From research to practice: Research-based Intervention Development in social work: developing practice through cooperative knowledge production

Abstract

There is a widespread consensus in social work that social work practice should be based on research. However, conceptualising how research and practice are interrelated is still evolving and a subject for debate. With little exception, existing concepts and models almost invariably fail to include explicit development processes. In contrast, Researchbased Intervention Development conceptualises the interrelation between research and practice in terms of development processes that bridge research and professional action. This essay first outlines Research-based Intervention Development. This concept has been designed to establish a procedure that guides the working process from the findings of scientific research to new social work interventions. It foregrounds development work, and places a so-called Practice Optimisation Cycle at the centre of the model. Then, Correspondence to: Daniel Gredig, University of Applied Sciences Northwestern Switzerland, School of Social Work, Riggenbachstrasse 16, CH-4600 Olten, Switzerland. Tel.: '41 (0)62 311 96 76; Fax: '41 (0)62 311 96 21.secondly, an illustrative example of a Practice-Optimisation-Cycle process is presented together with an initial evaluation of this procedure.In der Sozialen Arbeit besteht inzwischen ein Konsens, dass sich professionelles Handeln auf wissenschaftliches Wissen und insbesondere auf sozialwissenschaftliche Forschungsergebnisse abstützen soll. Die Diskussion über eine angemessene konzeptionelle Fassung des Verhältnisses von Forschung und Praxis ist hingegen nicht abgeschlossen. Ein Blick auf die vorliegenden Konzeptionen und Modelle der Vermittlung von Forschung und Praxis lässt deutlich werden, dass diese bis auf wenige Ausnahmen keine Prozesse der Entwicklung vorsehen. Im Gegensatz hierzu räumt das Modell der Forschungsbasierten Interventionsentwicklung kooperativen Entwicklungsprozessen bei der Verbindung von Forschung und Praxis eine tragende Rolle ein. Kern dieses Verfahrens stellt der PraxisOptimierungs-Zyklus dar. Dieser Beitrag wird das Modell der Forschungsbasierten Interventionsentwicklung beschrieben und die Erfahrungen aus einem Projekt vorstellen, bei dem ein Praxis-Optimierungs-Zyklus implementiert und evaluiert wurde.

Prevalence and predictors of homophobic behavior among high school students in Switzerland

“…For this, context-adequate and culturally meaningful interventions are needed. For the adaptation of effective interventions as well as for the design and development of new and context-specific interventions, it is necessary to draw on a well-founded understanding of the mechanisms underlying homophobic behavior (Gredig, 2011). In the language of intervention research, which is specific to the United States, a sound problem theory is needed (Fraser, Richman, Galinsky, & Day, 2009).…”

Building digital workforce capacity and skills for data-intensive science

“…Assessment of the skills needs for data intensive science, can also have broader implications for research governance. For example, the importance of ethics and legal issues has implications not only for researchers and research support professionals but also for the composition of Institutional Review Boards (Grant and Bouskill, 2019 [29]; OECD, 2016 [30]).…”

Linking transdisciplinary research projects with science and practice at large: Introducing insights from knowledge utilization

“…Transdisciplinary research projects run disorderly through these five phases and extend progressively their boundaries into the realms of both science and practice when assessing and disseminating new knowledge. As acknowledged in the knowledge utilization literature, the key elements to bridge the 'project-to-science-and-practice-at-large gap' are informal and formal linkage mechanisms between the project team and intended target groups in both science and practice (Gredig, 2011;Landry et al, 2001b). Ideally, these linkage mechanisms transcend all phases of an ideal-typical transdisciplinary research process.…”

“…Different types and sources of scientific and practical knowledge need to be combined and related to one another to produce a 'hybrid sphere of knowledge' in which boundaries between science and practice are blurred or even dissolved. The figure is adapted from Jahn et al (2012), Lang et al (2012), Pohl et al (2017), andGredig (2011).…”