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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY One of the aims of the National Centre for Research Methods (NCRM) is to identify and foster methodological innovation in the UK. The aim of this project was to identify methodological innovations outside the UK and draw NCRM's attention to them. The project sought out research practices that have not yet filtered through to typical research methods courses or that impact on the research process in novel ways. These usually entailed (i) technological innovation, (ii) the use of existing theoretical approaches and methods in new ways and (iii) interdisciplinary. The project's focus on innovative research practices ranged from data collection to analysis and covered disciplines such as (social) psychology, sociology, social work, socio-legal studies, political science (including public health and public policy) and international studies, (social) geography (area studies, demography, environmental and urban planning), (social) anthropology, (socio-)linguistics, education, communication studies, economic and social history, economics (management and business studies), science and technology studies, statistics, methods and computing. The work was conducted between October 2008 and March 2009 and written up in April and May 2009. The project gathered evidence by reviewing previous reports, carrying out desktop research, conducting an e-mail survey with academics, practitioners, research methods experts and others (N=215) - registering data entries in the form of nominations of experts, institutions and links to explore (N=670) - and holding interviews with gatekeepers (N=36) and telephone interviews with nominated experts (N=40). The project concluded, firstly, that innovative methodologies usually entail the use of one or more technological innovation(s) (visual, digital or online). This could be the advent of new software or the development of online methods and the use of the Internet to conduct research. Secondly, innovative methodologies often entail crossing disciplinary boundaries. This is observed in combinations of disciplines and methods such as in ethnography, anthropology and psychology. Thirdly, innovative methodologies often entail the use of existing theoretical approaches and methods in reformed or mixed and applied ways. This is observed in participatory methods, action research, professional work, social and consultancy work. Finally, innovative methodologies reside both inside traditional academic institutions (universities) and outside (research centres, institutes, consultancy agencies and organisations), yet even in the latter methods developers and experts usually have academic backgrounds and previous or current affiliations, status or posts. Overall, psychology figured prominently in methodological innovations and developments followed by survey methodology, ethnography, sociology and management. These developments were classified into mixed (N=8), qualitative (N=7) and quantitative (N=7) types of research. The institutional structures identified as 'hosting' these developments are primarily Academic followed by both Academic and Professional, then Research Centres and finally Professional and Consultancy institutions. The majority of the innovations are a consequence of working across disciplinary boundaries, followed by developments within methods and disciplines and then by developments in technology. Innovations were mainly spotted in North America – the USA and Canada – Italy, Germany and the Netherlands. The report includes summary descriptions of the methodological innovations located by the project. As a follow up to this project a workshop will be organised to bring together some of the developers and experts identified of these innovations. The workshop is planned to be adjacent to the NCRM Research Methods Festival to be held in July 2010.

The aim of the present study is to throw some lighton the revolutionary contribution of SPSS in current socialsciences research. SPSS (Statistical Package for the SocialSciences) is a widely used program for statisticalanalysis in social science. Computer technology haspermeated every phase of research and experimentation in thesocial sciences; and within related fields such as business andeducation, the computer has become an indispensable tool,from marketing research and consumer behavior to trendanalysis and forecasting. Clearly, it is this single aspect ofcomputing that has enabled social scientists to grasp the trulycomplex nature of human behavior and social organizations.Nevertheless, social scientists have come to involve thecomputer in nearly every component of their research, fromthe literature search, to the implementation of experiments,and to the writing of the manuscript on a word processor. Thecapability of SPSS is truly astounding. SPSS is also used bymarket researchers, health researchers, survey companies,government, education researchers, marketing organizations,data miners, and others. In addition to statistical analysis,data management (case selection, file reshaping, creatingderived data) and data documentation (a metadata dictionarywas stored in the data file) are features of the base software.The package enables the researchers to obtain statisticsranging from simple descriptive numbers to complex analysesof multivariate matrices along with plotting the data inhistograms, scatter plots, and other ways. The SPSS hasreduced the requirement for researchers to be able toundertake several of the calculations that area unit needed forapplied math analyses. Researchers collect massive quantitiesof knowledge, from surveys, experiments and different types ofobservation. An applied math computing package provides aconvenient means that to store this information, and derivedescriptive and inferential statistics. The applied mathPackage for the Social Sciences (SPSS) could be a wide usedall-purpose ...

