National Centre for Research Methods 2020-2024

Lead Research Organisation: University of Southampton
Department Name: Sch of Economic, Social & Political Sci

Abstract

Social science transforms our understanding of the world, underpins the development and evaluation of public policy and business practice and informs national and international debate on matters of social, economic and political importance. While the quality of empirical research clearly depends on many factors, methodology and methods are critical. The ways in which social scientists collect, analyse and interpret social and economic data need to reflect rapid changes such as the emergence of new types and sources of data, the need for interdisciplinary working, qualitative data being produced and analysed at scale and the emergence of machine learning and Artificial Intelligence as new methodological frameworks. Such diversification and proliferation poses significant challenges to the robustness of our science, as does the pace of change. Hence, training social scientists to a high standard in using appropriate, and sometimes new, research methods is of vital and increasing importance.
The proposed National Centre for Research Methods (NCRM) will deliver a comprehensive programme of cutting-edge research methods training across the UK. It will advance methodological understanding and practice across all sectors, disciplines and career stages, and closely engage with key stakeholders, coordinating and enhancing research methods training and capacity building (TCB). The principal aim of the Centre is to increase research methods capability in the social sciences through TCB activities in the application of core and advanced research techniques. It will provide a vehicle for capturing methodological developments from the wider community, both within the social sciences and beyond, and drive them through to capacity building maturity.
The NCRM will be delivered by a partnership of three internationally leading centres of methodological excellence: the Universities of Southampton, Manchester and Edinburgh. This partnership will be significantly enhanced and expanded to include strategically selected Centre partner institutions who, through a nominated NCRM senior fellow, will deliver training locally to ensure geographical and subject expertise diversity. The nine institutions are UCL, NatCen, WISERD, Bristol, Exeter, Essex, Leeds, Liverpool and Glasgow. Effective engagement with key stakeholders will be at the core of all activities, including relevant ESRC investments, government departments, third-sector organisations and with business and industry. There will be several mechanisms for delivering this, e.g. to expand the data resource training network, cross-sectoral involvement in capacity building innovation fora, and through the Centre's Advisory Board. Opportunities for further funding streams and sustainable growth will be explored.
Building on the successful training programme developed and delivered by NCRM, the new NCRM will introduce innovative developments in the structure, content and delivery of training activities. It will comprise four core activities:
1. A programme of innovative face-to-face, blended and online learning in social science research methods delivered where it is needed.
2. A TCB innovation pipeline: a horizon scanning function which blends training needs analysis, systematic audit, knowledge creation and innovation fora to identify areas of methodological innovation with subsequent targeted training and resource development to build capacity in identified domains.
3. A new online learning portal including online learning content and information resources. The NCRM will provide a range of interactive content with a mixture of standalone instant access materials (including e-books, videos, interactive slide decks) through to whole modules based within a VLE.
4. National leadership in social science methods training; engaging, collaborating and co-ordinating activity and providing fora for other trainers.

Planned Impact

Who will benefit? A broad range of academic and non-academic users will benefit from the high quality training and resources in core and advanced social science research methods provided by NCRM. This includes researchers at all career stages, from disciplines within and beyond the social sciences, and from across all sectors, including those working in central and local government, the Office for National Statistics, public and third sector organisations, commercial and not-for-profit data collection agencies and in commercial and market research industries. The direct beneficiaries will be people conducting research, including doctoral researchers. Teachers and trainers of social science research methods will also benefit significantly from the coordination and support of their pedagogic development. Indirect beneficiaries include people planning or commissioning cutting-edge research to address social issues and policy-makers and stakeholders.
How will they benefit? Researchers will benefit by being able to: - Learn new research methods skills, keep up with the latest developments, and refresh and update understanding of core techniques through a flexible programme of face-to-face, blended and online training resources developed and delivered by internationally leading researchers, supported by pedagogic expertise. - Expand their methods competencies, which will help to deliver robust research projects. - Access training at affordable rates in accessible locations throughout the UK. - Access online resources and subscribe for up-to-date information on particular methods and events. - Participate in 'bring your own data' sessions and training using authentic data, available through UKDS, to resolve authentic research challenges.
Teachers and trainers of research methods will benefit from being part of a pedagogic community, accessing debates and materials and conducting teacher inquiry to enrich their practice. Students of research methods will benefit from the ways in which this pedagogic culture will make training increasingly engaging and effective. Given the need for lifelong learning and continuous skills development and training in the face of challenges arising from new technology and new sources of data, the training programme of the NCRM and the coordinated ESRC training investments will have direct impacts on the UK economy through improved employability skills and employment opportunities.
Finally, the NCRM will have an impact on the UK public and the wider economy, through helping to ensure that social science research is of high quality, making best use of methods so that research can lead to better quality evidence and better inform public policy.
What will be done to ensure that they have the opportunity to benefit? The NCRM team is exceptionally well placed to reach out to academic and non-academic users alike. Core members and partners are distributed strategically across expert areas, disciplines, sectors and geographic regions. We will utilise our strong links with key stakeholders across all sectors, built through longstanding research, training and consultancy partnerships. To optimise engagement we will: - Ensure the Advisory Board includes beneficiaries from all sectors who will have a voice in shaping the NCRM strategy and content of the training programme. - Conduct a series of training needs and impact analyses. We will particularly involve key stakeholders and gatekeepers representing the different sectors and disciplines in consultations to ensure that the planned training activities are aligned with user needs. - Operate a comprehensive communication strategy tailored to different groups. This will include mailing lists, e-bulletin, webinar series and social media. We will build on NCRM's current social media presence, while developing an entirely new branding style and identity for NCRM. A monthly e-Bulletin will promote key training activities, methodological developments and opportunities.
 
