Exploring the relationships between qualitative research and social change, this bookasks how social change is informed and influenced by research. Examples discussed are from research practice and experiences in the fields of sociology, social work, professional practice, education, criminal justice and anthropology."

Have you ever thought research is boring? "Research" writes Umberto Eco "should be fun". It seems unlikely that Umberto Eco has read many of the standard social science or education research texts. But social research does offer the possibility of involvement in projects that are informative, sometimes revealing, and fun to do. This book shows us that teaching, learning and research are essentially social and deeply personal activities and that fun needs to be an integral part of this. This is not a conventional text, although it is about ways in which research can be used by those in various areas of professional practice. Its main concerns are with qualitative research, action research and case study methods, and it goes back to first principles arguing for research that is concerned with the nature of personal memories and of perception, the use of drawings and photographs, the emotional relationships implicit in any kind of research and the context of the contemporary workplace. The authors develop new directions and new possibilities for research and find ways of bringing together theory and practice, the personal and the social, organisations and their clients. It is an important resource for all who are interested in doing research but are sceptical or critical of most studies that are currently available.

This book provides a timely guide to qualitative methodologies that investigate processes of personal, generational, and historical change. The authors showcase a range of methods that explore temporality and the dynamic relations between past, present, and future. Through case studies, they review six methodological traditions: memory work, oral/life history, qualitative longitudinal research, ethnography, inter-generational and follow-up studies. It illustrates how these research approaches are translated into research projects and considers the practical as well as the theoretical and ethical challenges they pose. Research methods are also the product of times and places, and this book keeps to the fore the cultural and historical context in which these methods developed, the theoretical traditions on which they draw, and the empirical questions they address.

Facilitating Community Research for Social Change asks: what does ethical research facilitation look like in projects that seek to move toward social change? How can scholars weave political and social justice through multiple levels of the research process? This edited collection presents chapters that investigate research facilitation in ways that specifically attempt to disrupt and challenge anti-Indigenous and anti-Black racism, ableism, homophobia, transphobia, patriarchy, and sexism to work toward social change. It also explores what it means to develop facilitation practices across multiple contexts and research settings, including specific facilitation methods considered by researchers working with visual and community-based methods with Black, Indigenous, and racialized communities. The complexities of how scholars negotiate decisions within their research with people and communities have an effect not only on how researchers construct their participants and communities, but also on the overall purpose of projects, the ways their projects are shared and disseminated, and what is learned in the doing of facilitation. This book will be of great interest to both emerging and established researchers working within the social sciences. It specifically attends to diverse fields within the social sciences that include health, media studies, environmental studies, social work, sociology, education, participatory visual research methodologies, as well as the evolving field of digital humanities.

Unlike other athletes, the rock climber tends to disregard established norms of style and technique, doing whatever she needs to do to get to the next foothold. This figure provides an apt analogy for the scholar at the center of this unique book. In Rocking Qualitative Social Science, Ashley Rubin provides an entertaining treatise, corrective vision, and rigorously informative guidebook for qualitative research methods that have long been dismissed in deference to traditional scientific methods. Recognizing the steep challenges facing many, especially junior, social science scholars who struggle to adapt their research models to narrowly defined notions of "right," Rubin argues that properly nourished qualitative research can generate important, creative, and even paradigm-shifting insights. This book is designed to help people conduct good qualitative research, talk about their research, and evaluate other scholars' work. Drawing on her own experiences in research and life, Rubin provides tools for qualitative scholars, synthesizes the best advice, and addresses the ubiquitous problem of anxiety in academia. Ultimately, this book argues that rigorous research can be anything but rigid.

