You are here

Doing Development Research
Share

Doing Development Research

Edited by:


March 2006 | 336 pages | SAGE Publications Ltd
Doing Development Research is a comprehensive introduction to research in development studies, that provides thorough training for anyone carrying out research in developing countries. It brings together experts with extensive experience of overseas research, presenting an interdisciplinary guide to the core methodologies.

Informed by years of research experience, Doing Development Research draws together many strands of action research and participatory methods, demonstrating their diverse applications and showing how they interrelate. The text provides:

· an account of the theoretical approaches that underlie development work

· an explanation of the practical issues involved in planning development research

· a systematic overview of information and data collecting methods in three sub-sections:

· methods of social research and associated forms of analysis

· using existing knowledge and records

· disseminating findings/research

Using clear and uncomplicated language – illustrated with appropriate learning features throughout - the text guides the researcher through the choice of appropriate methods, the implementation of the research, and the communication of the findings to a range of audiences. This is the essential A-Z of development research.

 
PART ONE: INTRODUCTION
 
The Raison d'etre of Doing Development Research
 
PART TWO: STRATEGIC ISSUES IN PLANNING SOUND RESEARCH
Tony Binns
Doing Fieldwork in Developing Countries
Planning and Logistics

 
Lynne Brydon
Ethical Practices in Doing Development Research
Caesar R A Apentiik and Jane L Parpart
Working in Different Cultures
Issues of Race, Ethnicity and Identity

 
Janet Henshall Momsen
Women, Men and Fieldwork
Gender Relations and Power Structures

 
Lorraine van Blerk
Working with Children in Development
Margaret E Harrison
Collecting Sensitive and Contentious Information
Morten Boas, Kathleen M Jennings and Timothy M Shaw
Dealing with Conflicts and Emergency Situations
Bill Gould
Working with Partners
Educational Institutions

 
Mansoor Ali and Andrew Cotton
Working with Partners
Government Ministries

 
Claire Mercer
Working with Partners
NGOs and CBOs

 
Tim Unwin
Doing Development Studies 'At Home'
 
PART THREE: INFORMATION AND DATA COLLECTION METHODS
 
METHODS OF SOCIAL RESEARCH AND ASSOCIATED FORMS OF ANALYSIS
Linda Mayoux
Quantitative, Qualitative or Participatory
Which Method, for What and When?

 
David Barker
Field Surveys and Inventories
Katie Willis
Interviewing
Sally Lloyd-Evans
Focus Groups
David Simon
Your Questions Answered: Conducting Questionnnaire Surveys
Janet Bujra
Lost in Translation? The Use of Interpreters in Fieldwork
Jan Kees van Donge
Ethnographic and Participant Observation
Harriot Beazley and Judith Ennew
Participatory Methods and Approaches
Tackling the Two Tyrannies

 
JoAnn McGregor
Diaries and Case Studies
 
USING EXISTING KNOWLEDGE AND RECORDS
Paula Meth and Glyn Williams
Literature Reviews and Bibliographic Searches
Cathy McIlwaine
Using the Indigenous Local Knowledge and Literature
Cheryl McEwan
Using Images, Films and Photography
Michael Jennings
Using Archives
Denis Conway and Shanon Donnelly
Remote Sensing, GIS and Ground Truthing
Allan M Findlay
The Importance of Census and Other Secondary Data in Development Studies
Emma Mawdsley
Using the World Wide Web for Development Research
Jonathan Rigg
Data from International Agencies
 
DISSEMINATING FINDINGS/RESEARCH
Steve Morse
Writing an Effective Research Report or Dissertation
Sally Gainsbury and Cheryl Brown
How is Research Communicated Professionally?

"The collection is a tight volume containing the diverse insight of the many years of collective experience of a range of academics."

Lauren Siegman and Jessica Dart
Evaluation Journal of Australasia

Focuses on social research methods in an international development context.

Professor Ryan Higgitt
International Studies , Saint Marys University
November 30, 2015

Doing Development Research by Desai and Potter links the practical component of development work with research. This book enables students to see the link between developmental work in communities and the research component. This book is a must in any student and practitioner's library.

Miss Engela van der klashorst
biokinetics, sport and recreation, University of Pretoria
January 6, 2016

Doing Development Research by Desai and Potter links the practical component of development work with research. This book enables students to see the link between developmental work in communities and the research component.

Miss Engela van der klashorst
biokinetics, sport and recreation, University of Pretoria
March 28, 2016

Once again, Desai and Potter have provided the Development Studies world with an excellent resource for both students, lecturers, supervisors and practitioners. Providing comprehensive insight into the complex dynamics of development research, this book is an essential guide for all.

Dr Samantha Leonard
Department of Development Studies, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University
September 17, 2015

This is an excellent book - find it valuable and have incorporated it into tow postgraduate research modules

Ms Bernadette Snow
Development Studies, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University
November 20, 2013

This very helpful book is packed with practical advice about the opportunities and dangers of undertaking research in a different cultural context.

Jamie Harding
Social Sciences, Northumbria University
August 22, 2013

This book is an excellent resource for students thinking of undertaking research in developing countries at undergraduate or postgraduate levels.

Dr Sarah Jewitt
School of Geography, Nottingham University
November 8, 2012

The book, especially the parts that deals with practical preparation for and realisation of fieldwork and qualitative methods, will be very useful to our students. We present our students with a resource list rather than mandatory readings for the method course, and the book will be on the resource list from next course onwards.

Dr Marit Tjomsland
Centre for Gender Studies, Bergen University
September 24, 2010

This is a very comprehensive and useful book for anyone wanting to conduct research on development issues.

Miss Hayley Wright
SLPS, Uxbridge College
May 4, 2010

Sample Materials & Chapters

Pdf file of Chapter 1

Pdf file of Chapter 2


For instructors

Purchasing options

Please select a format:

ISBN: 9781412902854
£52.00
ISBN: 9781412902847
£167.00

SAGE Research Methods is a research methods tool created to help researchers, faculty and students with their research projects. SAGE Research Methods links over 175,000 pages of SAGE’s renowned book, journal and reference content with truly advanced search and discovery tools. Researchers can explore methods concepts to help them design research projects, understand particular methods or identify a new method, conduct their research, and write up their findings. Since SAGE Research Methods focuses on methodology rather than disciplines, it can be used across the social sciences, health sciences, and more.

With SAGE Research Methods, researchers can explore their chosen method across the depth and breadth of content, expanding or refining their search as needed; read online, print, or email full-text content; utilize suggested related methods and links to related authors from SAGE Research Methods' robust library and unique features; and even share their own collections of content through Methods Lists. SAGE Research Methods contains content from over 720 books, dictionaries, encyclopedias, and handbooks, the entire “Little Green Book,” and "Little Blue Book” series, two Major Works collating a selection of journal articles, and specially commissioned videos.