Description This Centre grant is primarily an infrastructure investment focussing on training and capacity building and, as a result, the grant does NOT include any core-funded research projects. The Centre therefore does not follow the typical structures of a research grant or research centre. The Centre has 11 workstreams, all of which have progressed well and all KPIs have been achieved (until end of 2022). Although not part of its direct remit, NCRM has carried out some research and it also includes a number of workstreams that have led to key findings and impact, which we are reporting here. These main areas include: a.) achievements and impact by the training and capacity building programme; b.) a pedagogy systematic review as part of a wider workstream on pedagogy, c.) a rapid evidence review for the research project 'Changing Research Practices: Undertaking Social Research in the Context of Covid-19', d.) a review of the interface between health research and social science, e.) engagement with key stakeholders. The following reports on each of these workstreams:
a.) NCRM has implemented a comprehensive training and capacity building programme, covering a wide range of mostly advanced and innovative training courses and events, but also include basic/core and intermediate training. The programme is strategically informed, including by the activities below, such as work on pedagogy, the Covid-19 research project, a series of interdiscipline reports, engagement with key stakeholders and also horizon scanning and regular ongoing and one-off training needs analyses. Between Jan 2020 and March 2023, we have run more than 230 training days (152 courses) with in total more than 3,100 course participants (and all this during a time of much change given the Covid-19 pandemic requiring rapid adaptations to fully online teaching for example). Number of views and/or downloads of our online resources has been buoyant. Since early 2022 our plan has been to further expand provision and uptake, including for example a spring school, an online research methods festival and a series of innovation fora in innovative and advanced methods, bringing together key experts and users across all sectors and from beyond the Social Sciences. The TCB workstream strand has created a very wide range of impact, following the Centre's comprehensive strategic impact framework.
b.) The pedagogy systematic review, led by Nind, addressed the research question: What pedagogic approaches and strategies are employed in the teaching of social science research methods and discussed in the literature? The published paper discusses 209 papers identified and mapped (across countries, disciplines and methods) and 55 papers synthesised which provide a detailed rationale for the approach and strategies employed in doctoral/post-doctoral education. The research suggests that the pedagogical culture in research methods is now flourishing with widespread investigation and evaluation of how research methods are taught and learnt, and much more written about the teaching of qualitative methods, with USA dominating and most papers focused on the authors' own teaching practice. The synthesis shows how active, experiential, student-centred, collaborative and other key approaches are translated into strategies used in teaching in-person and online and what teachers and learners value about particular practices in research methods education. The systematic review has informed the creation of a pedagogy network which has been productive in contributing to the Handbook of Teaching and Learning Social Research Methods (Edward Elgar, edited by Nind for publication in September 2023). The Handbook was an adaptation to the COVID situation in which methods teachers were reflecting on their pedagogic practice and often pausing from research practice. Nind's introductory chapter shows how the NCRM pedagogic research has been shaping the pedagogic culture in research methods education.
c.) The study 'Changing Research Practices: Undertaking Social Research in the Context of Covid-19' has now been completed. In addition to the outcomes reported in 2022, the rapid evidence review was expanded to include papers published in 2021, with key messages drawn from 301 mapped and 202 synthesised papers. This is work published in a special issue of the International Journal of Social Research Methodology guest edited by Nind's team, including a paper by Nind, Coverdale and Meckin on how methods adaptations to crisis have matured over two years.
Knowledge exchange continued with a group of ten researchers working together over time to share lessons on researching in unprecedented uncertainty. Their contributions to the special issue address maintaining quality and rigour in remote psychosocial research and evaluation, the ethics of decolonized field research practices post-pandemic in global north-south partnerships, collaborative practices through methodological uncertainties, and innovations in digital touch methods. Nind also fed into the ESRC framing of the research methods grants call to stimulate further work on methods at a critical juncture following the pandemic.

