.  

In this process, we found the root cause: Due to the limited staff recruitment budget, the site coordinator was overburdened and ultimately forgot about shipping the blood sample. Identifying the root cause allows for a proper corrective action that helps avoid a resurgence of the same issue later.  

Preventive Actions  

Preventive actions are performed to get rid of the root causes of real or potential defects and keep them from leading to first-time or repeat problems. This involves preparing a full-blown contingency plan—your risk profile for what could happen or potentially go awry. Everyone who has a task or role in reaching a resolution for a defect through preventive action should approve this CAPA plan (principal investigators, research coordinators, quality assurance managers, other site staff, etc.). That way the CAPA has a high chance of preventing a variety of future quality problems and not just any single problem.  

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) offers information about the design and use of CAPA plans for medical devices, which are also addressed in Subpart J of 21 CFR Part 820 in the Code of Federal Regulations . Details on CAPA within the Pharmaceutical Quality System are also available from the FDA.  

Conclusion  

To sum it up, CAPA plans represent a critical quality management system implemented in clinical research to close compliance issues and prevent their recurrence. With the central CAPA process, clinical research sites can maintain quality control and mitigate risk for participants by identifying areas of protocol non-compliance. Using corrective and preventive actions, in addition to proper documentation and validation, ensures that quality problems are fixed in a time-efficient and cost-effective manner. Develop and adopt your own CAPAs if you haven’t already to achieve better quality in your clinical research organization and greater success in your clinical trials.  

Contributed by Viswakanth Makutam, PharmD, MS, ACRP-CP, a Clinical Research Quality Associate and volunteer peer reviewer for ACRP’s Clinical Researcher journal  

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Certificates in Research For Social Action

Building field research capacity for social sector practitioners

PG Diplomas and Certificates

Campus Bengaluru

2.5 weeks / certificate

Batch Starting

6 January 2025

Azim Premji University’s Research for Social Action Certificates Programme aims to enhance the capacity of the social sector in doing field study, analysing the data and writing about it. While the social sector makes significant contributions to social change, it is equally necessary to build adequate capacities in the sector to leverage the power of research in forwarding and deepening the possibilities of social action. Social sector organisations and individuals can benefit from this programme, in doing a base line, endline, monitoring and evaluation, case study writing and data visualisation. Thus, the Research for Social Action Programme adapts research to everyday needs of the social sector organisations and individuals rather than for academic outcomes.

Key features of the programme

• The programme has three certificates, each for 2.5 weeks on campus, to be delivered as per the yearly calendar of the university. All courses in a certificate will run parallelly for 6 days a week. 
• Courses have class transactions, hands-on work, readings, presentations and some amount of field work. Each course has 2 or 3 graded assessments.
• Participants can enrol into any of these certificates, in any sequence. 
• The medium of instruction will be English.
• This programme can be continued alongside work, if the participant wishes to do so.

Who will benefit from the programme

The programme is designed for professionals with a minimum of 2 years of work experience from social sector organisations, social movements, thematic action networks, activist groups, and development media.

Practitioners involved in activities like quantitative and qualitative monitoring of programmes, project design, data collection, analysis, documentation, writing case studies, among others will benefit from this course. 

Certificates we offer

Research design and primary data collection | starts in january 2025.

This certificate deepens the understanding and skills to do a systematic field study in the social sector.

Ashok Kumar Sircar, Juhi Tyagi, Manjula M, Rajesh Joseph

Quantitative Analysis and Data Visualisation | starts in May 2025

This certificate, consisting of two courses, aims to build competencies in analysing quantitative data, applying inferential statistics, and its visual representation.

Participatory Approaches and Case Study Writing | starts in November 2025

This certificate, consisting of two courses, aims to build competencies in applying appropriate participatory methods in program design and action, and to develop in-depth case studies.

Listen to our Alumni’s experience

Facilities at the university.

Accommodation will be provided at the University to all participants. This includes access to WiFi and the library (including remote access), cafeteria, academic and social events, indoor and outdoor games.

• Ashok Kumar Sircar
• Anuradha Nagaraj
• Anand Krishna
• Porag Shome
• Rajesh Joseph
• Sherry Joseph Martin
• Shaurabh Anand

All Programme faculty →

Selection Process - RSA

Step 1: Application form (Online) Step 2: Panel Interview or written test

Fees and Financial aid - RSA

Each certificate fees – INR 20,000 (including GST) Accommodation fee – INR 9000 for 2.5 weeks Food and travel expenses are to be borne by the participant.

Note: GST rates are in line with Government guidelines and are subject to change.