This paper seeks to synthesize some of the main conclusions a of those who have thought about or studied the uses and limitations of social science research for public policy. The paper is designed to provide some background for a discussion of social science and public policy by government officials, social scientists, and others who are interested in policy research. We deal with the following factors which appear to have influenced the utilization of social science research results: (1) the validity of the scientific approach to social questions, (2) the individual researcher and policy maker and their attitudes toward each other, (3) the communication between researcher and policy maker, (4) the type of research conducted, (5) the type of research organizations involved, (6) the motivation for the research effort, and (7) the nature of the topic being studied. ; Ray Marshall Center for the Study of Human Resources

The UIS RUSSIA (University Information System RUSSIA), www.cir.ru, operates since 2000 as a freely-accessible Internet-based collective digital library for research and education in social sciences. The system maintains holdings of social domain data and documents obtained from primary sources: government, non-governmental organizations and private holders. Currently the system integrates 1.5+ million documents from 60+ collections. Users' increasing demand for additional holdings and the numerous high-quality resources maintained inside the research community have led the UIS RUSSIA team to develop a distributed network of high-quality holdings among participating organizations. The team is sharing the technology created with other participants ready to adopt the software to process their holdings and make the metadata available for the UIS RUSSIA search engine. Cooperation has started with several journals, online sites and other resources. A user may search across these virtually integrated collections and download full text documents from a holder's server. This approach is particularly appropriate for some partners whose information cannot be held on remote servers due to its status or commercial interests. Support and trouble-shooting is provided by the UIS RUSSIA team. The presentation will discuss the progress of this project.

Scholars in literature departments and the social sciences share a broadly similar interest in understanding human development, societal norms, and political institutions. However, although literature scholars are likely to reference sources or concepts from the social sciences in their published work, the line of influence is much less likely to appear the other way around. This unequal engagement provides the occasion for this paper, which seeks to clarify the ways social scientists might draw influence from literary fiction in the development of their own work as academics: selecting research topics, teaching, and drawing inspiration for projects. A qualitative survey sent to 13,784 social science researchers at 25 different universities asked participants to describe the influence, if any, reading works of literary fiction plays in their academic work or development. The 875 responses to this survey provide numerous insights into the nature of interdisciplinary engagement between these disciplines. First, the survey reveals a skepticism among early-career researchers regarding literature's social insights compared to their more senior colleagues. Second, a significant number of respondents recognized literary fiction as playing some part in shaping their research interests and expanding their comprehension of subjects relevant to their academic scholarship. Finally, the survey generated a list of literary fiction authors and texts that respondents acknowledged as especially useful for understanding topics relevant to the study of the social sciences. Taken together, the results of the survey provide a fuller account of how researchers engage with literary fiction than can be found in the pages of academic journals, where strict disciplinary conventions might discourage out-of-the-field engagement.