d.) A review of the interface between health research and social science has indicated that the area is highly developed and diverse. There are many existing engagements between researchers affiliated with different research areas. The main affiliations seem to be between public health, environmental health, occupational health, psychology, sociology and social work. The top interdisciplinary journal titles indicate a range of topics of interest, including ageing, alcohol, mental health, AIDs and HIV, health promotion and the study of disabilities. Among funders, we found many collaborative funding initiatives in the UK, suggesting that the knowledge needed to research health and social science involves different kinds of collaborations. Specifically focusing on an area of research, which combines biological and social knowledge, known as biosocial research, there are high levels of collaboration, particularly with regards to research infrastructure and philosophical comment.
e.) The NCRM engagement function includes liaison and collaboration with key ESRC investments, as well as cross-sector, non-academic researchers, in particular the voluntary sector. One specific example, which was operationalised and project managed by the engagement team, was the Storytelling Toolkit: Methods using Objects training workshop and resources, delivered specifically with and for community groups, and co-funded by NCRM and a University of Manchester ESRC IAA award. This project was a collaboration between engagement lead, Hanbury, academic lead, Woodward, and a third sector organisation, Joy Ethic Ltd., which also included an impact competition. NCRM now has a greater insight into the function and operations of the ESRC-funded DTPs and CDTs, which has already resulted in the establishment of a new training network, through which we have piloted several mechanisms for sharing national training and development needs analyses in order to better serve the PgR community. We have also identified and inducted new members to the Data Resource Training Network, which is adding value and capacity to the scale and impact of the individual services involved in the network. A series of online webinars was launched in March 2023, attracting over 350 registrations and 175 attendees. In March 2022, we launched a targeted call for UKRI Future Leaders' Fellows to apply for our Innovation Fora programme. We commissioned five of the ten applications, which has resulted in a suite of high-impact methodologically innovative projects to be delivered on topics ranging from Freedom of Information requests as research methods to the use of community film-making for pandemic responses. In summary, NCRM has gained a much greater insight into the diversity of the ESRC-funded investment portfolio. This will continue to raise the profile of both the ESRC investments and NCRM, reduce silo working, will lead to increased capacity and will create a community of social science scholars centred on NCRM's activities. Particular emphasis is on the conversion of engagement and collaboration activities into a wide range of training and capacity building outputs.
Exploitation Route We are reporting on the following four workstreams: a.) the training programme offered, b.) pedagogy, c.) the 'Changing Research Practices: Undertaking Social Research in the Context of Covid-19' project, d.) a review of the interface between health research and social science.
a.) The activities above all feed regularly into the strategy of the NCRM training programme and are therefore of direct benefit to NCRM and its TCB output. The training of a wide range of users will likely have led and will continue to lead to an uptake in the methods learned. An analysis of data collected in 2022 by NCRM, which covered a range of questions around the likely use and impact after a training course/event, indicated, for example, 70% of course participants to anticipate using the methods learned in their thesis, 56% in a peer reviewed journal article, 23% in research for the public domain, 15% in research, government or public policy, 12% in research for a non-academic organisation and 12% for the supervision of students. A further impact study evidenced actual uptake of a research method 1-2 years after a training activity took place.
b.) The Handbook of Teaching and Learning Social Research Methods (edited by Nind, for publication by Edward Elgar) and the results of the pedagogy systematic review will further build the pedagogic culture and good practice in the teaching of research methods in NCRM, nationally and internationally. They will each provide a useful reference point for methods teachers/trainers to appreciate both common and innovative practices that have a sound evidence or theory base. NCRM is exploring further new ways to communicate key messages from this work to those in a position to put them into practice. A network of interested methods teachers who research their own and others' pedagogy has been formed to expand the evidence base for others to use.
c.) The outcomes of the Changing Research Practices in the Context of Covid-19 project include knowledge about how methods have been used and adapted for the pandemic, why and to what effect, and support for researchers at all career stages struggling with rapidly changing/uncertain conditions for research. We have recommended some training priorities for NCRM and other organizations as well as the continued provision of workshop spaces for researchers to share knowledge and mutual support. The reports, publications and resources are all accessible via the NCRM website which provides a central access point for researchers in the climate of ongoing uncertainties. Already doctoral and other researchers have found what they need to be able to continue their studies and the material is informing doctoral education as evidenced in the mid-term review .
d.) The health interdispline report offers an overview of health research and social science interface and may act as a guide to those seeking to understand the current state of play. It is of use to researchers and funders in identifying particular topics of interest, particularly seeing in identifying gaps in the research funding and publishing spaces. The focus on biosocial can help collaborators identify possible issues in planned projects and suggests some places for resources. By showing that engagement through methods already happens within academia and in collaboration with those in other sectors, researchers might gain inspiration for project partners and funders.
Sectors Digital/Communication/Information Technologies (including Software),Education,Government, Democracy and Justice
URL http://www.ncrm.ac.uk
 
