The Why, How, and Lessons Learned From Meta-Analysis of Action Research

Session Submission Type: Symposium

Abstract

The purpose of this symposium is to compare and investigate emerging themes across three ongoing meta-analyses of action research (AR) studies. Two of the studies focus on action research conducted by master’s degree candidates within universities, and the other is an international study, focused on published action research in education, business, and healthcare. While each researcher applied meta-analytic coding tools germane to her or his particular study, all attempted to synthesize action research findings across many studies. Each researcher gained important new insights from the meta-analysis of action research data but encountered challenges the research team believes are inherent in any analysis across large bodies of action research data that have been collected, analyzed and written up by diverse groups of people. The interactive symposium closes with an examination of how their combined meta-analytic approach led to new insights within a sample drawn from their respective data sets.

Sub Unit

• SIG-Action Research

Chair

• Emily Alana James, Walden University

Papers

• What Did the Teachers Learn That Added Value? A Metathematic Analysis of Action Research Findings - Joseph M. Shosh, Moravian College

• Transformational Change: Personal, Organizational, and Scholarly - Margaret M. Riel, Pepperdine University

• Published Action Research: Living Up to Its Ideals? - Emily Alana James, Walden University

Discussant

• Jean McNiff, York St John University