Chapter 7 Critical Approaches to Research: Action and Feminist Research Winston Jackson and Norine...

Chapter 7Critical Approaches to Research: Action and Feminist Research

Winston Jackson and Norine Verberg

Methods: Doing Social Research, 4e

7-2 © 2007 Pearson Education Canada

Critical Research

Social change orientation of critical schools See inequality as rooted in exploitative social

relations Advocate greater equality Advocate sociopolitical and structural change

Examples of critical schools Marxism Feminism Action research


Core “Methodologic Themes” Common to All Critical Approaches

1. Research topic concerns disadvantaged, oppressed, marginalized group

2. Research process/results have the potential to benefit the marginalized group

3. Researcher’s assumptions are made explicit and examined

4. Prior scholarship is critiqued to expose bias

5. Researchers and participants interact as collaborators (Berman, Ford-Gilboe & Campbell)


The Premise of Critical Research – Knowledge Is a Political ProcessWe live in a world in which knowledge is used to

maintain oppressive relations. Information is interpreted and organized in such a way that the views of a small group of people are presented as objective knowledge, as “The Truth.” We believe that Maria Meis was right when she said that “Research, which so far has been largely the instrument of dominance and legitimation of power elites, must be brought to serve the interests of dominated, exploited, and oppressed groups.” (Kirby and McKenna)


Research by, for, and with Participants

Advocate “research from the margins” “Research from the margins is not research on

people from the margins, but research by, for, and with them.”

Identifies social change as a specific goal or outcome of research (Kirby and McKenna)


Which Research Method or Research Design Should Be Used? Considerable debate and disagreement Many critical researchers reject positivist

assumptions (i.e., objective and value free) Hence, some reject quantitative methods

Others agree with the critique of positivism but believe quantitative research designs are useful for exposing social inequality

Critical researchers employ quantitative or qualitative methods, or both


Which Research Method or Research Design? (cont’d)

Many emphasize “methodological triangulation” – i.e., use several methods “Stories and numbers” – qualitative + quantitative

E.g., Browne used a quasi-experimental design to measure impact of interventions on parents and children living on social assistance and a cost analysis of providing the assistance In addition to showing that the interventions had a

positive impact, showed them to be cost effective Argue that “numbers” can impact policy reform


Institutional Ethnography

A relatively new critical method Developed by Dorothy Smith Explores how everyday life is organized Focuses on the way structural conditions

influence consciousness e.g., examine how texts shape and reproduce

social relations (texts refer to the organizational features of institutions: school policy, workplace regulations, government policy, etc.)

Adopted by many feminists


Action Research

Action research proceeds in cyclical stages that involve planning, implementing, reflecting, and evaluating, and it involves collaboration between researchers and participants throughout the entire process

Action research: Is educative Deals with individuals as members of social groups Is problem-focused, context-specific, and future-

oriented Involves a change intervention (cont’d)


Action Research (cont’d)

Action research: Aims at improvement and involvement Involves a cyclic process in which research,

action, and evaluation are interlinked Is founded on a research relationship in which

those involved are participants in the change process

Participatory Action Research (PAR) is a subset of action research. Has three elements: research, adult education,

and sociopolitical action


Steps in Action Research

Entry into the community Assessment of the situation Planning for research and action Implementation of plan and reflection Evaluation of the implementation Report and reassessment Planning future action


Challenges in Conducting Action Research

Involving community members as members of the research team

Understanding and respecting diversity of values, perspectives, and abilities among community members and researchers

Ensuring that all members of the research team are sensitive and responsive to the needs of different forms and types of leadership at different stages of the research process

Action research takes a great deal of time


Strengths of Action Research

Offers opportunities for researchers to plan, implement, and evaluate change simultaneously

Empowers participants Researchers gain practical knowledge;

participants gain research skills, political knowledge, and a sense of empowerment


Example: Kim Travers

Conducted participatory action research Goal: to initiate nutrition education as well as

to explain the social organization that permitted nutritional inequalities among socially disadvantaged women and their families Involved women attending a Parent Centre Explored women’s experiences shopping for food

Women initiated actions to address nutritional inequalities


Feminist Research

Feminists share many views but differ on key issues: hence, may say there are feminisms

Shared assumptions and orientations: Value women and their experiences, ideas, and

needs See phenomena from the perspective of women Recognize the existence of conditions that oppress

women Desire to change conditions through research leading

to political action


Feminist Research

Uses a variety of quantitative and qualitative methods, but more emphasis on qualitative methods including in-depth interviews, oral histories, comparative and field studies

Emphasis on subjectivity and the personal experiences of the participants

Data are analyzed within the context of women’s lives in such a way that women are empowered rather than portrayed in ways that stereotype them


Feminist Values

Women’s subjective experiences The context in women’s lives Relationship between researcher and

participant Inclusion of diverse women


Feminist Research Questions

Issues that are of primary concern to women Encourage women to report their experiences in

their own voices Allow for a structural analysis of the conditions

of women’s lives with a goal of improving the conditions E.g., accessing health care, women’s work,

women’s health, poverty, motherhood


Role of the Researcher

Non-hierarchical, reciprocal relationship Views self as a partner with participants

Vulnerable one, shares experiences and emotions with participants as team member

Reflexivity is expected of the researcher


Types of Data Collection

Oral history interviewing Multiple in-depth interviews Participant observation Focus group interviews Structured/semi-structured interview guides Documents such as diaries, letters, photos Questionnaires and indexes


Approaches to Data Analysis

Content is analyzed in terms of artifacts produced by women, about women, for women

Patriarchy and ethnocentric bias are major themes examined in the analysis

Participants are active partners in the data analysis process


Reporting Findings

Use descriptive, non-sexist language Portray women’s voices Provide a structural analysis of the everyday

lives of women Avoid academic jargon; make findings

accessible to all women, not just academics Include an analysis of the role of the

researcher


Feminist Activism and Research in Atlantic Coastal Communities

Linda Christiansen-Ruffman conducted feminist-based participatory action research with women living in coastal communities during the closure of the cod fishery

Notes that women had been excluded from the decision-making process

Many women did not qualify for the compensation package because their work was not recognized


Feminist Activism and Research in Atlantic Coastal Communities (cont’d) Women in coastal communities established

Nova Scotia Women’s FishNet Women saw the need to become organized

and engage in planning by, for, and with the local communities

Rejected the official response Produced fact sheets and an action plan for

women in coastal communities Response reflected their more holistic

understanding of coastal communities


Advantages and Limitations

Advantages Provides opportunity to make research

methods available to communities In the case of feminism, it redresses a gender

bias in past research Limitations

Many challenges to working with community groups: time consuming, need for reflection on process, roles, values, etc.

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