Get in Touch

• WhatsApp 8951978091
• Email [email protected]

Published on 

Engineering leadership and innovation: Michael Silevitch’s enduring legacy at Northeastern

“Michael is a Northeastern institution,” says David Madigan, provost and senior vice president for academic affairs. “We are so lucky to have Michael as a colleague and to be able to tap into his boundless energy and wisdom.”

Michael Silevitch , a grandson of Russian immigrants who has launched numerous security and educational research initiatives at Northeastern, is one of the university’s longest-tenured and most accomplished professors.

“Michael is a Northeastern institution,” says David Madigan , provost and senior vice president for academic affairs. “Perhaps more than any other person, Michael has led our transformation to a global research powerhouse. We are so lucky to have Michael as a colleague and to be able to tap into his boundless energy and wisdom.”

At 81, Silevitch is still going strong while leading a major Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Center of Excellence based at Northeastern. Silevitch is director of SENTRY (Soft Target Engineering to Neutralize the Threat Reality), a coalition of more than 15 universities headed by Northeastern. 

Silevitch is also the founding director of an emeritus DHS Center of Excellence, ALERT (Awareness and Localization of Explosives-Related Threats), a center now led by Carey Rappaport , a distinguished professor in electrical and computer engineering at Northeastern.

Silevitch’s success in creating programs that respond to national needs has earned him credibility with DHS, the National Science Foundation (NSF), the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and other sponsoring organizations. He is a public-minded academic who has learned how to fortify his proposals with salesmanship.

“There is a methodology for winning a big award — you’ve got to define its vision and mission succinctly in the format of ‘so what, who cares?’” says Silevitch, the Robert D. Black Professor and distinguished professor of electrical and computer engineering at Northeastern. “This definition must make sense to ordinary people, not just research specialists.

“Almost as important is the need to come up with a compelling name,” adds Silevitch of his preference for catchy acronyms. “You’ve got to create a name for the center that will evoke emotion.”

“Creating a non-traditional Ph.D. taught me not to be afraid to tackle new problems….Having a background both in electrical engineering and physics prepared me for what I was able to do in my career.” Michael Silevitch

Many lessons have been learned by way of his hard-earned experiences. Silevitch, the son of a Boston window washer, became the first person in his family to attend college when he enrolled at Northeastern in 1960. His self-confidence as a young student was deepened by his response to congenital nystagmus , a condition of small, rapid, uncontrollable eye movements.

“There’s always this underlying jitter in my eyeball that prevents me from seeing sharply,” says Silevitch, whose eyesight peaks at 20-60. “It hampers how fast I can read. I have night blindness and I can never drive a car. It’s part of my life.”

In childhood the condition threatened to limit his future. 

“In the Boston schools, grades one through eight, I was essentially in special education classrooms for visually impaired students,” Silevitch says. “In middle school, I was very lucky to have teachers that allowed me to learn at my own pace. As a result, I was able to pass the entrance exam and enrolled in Boston Technical High School, now the John D. O’Bryant High School for Math and Science. I was the rare case of a kid that could break out of special ed and that may have helped shape me — showing that I could do as well in the mainstream as anyone.”

At Northeastern, Silevitch was on his way to earning three electrical-engineering degrees when he was introduced to the (Richard) Feynman Lectures on Physics , which inspired him to pursue a dual Ph.D. in that discipline. As a result, he would merge the fields to devise breakthroughs in dense plasma dynamics. After completing his Ph.D. he was hired as an assistant professor of electrical engineering at Northeastern in 1971.

After a yearlong sabbatical in 1973-74, spent working for the French government in Nice, Silevitch returned home and at 29 became one of Northeastern’s youngest tenured full professors. At that point he decided to shift his focus by pursuing large-scale research opportunities for the university.

“Creating a non-traditional Ph.D. taught me not to be afraid to tackle new problems,” he says of his interdisciplinary approach. “Having a background both in electrical engineering and physics prepared me for what I was able to do in my career.”

Making a stand

Two of Silevitch’s proposals have been made through NSF’s Industry–University Cooperative Research Centers (IUCRC) program , resulting in Northeastern-based centers that have been funded by a coalition of industry partners and the federal government. 

In the early 1980s, he began pursuing large-scale research opportunities in the midst of the computing boom led by Apple and other manufacturers. Instead of following that trend, Silevitch pursued an alternative mission.

“I realized that a lot of the technology that we need for our country’s defense was not computer-based but was electromagnetics-based, including high-powered microwave tubes and phased array antennas for radar,” Silevitch says. 

