紀伊國屋書店

基本説明

Published in association with The Open University.

Full Description

Finding Out Fast provides readers with key skills and approaches for research designed to inform policies, particularly on development.Recognizing that policy decisions are typically made under pressure of time and on the basis of incomplete data or with limited resources with which to obtain information, the authors provide guidance on how to locate, evaluate and use relevant information, fast.They explain and critically review a variety of research methods for `finding out fast', in the belief that these methods can still be rigorous. Finding Out Fast will assist readers to become competent investigators, to understand how to use research more effectively and how to commission and critically evaluate research done by others.This book is essential reading for development managers in non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and public sector agencies and students of development management and development studies more generally. However, the ideas and approaches will also appeal to anyone involved in policy making and research with developmental goals.It is a course text for two courses in the Open University Global Programme in Development Management: Capacities for Managing Development (TU870) and the Development Management Project (TU874).

Contents

Introduction - Alan ThomasPART ONE: CONCEPTUALISING POLICY-RELATED INVESTIGATIONInformation Needs and Policy Change - Stephen Potter and Ramya SubrahmanianBoundaries for Thinking and Action - Chris Blackmore and Ray IsonGrabbing Attention - Joseph HanlonPART TWO: THINKING WITH PAPERHow to Do a Literature Study - Stephanie BarrientosInterpreting Institutional Discourses - Bridget O'LaughlinPART THREE: THINKING WITH PEOPLE AND ORGANIZATIONSPeople as Informants - Philip WoodhouseInvestigation as Empowerment - Hazel Johnson and Linda MayouxUsing Participatory MethodsOrganizational Assessment and Institutional Footprints - Chris RocheDilemmas of Researching Poverty - Dina AbbottCommunicating Results - Joanna Chataway and Avril JoffePART FOUR: THINKING WITH DATAThinking with Quantitative Data - Chandan Mukherjee and Marc WuytsAnalysing Institutional Accounts - Geoff JonesCritical Issues in Using Data - Sue MayerChallenging Cases - Alan ThomasConclusion - Alan Thomas and Joanna ChatawayPersonal Effectiveness and Integrity