Purpose: Critical realism is an increasingly popular "lens" through which complex events, entities and phenomena can be studied. Yet detailed operationalisations of critical realism are at present relatively scarce. This study's objective here is built on existing debates by developing an open systems model of reality, a basis for…

Network analysis is a method used to explore the structural relationships between people or organizations, and more recently between psychological constructs. Network analysis is a novel technique that can be used to model psychological constructs that influence language learning as complex systems, with longitudinal data, or cross-sectional data.…

Purpose: Qualitative researchers are often confronted with a dilemma of selecting an appropriate approach within which to situate their research. This has led to successive attempts by qualitative researchers in the built environment (BE) to combine two dominant approaches -- deductive and inductive; in the conduct of their inquiry. Such attempts…

Complexity theories have in common perspectives that challenge linear methodologies and views of causality. In educational research, relatively little has been written explicitly exploring their implications for educational research methodology in general and case study in particular. In this paper, I offer a rationale for case study as a research…

This article summarizes a comprehensive, systems-oriented framework designed to improve the use of a wide variety of evidence sources to address population-wide obesity problems. The L.E.A.D. framework (for "Locate" the evidence, "Evaluate" the evidence, "Assemble" the evidence, and inform "Decisions"),…

This dual case study utilizes qualitative research methods to examine the experiences of two mothers of young children with special needs. Over the course of ten months, the researcher spent many hours interviewing both mothers about their experiences with Early Intervention (EI) professionals. Observations of medical appointments, team meetings,…

Language teacher cognition research is a growing field. In recent years several features of language teacher cognitions have been noted: they can be complex, ranging over a number of different subjects; they can be dynamic, changing over time and under different influences; and they can be systems, forming unified and cohesive personal or…

Purpose: As a highly heterogeneous group, seniors live in complex environments influenced by multiple physical and social structures that affect their safety. Until now, the major approach to falls research has been person centered. However, in industrial settings, the individuals involved in an accident are seen as the inheritors of system…

Discusses experimental work with computer-simulated microworlds as a means for overcoming the tension between laboratory research and field research in psychology. Topics addressed include characteristics of microworlds; examples of microworlds; and three approaches to research with microworlds, including the individual differences approach, case…

Focuses on alternative paradigms to experimental inquiry useful to instructional systems researchers, including quasi-experimentation, meta-analysis, case study and ethnography, systems-based evaluation, and technique and model development. Each is discussed in terms of how it generally applies in the field and how it has been employed by…

This book is divided into four chapters. The first examines the concepts and issues related to understanding social systems and how the schools can be viewed as a social system. The differences between centralization and decentralization, as well as systems-analysis and management-control approaches are also explored. In the next chapter, we are…

The University of Colorado, under contract with the Office of Educational Research and Improvement (OERI), is conducting a study of curriculum reform in science, mathematics, and higher order thinking across the disciplines. This paper provides some of the background for this research as well as information on the conceptual framework and design…

This bibliography lists over 1,400 publications on distance education primarily from the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s. The selection criterion is what the compiler, a scholar and a practitioner, found relevant. Books in English dominate; a considerable number of works in German are listed; and some in French, Spanish, and Scandinavian languages are…

The impact of government policy initiatives on public-sector further education (FE) and FE lecturers in the United Kingdom was examined through a case study of a small group of full-time creative arts lecturers at a large urban FE college. A qualitative research approach was used. Data were collected through the following methods: participant…

This document presents the key principles underpinning effective evaluations as applied to policy initiatives in the field of lifelong learning (LL) and the various methods available to implement them. The following are among the topics discussed in Chapters 1-6: (1) the distinction between monitoring, modeling, and evaluation and considerations…