Qualitative Research in Practice : Stories From the Field - Blogs Unpad

Qualitative research in practice
In industry this process is called ‘technology transfer’ but in
relation to the human services the term does not give sufficient
salience to the contextual features which need to be considered. We
prefer to describe it as a process of transplanting innovation across
different landscapes. The metaphor of taking a plant from the
climatic and soil conditions in which it originally grew and trying
to grow it elsewhere draws awareness to the different contextual
characteristics which must be considered if the transplant is to be
successful. The researcher will need to think carefully about what
needs to be changed to make the program or policy fit the context
into which it is being introduced, while being mindful of the risk of
damaging what might be the core ingredients which make a
program work.
There is obviously a trade-off between maintaining the integrity
of a model and adapting it to fit new contexts. In Dorothy Scott’s
child protection assessment study (outlined in Chapter 2), the
conflict between various organisations in the child protection
system was particularly intense during the period of data collection.
This was precisely why the study investigated inter-organisational
and inter-professional conflict—but by the time the research was
completed, the highly politicised controversies surrounding the
child protection system had diminished. The question then arose as
to how applicable the findings and recommendations were in
relation to the new context.
Thus the generalisability and transferability of research are in
direct proportion to the degree to which the findings are contextbound.
This is true for both quantitative and qualitative research. In
making recommendations researchers need to acknowledge the
possible limitations on the transferability of their studies, while not
minimising the significance of the study’s findings to other settings.
The researcher’s role may go beyond dissemination and making
recommendations. Some human services researchers are actively
involved in a strategic process of developmental research which
Fraser and Leavitt (1990) have described as ‘mission-oriented
research and entrepreneurship’. In developmental research of this
nature the evaluation is just one part of the process described by
Thomas (1978) as consisting of the following phases:
• Analysis (identification of need)
• Development (designing the social technology)
• Evaluation (assessing the program)
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