scholarly journals A Little Less Conversation, a Little More Action: Participatory Insider Action Research in an Executive Team

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Kenefick ◽  
Melrona Kirrane
Keyword(s):  
Action Research ◽  
Intellectual Disabilities ◽  
Executive Committee ◽  
Power Dynamics ◽  
Publicly Funded ◽  
The Core ◽  
Executive Team ◽  
Insider Action Research ◽  
People With Intellectual Disabilities

AbstractIn this paper, we describe a Participatory Insider Action Research (PIAR) intervention within the Executive Committee (EC) of a large publicly funded service for people with intellectual disabilities. I was a member of this EC and had been for 20 years. The intervention ran over a two-year period and comprised three cycles of PIAR. We addressed two specific organisational issues but our work did not deliver change in these areas in a substantial sense. We identify power dynamics and role duality challenges as the core factors that contributed to this outcome and describe their effects in this under-researched domain. We finish by offering some advice for future researchers undertaking initiatives of this nature.

scholarly journals Power and Politics in New Service Development: An Insider Action Research Study

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katrin Dreyer-Gibney ◽  
David Coghlan ◽  
Paul Coughlan
Keyword(s):  
Action Research ◽  
Political Action ◽  
Service Development ◽  
Power Dynamics ◽  
New Service Development ◽  
Development Activity ◽  
Political Tactics ◽  
Service Staff ◽  
Insider Action Research ◽  
Action Researcher

AbstractThis paper examines power dynamics and political challenges which an insider action researcher without line authority or formal power encountered while leading cross-functional New Service Development (NSD) initiatives in a traditional, publicly funded university. NSD, as any development activity, faces competing interests in organisations and often power dynamics and political tactics which may impede service actors’ development endeavours. The paper describes and reflects on how an insider action researcher together with service staff, managers and directors, conducted several different types of NSD initiatives. The paper draws on insider action research (IAR) principles, which engage theory with practice, and action with reflection. The study was carried out over an extended time period of almost three years. The paper concludes with a framework for addressing power dynamics and political action, identifying tactics available to service development actors when engaging in NSD.

Collaborative case report: participatory action research into using EQUIP to support community discharge

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 23-34
Author(s):  
Shaw Tearle ◽  
Sam S. ◽  
Rachel R. Holt
Keyword(s):  
Case Report ◽  
Intellectual Disability ◽  
Action Research ◽  
Intellectual Disabilities ◽  
Participatory Action Research ◽  
Service User ◽  
Mild Intellectual Disability ◽  
Participatory Action ◽  
Content Type ◽  
People With Intellectual Disabilities

Purpose There is a need to evaluate an adapted Equipping Youth to help One Another (EQUIP) programme for people with intellectual disabilities and forensic needs. The purpose of this paper is to explore a service user’s experience of completing the intervention as part of their transition into the community. Design/methodology/approach A collaborative case report was used. Following hospital discharge and completion of the adapted EQUIP programme, one service user with mild intellectual disability was supported to share their treatment experiences using participatory action research. Findings Findings suggest that while the adapted community EQUIP group can support skills acquisition (e.g. problem-solving), discharge processes and community reintegration, professionals need to maintain a person-centred approach mindful of participants’ complex emotional journeys. Research limitations/implications The design allows for tentative conclusions to be made about the service user’s journey and is not necessarily generalisable. Practical implications There is a pressing need to develop the evidence base for interventions offered in the community to people with intellectual disabilities and a history of offending. This report provides some evidence that EQUIP can be adapted to support this population. Originality/value This is the first coproduced publication exploring the experience of a service user with intellectual disability who completed an adapted EQUIP programme.

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