His initial IUCRC proposal would result in a Center for Electromagnetics Research (CER) at Northeastern. The preparation of the proposal earned backing from the Pentagon as well as from Raytheon, Textron and other companies. But the NSF reviews of his proposal were surprisingly negative. Silevitch says the negative response was based on Northeastern’s lack of experience and reputation as a high-level research university at that time.

“That rejection was a devastating experience for me,” Silevitch recalls. “After recovering from the emotional impact we went back to NSF and said, ‘These reviews are prejudicial. They’re false. They’re making statements that are not based on facts.’”

“As a result, NSF overturned their prior decision. We got funded. And we (Northeastern) never looked back.

“It was a major first step for Northeastern proving that we can compete on a national level,” Silevitch says of the CER. “We created a center that flourished for 10 years. It was a wonderful thing for a lot of students and faculty — we hired 10 faculty members in the area of electromagnetics.” 

Several years later Silevitch proposed another IUCRC idea to NSF that would be funded parallel to the CER. Known as CESAME (Center for the Advancement of Science and Mathematics Education), it focused on empowering K-12 teachers to create innovative science and math curricula to engage students. That Center led to more than $15 million in funding and the establishment of Northeastern’s Center for STEM Education, which is now led by Claire Duggan, who was one of the CESAME founders.

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Following the success of Northeastern’s initial IUCRC program, Silevitch set his sights on an Engineering Research Center — a flagship NSF program providing $40 million or more in funding for the pursuit of transformative technological initiatives. Silevitch understood that Northeastern’s bid was a longshot. 

“It took two tries but we ultimately did win — and the Center for Subsurface Sensing and Imaging Systems (CenSSIS) was the result,” Silevitch says. “The focus of CenSSIS was creating common analysis tools for finding ‘hidden things’ buried beneath a surface.”

The CenSSIS mantra was “diverse problems, similar solutions.”

“The surface could be anything — the human body, a cell, (something) under the ground or under the water,” Silevitch says. “Essentially we created tools so that people looking into the next hidden region would have a jumpstart in exploring it.”

CenSSIS helped pioneer a new method for detecting breast cancer called tomosynthesis , based on 3-D CT technology originally developed by Mass General Hospital (MGH), a CenSSIS partner. 

“We at Northeastern, MGH, Boston University, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and other partners refined it so that it had a much higher resolution and computational efficiency capability,” says Silevitch. 

A $20 million gift in 2008 from engineering innovator Bernard M. Gordon resulted in a transformation of Northeastern’s ERC — now known as Gordon-CenSSIS — while also establishing the Gordon Institute of Engineering Leadership (GIEL), which was led initially by Silevitch. In 2015, Silevitch and his GIEL successor, Simon Pitts , received the Gordon Prize from the National Academy of Engineering for “developing an innovative method to provide graduate engineers with the necessary personal skills to become effective engineering leaders.”

The centers that Silevitch created on Northeastern’s behalf reveal a core strength, says Kristin Hicks , director of operations for Gordon-CenSSIS.

“He is not easily discouraged and will continue to pursue different paths to achieve his goals and objectives,” says Hicks, who also served as partnership and education services coordinator for GIEL. “I have watched him engage with multiple groups of diverse participants to build a program from the ground up while ensuring that all participants are actively included in the discussion and planning, regardless of their position or title within their organization. He understands the importance of investing in meaningful long-term relationships and honoring commitments to build trust with others.”

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After developing and directing the IUCRCs and ERC, Silevitch would go on to propose other federal centers drawn from the fundamental CenSSIS strategy of finding hidden threats. 

Those projects would include:

• ALERT, which leveraged the Gordon-CenSSIS theme of developing common tools for diverse applications. “That is to say finding a tumor in the body is very much akin to finding a bomb in a suitcase,” Silevitch says. 
• PROTECT (Puerto Rico Testsite to Eliminate Contaminant Threats). This active center (led by Akram Alshawabkeh, George A. Snell Professor of Engineering and University distinguished professor in civil and environmental engineering at Northeastern) studies exposure to hidden underground contamination in Puerto Rico and its contribution to adverse pregnancy outcomes. Over $40 million in funding has been received to date from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences’ Superfund Research Program . 

“Mike’s vision for CenSSIS inspired and continues to inspire a generation of researchers and professionals,” says Claire Duggan, executive director of the newly renamed Michael B. Silevitch and Claire J. Duggan Center for STEM Education. “He guided and at times prodded his team to think out of the box — to move beyond old comfort zones in order to meet these new challenges.”