This is a concise, step-by-step guide to conducting qualitative nursing research using various forms of data analysis. It is part of a unique series of books devoted to seven different qualitative designs and methods in nursing, written for both novice researchers and specialists seeking to develop or expand their competency. This practical resource encompasses such methodologies as content analysis, a means of organizing and interpreting data to elicit themes and concepts; discourse analysis, used to analyze language to understand social or historical context; narrative analysis, in which the researcher seeks to understand human experience through participant stories; and focus groups and case studies, used to understand the consensus of a group or the experience of an individual and his or her reaction to a difficult situation such as disease or trauma. Written by a noted qualitative research scholar and contributing experts, the book describes the philosophical basis for conducting research using data analysis and delivers an in-depth plan for applying its methodologies to a particular study, including appropriate methods, ethical considerations, and potential challenges. It presents practical strategies for solving problems related to the conduct of research using the various forms of data analysis and presents a rich array of case examples from published nursing research. These include author analyses to support readers in decision making regarding their own projects. The book embraces such varied topics as data security in qualitative research, the image of nursing in science fiction literature, the trajectory of research in several nursing studies throughout Africa, and many others. Focused on the needs of both novice researchers and specialists, it will be of value to health institution research divisions, in-service educators and students, and graduate nursing educators and students. Key Features: Explains how to conduct nursing research using content analysis, discourse analysis, narrative analysis, and focus groups and case studies Presents state-of-the-art designs and protocols Focuses on solving practical problems related to the conduct of research Features rich nursing exemplars in a variety of health/mental health clinical settings in the United States and internationally

Bringing key developments and debates together in a single volume, this book provides an authoritative guide for students and practitioners embarking on qualitative research in social work and related fields. Frequently illustrated with contemporary and classic case examples from the authors’ own empirical research and from international published work, and with self-directed learning tasks, the book provides insight into the difficulties and complexities of carrying out research, as well as sharing ‘success’ stories from the field. Shaw and Holland have long experience of writing for practitioners and students and in making complex concepts accessible and readable, making this an ideal text for those engaging in qualitative social work research at any level. Ian Shaw is a Professor of Social Work at the University of York and at the University of Aalborg. Sally Holland is a Reader in Social Work at the School of Social Sciences in Cardiff University.

Questions in Qualitative Social Justice Research in Multicultural Contexts take readers on an accessible and inspiring journey to critically self-reflect on current or future research practices to encourage and facilitate greater equity, inclusion, and social justice in qualitative research. In a diverse world, "doing" qualitative research needs unpacking and developing awareness of interconnected perspectives and challenges. However, as researchers, there is not always a chance to fully prepare or self-reflect on the processes and experiences. This book raises awareness of key multidimensional aspects of social justice, such as power, privilege, trust, insider-outsiderness, ethics, arts-based, co-produced, and decolonial research. The authors connect theory and conceptual constructs with practical in-field realities, guiding researchers through the dynamic, evolving steps to give voice to and promote social justice practices in research. The book includes the following features to guide thinking for researchers and students: Bolded key terms and questions for self-reflection. Boxed case studies from both top international scholars and emerging scholars. Glossary of key terms. This foundational book can be used as a jumping-off point to engage and critically self-reflect about research moving us towards decolonizing research practice, creating more inclusive, equitable, and socially just research. It will be suitable for upper-level and postgraduate students and all researchers interested in qualitative methods in education and the social and behavioral sciences.

Johnny Saldana outlines the basic elements of longitudinal qualitative data, focusing on micro-levels of change observed within individual cases and groups of participants. He draws upon his primary experience in theater education to examine time and change in longitudinal qualitative studies; contending that "playwrights and qualitative researchers write for the same purpose: to create a unique, insightful, and engaging text about the human condition." Offering sixteen specific questions through which researchers may approach the analysis of longitudinal qualitative data, Professor Saldana presents a text intended as a primer for fellow newcomers to long term inquiry, based on traditional social science methods from traditional qualitative and quantitative paradigms, but enriched by an artist-educator's unconventional perspective.

Change Matters, written by leading scholars committed to social justice in English education, provides researchers, university instructors, and preservice and inservice teachers with a framework that pivots social justice toward policy. The chapters in this volume detail rationales about generating social justice theory in what Freire calls «the revolutionary process» through essays that support research about teaching about the intersections between teaching for social change and teaching about social injustices, and directs us toward the significance of enacting social justice methodologies. The text unpacks how education, spiritual beliefs, ethnicity, age, gender, ability, social class, political beliefs, marital status, sexual orientation, gender expression, language, national origin, and education intersect with the principles by which we live and the multiple identities that we embody as we move from space to space. This book is critical reading for anyone who strives to cease inequitable schooling practices by conducting research in education to inform more just policies.