An Assessment of the Scientific Merits of Action Research

1. An Assessment of the Scientific Merits of Action Research Gerald I. Susman & Roger D. Evered Presented by: Scott Hendrickson Influenced by Peter Axel Nielsen’s Action Research in IS

2. Crisis in Organizational Science Crisis in the field of organizational science because… Research methods and techniques have become increasingly less useful for solving practical, organizational problems Failure to recognize latent values behind the claim to neutrality about how knowledge is generated Research lacks relevance to problems faced in real world (separation of theory from practice) Really a crisis of epistemology due to adoption of a positivist model of science Epistemology - The branch of philosophy that studies the nature of knowledge, its presuppositions and foundations, and its extent and validity. Epistemology - The branch of philosophy that studies the nature of knowledge, its presuppositions and foundations, and its extent and validity.

3. What is Positivist Science Positivist science considers scientific knowledge to be obtainable only from sense data that can be directly experienced and verified between independent parties The world exists a priori as a unified and causally organized system The structure of the world can be inferred from empirical observation Data can be logically reconstructed into laws (without regard to associated human meaning) World can be hierarchically organized supporting induction and deduction

4. Deficiencies of Positivist Science Deficient in its capacity to generate knowledge for use by members of organizations for solving the problems they face because of the following assumptions: Methods are value neutral Treats persons as objects of study Eliminates the role of history in the generation of knowledge A system is entirely defined by its denotative language Knowledge of inquirer can be excluded from an understanding of how knowledge is generated However, methods requires prediction and control of objects of study However, people are subjects and initiators of action in their own right However, individuals and organizations are not born in an instant However, any representation is always less than the actual system However, positivist science itself is a product of the human mind However, methods requires prediction and control of objects of study However, people are subjects and initiators of action in their own right However, individuals and organizations are not born in an instant However, any representation is always less than the actual system However, positivist science itself is a product of the human mind

5. Solution: Action Research Action research as a corrective to the deficiencies of positivist science... is future oriented is collaborative implies system development generates theory grounded in action is agnostic is situational Human beings are recognized as purposeful systems, the actions of which are guided by goals, objectives, and ideals Requires research and client to clarify and represent their ethics and values to assess jointly planned actions The infrastructure generated alleviates immediate problematic situation, and generates new knowledge about the system process Takes action guided by theory and evaluates its consequences, supporting or refuting theory Recognizes that researcher theories and prescriptions for actions for action are a product of previously taken action. Relationships are often contextual and not invariant.Human beings are recognized as purposeful systems, the actions of which are guided by goals, objectives, and ideals Requires research and client to clarify and represent their ethics and values to assess jointly planned actions The infrastructure generated alleviates immediate problematic situation, and generates new knowledge about the system process Takes action guided by theory and evaluates its consequences, supporting or refuting theory Recognizes that researcher theories and prescriptions for actions for action are a product of previously taken action. Relationships are often contextual and not invariant.

6. Action Research It aims to contribute to the practical concerns of people in an immediate problematic situation, the goals of social science, and to develop the self-help competencies of people facing problems by joint collaboration within a mutually acceptable ethical framework A cyclical process with five phases: diagnosing action planning action taking evaluating specifying learning in order to develop a client-system infrastructure diagnosing, identifying, or defining a problem action planning, considering alternative courses of action for solving a problem action taking, selecting a course of action evaluating, studying the consequences of an action specifying learning, identifying general findings diagnosing, identifying, or defining a problem action planning, considering alternative courses of action for solving a problem action taking, selecting a course of action evaluating, studying the consequences of an action specifying learning, identifying general findings

7. Cyclical Process of AR

8. Is Action Research Scientific? No, when judged by positivist science It doesn’t meet the “covering law” criterion Actions derive meaning from the end pursued, not prior associations Planned interventions and social systems cause variables to be dependent on context Actions are seldom discrete events Covering law: whether relationships between actions and their consequences can be explained as particular cases falling under more general laws governing types of actions and their consequences... basis for deduction-nomological: it will always happen in these situations induction-statistical: it will happen with this probabilityCovering law: whether relationships between actions and their consequences can be explained as particular cases falling under more general laws governing types of actions and their consequences... basis for deduction-nomological: it will always happen in these situations induction-statistical: it will happen with this probability

9. Is Action Research Scientific? Yes, given different philosophical viewpoints Praxis: the art of acting upon the conditions one faces in order to change them Hermeneutics: the interpretation of languages, culture, and history (no knowledge is possible without presupposition) Existentialism: asserts the importance of human choice and values, with respect to action, avoids causal explanations Pragmatism: shifted the criterion of truth to the practical consequences for adopting a particular stmt. Process philosophies: you cannot step into the same social system twice, organizations constantly change, they are different Phenomenology: insists on the primacy of immediate subjective experience is the basis for knowledge It generates knowledge which is contingent on a particular situation and which develops the capacity of members of an organization to solve their own problems

10. Alternate Criteria and Methods Positivist Science Explanation Prediction Deduction and induction Detachment Contemplation Action Research Understanding Making things happen Conjectures Engagement Action E vs. U – Reliance on an empirical base alone for explaining behavior can lead an observer to search for a cause of an action taken. Hence, changes in behavior are sought through manipulation of the cause of the behavior instead of through the consent and understanding of the those who whose behavior is to be changed P vs. M – Researcher is sole possessor of knowledge and originator of action, vs. Researcher coproduces solutions through collaboration D vs. C – Pierce criticized Deduction because he felt that it offered no new knowledge about the world as one uses it only to work out the consequences of what’s already known Popper criticized induction as not being a basis for significant advances “Q: Why does ice float on water? A: because it always does” Conjecture, uses pattern recognition to make assumptions and then test those assumptions by taking action on them D vs. E – engaging in the organization may be the most effective means for making the knowledge of the researcher really useful C vs. A – because the world is not logically constructed, only the most trivial of consequences can be known Instead, taking action is necessary to gain knowledge and E vs. U – Reliance on an empirical base alone for explaining behavior can lead an observer to search for a cause of an action taken. Hence, changes in behavior are sought through manipulation of the cause of the behavior instead of through the consent and understanding of the those who whose behavior is to be changed P vs. M – Researcher is sole possessor of knowledge and originator of action, vs. Researcher coproduces solutions through collaboration D vs. C – Pierce criticized Deduction because he felt that it offered no new knowledge about the world as one uses it only to work out the consequences of what’s already known Popper criticized induction as not being a basis for significant advances “Q: Why does ice float on water? A: because it always does” Conjecture, uses pattern recognition to make assumptions and then test those assumptions by taking action on them D vs. E – engaging in the organization may be the most effective means for making the knowledge of the researcher really useful C vs. A – because the world is not logically constructed, only the most trivial of consequences can be known Instead, taking action is necessary to gain knowledge and

11. Contribution of Action Research Contributes differently to the growth of knowledge than Positivist Science Guides: or action principles as opposed to rules Practics: techniques providing know-how Enabling: develops interpersonal and problem solving skills, competence, Infrastructure: researcher acquires increasing skills of developing organizational infrastructure Collaboration: enlarges domain of inquiry from them to us

12. Comparisons of PS and AR

13. Questions? Do you buy the argument for AR as a Science? Are the differences of AR from PS strengths or weaknesses? Explanation, Prediction, Deduction and induction, Detachment, Contemplation Understanding, Making things happen, Conjectures, Engagement, Action Can PS be used in conjunction with AR? Should AR be use on other types of systems? Is PS only appropriate for a very limited set of phenomena?