‘You are a leader’

When the COVID-19 pandemic forced Silevitch to work remotely, he used the time to come up with two more initiatives:

• SENTRY, which is focused on protecting vulnerable public venues such as schools, public transportation systems, stadiums and open air events and retail operations.
• Engineering PLUS . This NSF-funded program aims to broaden participation in engineering with the aim of helping women and people from underrepresented groups earn 100,000 undergraduate degrees and 30,000 graduate degrees in engineering by 2026. Gregory Abowd, Northeastern’s Dean of Engineering, now leads Engineering PLUS as its Principal Investigator, with Silevitch and Duggan serving as Co-PIs.

Engineering PLUS is not the only Silevitch program meant to help pre-college students. CESAME would influence the creation of the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System — a series of standardized tests known as MCAS that have helped Massachusetts students rise from middle of the pack to a high ranking nationally in science and math.

Additionally, the Michael B. Silevitch and Claire J. Duggan Center for STEM Education has created and invested in students who are interested in science, technology, engineering and math in Massachusetts and other states.

Diane Nishigaya MacGillivray , Northeastern’s senior vice president for university advancement, credits Silevitch and Duggan with helping countless young people become scientists, engineers and mathematicians.

“Michael quite simply represents the best of Northeastern in his dedication to our community and our mission of impact,” MacGillivray says. “Not only has he led major research centers of excellence at Northeastern, but he has also been instrumental in developing K-12 math and science curricula in Boston and throughout New England.” 

Duggan sums up the depth of Silevitch’s impact with a reference from the United States’ sixth president.

“As John Quincy Adams stated,” says Duggan, “‘If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader.’”

Ian Thomsen is a Northeastern Global News reporter. Email him at [email protected] . Follow him on X/Twitter @IanatNU .

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Behind the scenes in NBC’s Olympics research room: ‘Gold Zone,’ obscure badminton rules and trivia for Peyton Manning

Northeastern University data science graduate Claire Dudley has spent the past three weeks unearthing statistics and stories for Paris.

How these Northeastern researchers are rewriting the immigration-crime narrative

Ramiro Martinez and Jacob Stowell say their research has disproved assertions that immigration exposes communities to increases in crime.

This artist spent two weeks on a tall ship in the frigid Arctic researching extreme climates and life cycles

Art and design professor Julia Hechtman did a residency on a tall ship in the Arctic Circle, seeking inspiration in the frigid landscape.

Sheila Puffer became a top expert on post-Soviet Russia’s free market. Her Northeastern career outlasted it

The international business professor watched capitalism in Russia rise and fall during her 36-year tenure.

They’re living boulders on the ocean floor. Northeastern research explains the mysterious corallith

Mark Patterson, a professor at Northeastern University, studied hundreds of coralliths off the coast of the Florida Keys.

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NHTSA Safety Research Portfolio Public Meeting: Fall 2024

A Notice by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration on 08/23/2024

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• Document Details Published Content - Document Details Agencies Department of Transportation National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Agency/Docket Number Docket No. NHTSA-2024-0040 Document Citation 89 FR 68238 Document Number 2024-18994 Document Type Notice Pages 68238-68239 (2 pages) Publication Date 08/23/2024 Published Content - Document Details
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• [Docket No. NHTSA-2024-0040]

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Notice of a public meeting.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) will hold a public meeting from October 28 to October 30, 2024, as a joint effort between the Agency's Vehicle Safety Research and Behavioral Safety Research offices to share information on activities within the Agency's research programs. The meeting will be held in a virtual format with representatives from across the two research offices presenting the information in panels.

Questions from the audience will be addressed following presentations. Each presentation will include visual slides that will be available in a public docket after the public meeting. A recording of the panels will also be available on the NHTSA website.

NHTSA will hold the public meeting on October 28 to October 30, 2024, with times to be established as the agenda is further refined. The meeting will be held virtually, via Zoom. Registration to attend the meeting must be received no later than October 23, 2024. There is no cost to register. Registration can be completed at https://www.nhtsa.gov/​events/​nhtsa-safety-research-portfolio-public-meeting-fall-2024 . The public docket will remain open for 90 days following the public meeting.

The meeting will be held virtually via Zoom. The virtual meeting's online access link(s) will be available upon registration. Details regarding the agenda and speakers will be added to the Public Meeting website, https://www.nhtsa.gov/​events/​nhtsa-safety-research-portfolio-public-meeting-fall-2024 , regularly prior to the event. The meeting will also be recorded and made available after the event for offline viewing at https://www.nhtsa.gov/​events/​nhtsa-safety-research-portfolio-public-meeting-fall-2024 .

If you have questions about the public meeting, please contact Jennifer Oxenham at 202-366-2827 or by email at [email protected] .