"In December 2003, the Division of Tuberculosis Elimination (DTBE), National Center for HIV, STD and TB Prevention (NCHSTP), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) convened The Tuberculosis Behavioral and Social Science Research Forum in Atlanta, Georgia. The theme was Planting the Seeds for Future Research. The goals of the Forum were to identify and prioritize TB behavioral and social science research gaps; to use that information to develop a feasible, goal-oriented research agenda that will guide TB behavioral and social science activities over a 5-year period; and to foster productive partnerships and ongoing communications between national, state, and local governmental and nongovernmental behavioral and social science researchers focusing on tuberculosis (TB). The Forum brought together over 60 academicians, researchers, TB controllers and program staff, and CDC representatives. The expectation was that their varied perspectives would contribute to the development of a research agenda addressing high priority behavioral and social aspects of TB prevention and control. The Forum was convened to address the need for further TB behavioral and social science research, as called for in the Institute of Medicine's 2000 report Ending Neglect: The Elimination of Tuberculosis in the United States. The Forum builds on the precedent of a 1994 workshop sponsored by CDC, the National Institutes of Health, and the Health Resources and Services Administration, Tuberculosis and Behavior: National Workshop on Research for the 21st Century." - p. 1 ; Section I. Introduction and Background -- -- Section II. Presentations and Panel Discussions -- Welcome Address: Opening Remarks / Harold Jaffe -- Welcome Address: Behavioral and Social Science Research in Tuberculosis Control / Kenneth Castro -- Welcome Address: Behavioral and Social Sciences in Tuberculosis Elimination / Wanda Walton -- Keynote Session: When Sacred Cows Become the Tiger's Breakfast: Defining A Role for the Social Sciences in Tuberculosis Control / Jessica Ogden -- Keynote Session: Behavior, Society and Tuberculosis Control / Masae Kawamura -- Preliminary Results from the Tuberculosis Behavioral and Social Science Literature Review / Cathy Rawls, Cristina Booker -- Neighborhood Health Messengers: Using Local Knowledge, Trust, and -- Relationships to Create Culturally Effective Tuberculosis Education and Care for Immigrant and Refugee Families / Stefan Goldberg -- Psychosocial, Social Structural, and Environmental Determinants of Tuberculosis Control / Donald E. Morisky -- Community Perspectives in Tuberculosis Control and Elimination: the Personal Experiences of Patients and Providers Panel Discussion / Robin Shrestha-Kuwahara; representatives from DeKalb County and Fulton County Public Health Departments -- Group Discussion of Themes and Issues from Day One / Mark Nichter -- Breakout Group Sessions I: Identifying Research Gaps and Needs -- Turning Research into Practice Panel Discussion / Jane Mezoff -- Sharpening the Focus on Turning Research into Practice: The Promise of Participatory Research Approaches / Shawna Mercer -- Two CDC Models from HIV Prevention: Replicating Effective Programs and Diffusion of Effective Behavioral Interventions / Agatha Eke -- Effective Intervention for Asthma / Leslie Boss -- Potential Funding Opportunities / Kathryn O'Toole -- Closing Remarks: Maintaining the Momentum on Development of a Tuberculosis Research Agenda / Nick DeLuca -- -- Section III. Results of Breakout Groups Sessions -- Identification of Tuberculosis Behavioral and Social Science Research Gaps and Needs -- Outline of Major TB Behavioral and Social Science Research Topics and Subtopics Identified at the Forum -- Descriptions of Major TB Behavioral and Social Science Research Topics and Subtopics Identified at the Forum -- -- Section IV. Appendices -- Appendix A: Forum Agenda -- Appendix B: Presentation Slides -- Appendix C: TB Behavioral and Social Science Research Gaps and Needs: -- Major Research Topics, Subtopics, and Research Questions -- Appendix D: Participant List -- Appendix E: References ; Forum held in Atlanta, GA, December 10-11, 2003. ; Forum Proceedings prepared by the Communications, Education, and Behavioral Studies Branch, Clinical and Health Systems Research Branch, Division of Tuberculosis Elimination, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; Public Health Applications and Research Area, Abt Associates, Inc. ; Title from title screen (viewed on July 8, 2009). ; Mode of access: Internet from the CDC web site. ; Includes bibliographical references (p. 128). ; Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Tuberculosis Behavioral and Social Science Research Forum: Planting the Seeds for Future Research. Proceedings of the Tuberculosis Behavioral and Social Science Research Forum; December 10-11, 2003; Atlanta, GA: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, CDC; 2005.

This analysis indicates that energy, and environmental friendly energy especially, has increased in importance within social science publishing and also in terms of Norwegian participation in national and international research projects. This heightened research interest reflects a stronger focus on environmentally friendly energy in general, in an international context and nationally. The requirements of deploying new energy technologies, reducing energy consumption and building effective and socially sustainable energy markets have to be addressed by politicians, but are also quite visible in international public debate. Social science studies actively contribute to such debate.

