Rigour in action research 7. Action research References Given the features of action research and the active role Lucy Gilson of the researcher in the process, the three key approaches University of Cape Town, South Africa and London School to ensuring rigour, particularly addressing the possibility of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, United Kingdom of of researcher bias (Meyer, 2001), are: Great Britain and Northern Ireland triangulation across data sources and rich contextu- Action research is one form of emancipatory research. alization of experience It has a long tradition in community and organizational researcher reflexivity development work, for example, including work that member checking, that is the feedback of findings to adopts a systems thinking approach (for example, Luckett participants for their review and reflection. & Grossenbacher, 2003). It is also increasingly being used in quality improvement work in low- and middle-income countries (see for example, work supported by the Institute for Health Improvement Loewenson R et al. (2010). TARSC/ EQUINET, CEGSS, ) SATHI-CEHAT, Experiences of participatory action research and in health policy and systems-related work with com- in building people centred health systems and approaches munities – such as the work on governance issues to universal coverage: Report of the Sessions at the Global supported by the Regional Network on Equity in Health Symposium on Health Systems Research, Montreux, in Southern and Eastern Africa (Loewenson et al., 2010). Switzerland, TARSC, Harare ( However, there are still relatively few published action research studies. , accessed 16 September 2011). Action research is an overarching approach to research. Luckett S, Grossenbacher K (2003). A critical systems ”Essentially action research is concerned with gene- intervention to improve the implementation of a District rating knowledge about a social system, while, at the Health System in Kwa Zulu-Natal. Systems Research and same time, attempting to change it” (Meyer, 2001:173). Behavioural Science, 20:147–162. Sometimes the researchers are those whose practices Meyer J (2001). Action research. In: Fulop N et al., eds. and actions are the subject of inquiry; sometimes exter- Studying the organisation and delivery of health services: nal researchers can support participants to examine their research methods. London, Routledge:172–187. practices and experiences, and also act as facilitators to support the introduction of new practices or interven- tions. Such research is always flexible in character and responsive to participants’ changing needs as findings are repeatedly fed back to them, reflected on and, perhaps, acted on. Action research studies always involve multiple methods, but are mainly qualitative in nature and are often written up as case studies. http://www.ihi.org/IHI/ Programs/StrategicInitiatives/DevelopingCountries.htm http://www.equinetafrica.org /bibl/docs/GSHSR%20PRA%20report%20Dec%20 2010.pdf n n n Part 4 - Empirical Papers 443