For reference, NHTSA's previous Safety Research Portfolio public meeting, held in Fall 2022, is available for viewing at https://www.nhtsa.gov/​events/​research-public-meeting-2022 .

Registration is recommended for all attendees. Attendees should register at https://www.nhtsa.gov/​events/​nhtsa-safety-research-portfolio-public-meeting-fall-2024 by October 23, 2024. Follow the designated registration instructions at the registration site and please indicate whether special accommodation is needed.

NHTSA is committed to providing equal access to this event for all participants. People with disabilities can submit an accommodation request, and people with limited English proficiency can submit a language access request. Please submit any request to Jennifer Oxenham at 202-366-2827 or via email at [email protected] with your request as soon as possible. A sign language interpreter will be provided, and closed captioning services will be available.

Should it be necessary to cancel or reschedule the meeting due to an unforeseen circumstance, NHTSA will take all available measures to notify registered participants as soon as possible. NHTSA will conduct the public meeting informally, and ( print page 68239) technical rules of evidence will not apply. The meeting will be recorded, and a recording will be made available after the event.

Comments: Comments may be submitted electronically or in hard copy during the 90-day comment period. Please submit all comments no later than January 31, 2025, by any of the following methods:

• Federal Rulemaking Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov . Follow the online instructions for submitting comments.
• Mail: Docket Management Facility: U.S. Department of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, Washington, DC 20590-0001.
• Hand Delivery or Courier: 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, Washington, DC 20590-0001, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. ET, Monday through Friday, except Federal Holidays. To be sure someone is there to help you, please call 202-366-9826 before coming.
• Fax: 202-366-1767.

Instructions: All submissions must include the agency name and docket number. Note that all comments received will be posted without change to http://www.regulations.gov , including any personal information provided. Please see the Privacy Act discussion below.

Docket: For access to the docket go to http://www.regulations.gov at any time or to 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, West Building, Ground Floor, Room W12-140, Washington, DC 20590 between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal Holidays.

Telephone: 202-366-9826.

Privacy Act: Anyone is able to search the electronic form of all comments received into any of our dockets by the name of the individual submitting the comment (or signing the comment, if submitted on behalf of an association, business, labor union, etc.). You may review DOT's complete Privacy Act Statement in the Federal Register published on April 11, 2000 ( 65 FR 19477-78 ), or you may visit http://www.regulations.gov/​privacy.html .

Confidential Business Information: If you wish to submit any information under a claim of confidentiality, you should submit three copies of your complete submission, including the information you claim to be confidential business information, to the Chief Counsel, NHTSA, at 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590. In addition, you should submit two copies, from which you have deleted the claimed confidential business information, to Docket Management at the address given above. When you send a comment containing information claimed to be confidential business information, you should submit a cover letter setting forth the information specified in our confidential business information regulation ( 49 CFR part 512 ).

Background: Each year, NHTSA executes a broad array of research programs in support of Administration, DOT, and agency priorities. The Agency's research portfolio covers a diverse range of program areas pertaining to vehicle safety, including the safety consequences of novel automotive technologies that aim to improve the crash avoidance and/or occupant protection characteristics of motor vehicles; and behavioral safety, which includes safety countermeasures that pertain to the behavior and actions of drivers, occupants, and other road users, including vulnerable populations.

This public meeting is intended to provide public and stakeholder outreach regarding research activities at NHTSA for both vehicle and behavioral safety, including expected near-term deliverables. NHTSA technical research staff will discuss projects recently concluded or underway and may also introduce early-stage projects. As time allows, there will be an opportunity for session attendees to submit questions via the chat feature in the broadcast medium.

Presentations will be displayed during the panel sessions and will be posted to the docket ( regulations.gov ) after the meeting. Updates on this event will be available at https://www.nhtsa.gov/​events/​nhtsa-safety-research-portfolio-public-meeting-fall-2024 and NHTSA recommends checking back periodically for updates or potential schedule changes.

Discussion of research projects will occur in the form of technical panel presentations. Participants will be able to register for any or all of the days and be able to join the Zoom webinar in parts or for full sessions throughout each day.

The Agency invites comments on the information presented as well as on the Agency's research priorities, research goals, and additional research gaps/needs the public may believe NHTSA should be addressing. Select project work may be posted to the docket for which comments are also welcome. Slides presented at the public meeting will be posted to the docket subsequently for public access and a recording of the meeting will be made available after the event for offline viewing.

Cem Hatipoglu,

Associate Administrator, Vehicle Safety Research.

[ FR Doc. 2024-18994 Filed 8-22-24; 8:45 am]

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