The 6th International Conference on Geographical Information Systems Theory, Applications and Management, Online Event, 7-9 May 2020 ; Citizen consumption refers to the goods and services which citizens utilise. This includes time spent on leisure and cultural activities as well as the consumption of necessary and luxury goods and services. The spatial dimension of consumption inequality can show the underlying urban spatial structure and processes of a city. Usually, the main barrier to effectively measuring consumption is the availability and accessibility of spatial data. While the main body of the literature utilises official, government data, such data is not always available, up-to-date or can be costly to acquire. In this paper, we discuss the potential of Volunteered Geographic Information (VGI) as a source of spatial data for determining consumption inequality. To this end, we compared OpenStreetMap (OSM) data, that can be used as proxies for consumption inequality, with official data in the area of Greater London. The results show that OSM is currently inadequate for studying the spatial dimension of consumption. It is our view that while VGI is appropriate for tasks such as routing and navigation, it also has the potential to add value to social science studies in the future. ; European Commission Horizon 2020

Social science research has long been concerned withe ethical issues. Social science investigates complex issues which involve cultural, legal, economic, and political phenomena (Freed-Taylor, 1994). This complexity means that social science research must concern itself with "moral integrity" to ensure that research process and findings are "trustworthy" and valid (Biber, 2005). Research involving human subjects (or 'participants', in the current terminology) is required to show respect for ethical issues by obtaining approval from the institution's Human Research Ethics Committee (HREC) prior to commencement. University policies on research ethics state that all research involving human subjects must comply with the 2007 National Statment on Ethical Conduct in Human Research1. This policy applies to all researchers, including international PhD students enrolled at universities in developed countries but doing research in developing countrie (often their own country of origin). There has been concern, however, that the ethical principles created in developed countries might not be universally appropriate to international PhD students rom developing countries. In developing countries, where societies are often pluralistic, cultural background and security become important issues for social researchers in conducting fieldwork. This state of affairs can lead to the researchers finding it difficult to get letters of permission from the local authorities and may lead to delays in conducting research. ; Australian National University and Leiden University

This paper tries to explore the employment of quantitative approach in political researches focusing on international relations (IR) or international politics. A debate emerged in the90s on whether IR or the field of international politics should be driven by quantitative(positivistic) approach at the expense of qualitative (interpretivist) approach. The debate then expanded to explicitly argue for an increased use of formal methods that are mathematically-based to study IR phenomena. It triggered then a quick reaction fromhardcore IR specialists who warned against mathematizing IR for fear of turning the field into a mechanical field that crunches numbers. Such a fear is further substantiated by theobservation that many quantitative works in IR have moved farther away from developing theory to testing hypotheses. Some scholars have even suggested that it is epistemologicallyrealism vs. instrumentalism; something that is unsurprising given the dominance of realism inIR for many years. This paper does not suggest that heavy emphasis on qualitative approach leads to a inferior research output. However, it does suggest an transformative incapability among IR scholars to accommodate to contemporary global changes. The big-data analyticshave affected the intellectual community of late with the influx of data. These data are bothqualitative and quantitative. Nonetheless, analyzing them requires one to be familiar with quantitative methods lest one risks not being able to offer a research outcome that is not only sound in its argumentation but also robust in its analytical logic. Furthermore, with so much data on the social media, it is almost unthinkable for meaningful interpretation tobe made without even the simplest descriptive statistical methods. The key findings revealthat in ensuring its relevance, international political researches have to start adapting to the contemporary changes by building new capability apart from upscaling existing capacity.

This paper summarises the major insights of a two-year interuniversity research project carried out between 2001 and 2003. The methodological framework gives a central meaning to the domestic and international political context. After building and analysing a database gathering all Belgian academic research relating to migration and ethnic relations from 1989 to 2002, the two most widely researched domains of education and the labour market were thoroughly investigated in order to assess how social research has affected policy-making and agenda-setting in the field of migration and ethnic relations in Belgium. The weight of history and ideology, the importance of disseminating research results, and the role of institutional structures between research and policy-making, are all highlighted as core determinants of the influence of research. The paper also points to the relevance of an analysis aimed at taking into account the role of different factors – political paradigm, political context, specificity of field, etc. – in the process of knowledge utilisation at the political level. Finally, a series of recommendations are made on improving the links between social science research and policy-making in the field of migration and ethnic relations. ; Peer reviewed

This paper introduces the challenges of studying parliamentary institutions in Southeast Asia. My focus of research is in three countries' institutions: national parliaments of Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore. While in Southeast Asia, it is widely known that studying issues of politics and institutions face challenges – compared to studying culture, for example, this view is arguably no longer valid, however with certainqualification.The comparison of parliamentary tradition between three countries – based on observation of the plenary session - reveals that the effectiveness of parliamentary works is related to parliamentary procedure, and even to the culture of work in the countries. Parliamentary structure, procedure and their political culture matters. Therefore, acknowledging these factors will give rise to more research opportunities, if a researcher plans to study the political institution in other countries in Southeast Asia.

This paper introduces the challenges of studying parliamentary institutions in Southeast Asia. My focus of research is in three countries' institutions: national parliaments of Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore. While in Southeast Asia, it is widely known that studying issues of politics and institutions face challenges – compared to studying culture, for example, this view is arguably no longer valid, however with certain qualification. The comparison of parliamentary tradition between three countries – based on observation of the plenary session - reveals that the effectiveness of parliamentary works is related to parliamentary procedure, and even to the culture of work in the countries. Parliamentary structure, procedure and their political culture matters. Therefore, acknowledging these factors will give rise to more research opportunities, if a researcher plans to study the political institution in other countries in Southeast Asia. ; peerReviewed

In this essay, I propose an analytical model, 'zones of intermediality', designed to research socio-cultural dynamics in foreign large-scale land projects. 'Zones of intermediality' refers to the ontological grids of (inter)national-local stakeholder encounters where diverse ideologies, discourses and practices of land use and valuation are mediated. The model was constructed to analyze conceptual similarities and differences between and within stakeholder groups in such land projects. Just as local 'communities' are composed of people with varied social realities, economies, political relations, knowledge, views and perceptions, so are other stakeholder groups. Researchers are not immune to such realities. The subjectivity and epistemologycal rooting of the researcher impact on what he or she sees in the field and what is eventually reported in research publications. Thus, the essay argues for a reflection on these processes in view of the fact that we ourselves mediate representations of 'local' people to academic and non-academic audiences. I hope that the 'zones of intermediality' model will be useful in facilitating such reflections. RÉSUMÉ Dans cet article, je propose de considérer un modèle analytique dénommé 'zones d'intermédialité' conçu pour faire progresser les outils de recherche des dynamiques socioculturelles associées avec des projets d'acquisition foncière de grande envergure en Afrique continentale et à Madagascar. Le modèle 'zones d'intermédialité' s'inscrit dans des grilles ontologiques de rencontres d'intervenants (inter)nationaux à locaux dans lesquelles divers idéologies, discours et pratiques ont une influence sur l'utilisation des terres et sur l'évaluation foncière. Le modèle a été conçu pour procéder à une analyse détaillée des différences et des similarités entre et au sein de tels projets d'acquisition foncière. Au même titre que les 'communautés' locales sont constituées de personnes avec des réalités sociales, économiques et politiques différentes, et que cette diversité a un effet sur leur opinion et leurs perceptions, convient-il de préciser que ces diverses réalités s'imposent également aux autres groupes d'intervenants et même aux chercheurs qui ne sont pas indifférents à de telles réalités. Les racines subjectives et épistémologiques du chercheur influencent ce qu'il observe sur le terrain et ce qu'il rapporte ultérieurement dans ses publications. C'est pour toutes ces raisons que j'invite à une réflexion sur ces procédés dans la mesure où nous sommes nous-mêmes amenés à influencer les représentations des gens locaux destinés à un public universitaire ou non. J'espère que le modèle 'zones d'intermédialité' facilitera de telles réflexions.

Governments mandate their National Statistics Offices to collect empirical data to determine appropriate policies. Re-use of this data for research can provide input regarding the effectiveness of government action. In Western Europe and North America policies and institutions support the efficient collection and sharing of official data for research purposes. In Africa the sharing of government microdata is constrained by several obstacles. African National Statistics Offices have limited resources to curate microdata and ensure its long-term availability. Consequently many African data producers do not follow international best practice with regard to survey data management or share the microdata from the surveys they conduct. This was confirmed by a survey conducted in order to investigate the availability of survey microdata from African National Statistics Offices for research. A further obstacle to access to government microdata in Africa is inadequate producer-user communication channels. Concerns around the confidentiality of respondent information also present a barrier to data usage for research, as does the bureaucratic nature of government institutions involved in data production in African countries. Access to official microdata for research requires sound data usage policies driven by African decision-makers who appreciate the role of information utilisation in national development.