Description The following four main workstreams have achieved impact so far: a.) the training programme, b.) pedagogy, c.) the 'Changing Research Practices: Undertaking Social Research in the Context of Covid-19' project, d.) review of the interface between health research and social science. a.) NCRM's strategy for the impact of its training and capacity building programme prioritises the generation of crosscutting, interconnected impacts, which include: (i) direct changes to knowledge and skills, practice, curricula, pedagogy and employment; (ii) multiplier capacity building effects with new skills being passed onto others in workplaces, educational settings or other communities, and (iii) outcomes and outputs that are of economic, societal, policy and cultural benefit. The overall aim is for the cumulative effect of these instrumental, conceptual, capacity building and academic impacts to demonstrate the reach, significance and indispensable nature of NCRM as a training and capacity building infrastructure, that is uniquely positioned to create synergies and impacts. Since 2020, NCRM has collected and analysed formal and informal evidence of impact through multiple methods. Quantitative and qualitative data have been collected from course and event evaluation forms, user follow-up surveys, social media, testimonials, case-study collation, interviews and conversations with users and stakeholders. The focus has not just been on evidencing the achievements of the Centre's activities, but on how these impacts interconnect and build on each other and contribute to NCRM's methodological capacity. Impact evaluation, that has taken place so far, indicates that NCRM training and capacity building have had immediate / short-term impacts, and longer-term, complex impacts with economic, societal, economic, policy and cultural benefits, which build incrementally over time. Since 2020, NCRM has experienced high demand for its courses, resources, and events, and has received consistently positive feedback from its stakeholders, with stakeholders indicating that they consider the Centre's activities to have been of high quality. Our evaluation forms ask participants a range of questions around the likely use and impact of learning acquired from a training course/event. Analysis of data indicated, for example, that 70% of participants anticipated using the methods they had learnt in their thesis, 56% in a peer reviewed journal article, 23% in research for the public domain, 15% in research, government or public policy, 12% in research for a non-academic organisation and 12% for the supervision of students. In responses to a follow-up survey, we have seen evidence of how participants of NCRM events and courses are applying their new skills to their research and/or in their teaching and supervision of others. For example, a lecturer wrote: "My knowledge has moved on and I am able to use that enriched knowledge in my teaching and supervision" (27% of participants who completed a follow-up survey indicated they were applying their new skills to teaching and supervision of others) A voluntary sector researcher described using their new methods skills to ensure that evaluations of health and social care interventions are more robust, enabling service improvement within their organisation. A PhD student told us how they are using new methods to research how Eastern European women living in the UK seek help when experiencing domestic abuse. And a researcher for a large NHS acute trust explained that they are using new skills to inform the design of an electronic personal health record for sick children and their parents. Participants have also shared with us how they are already applying their new or improved skills in designing funding bids or research proposal. An employee of a Canadian non-governmental organisation who attended a creative methods course, described using insights from their training in a successful funding bid to develop, deliver and evaluate a national digital literacy program for survivors of family violence living in shelters or transitional housing. Trainers on a programming course described how participants changed their research practices and built collaborative networks during the course which then led to collective projects and applications for research funding. And a participant on a qualitative longitudinal analysis course described being able to successfully apply their new knowledge to a funding bid, and co-producing the research with anti-racist community groups, thus generating nascent societal impact. Trainers delivering our courses and events have described the impact of delivering courses on their own methods specialisms, some have gone on to further refine these methods, write methodological handbooks, and/or consider the pedagogical aspects of the courses they have delivered. We have also heard from former NCRM grant holders, who have continued to be involved with the centre during our current phase. They have provided training on methods they have developed. But they have also provided examples of some longer-term impacts from their ongoing work with NCRM. For example, one collaborator was using their newly developed methods to enhance the measurement of sentence severity to ensure the accuracy of sentencing guidelines in England and Wales. Another researcher was invited to use their enhanced knowledge of ethics to work with the European Commission on a number of projects, including the creation of a new ethics framework for non-medical researchers. We expect to be able to evidence more long-term impacts as we progress further into this round of funding. b.) The pedagogy systematic review findings have already been used to design and deliver three Train the Trainer courses on using active, experiential and student-centred approaches when teaching methods online. Contributors to the Handbook are further circulating key pedagogic messages to practitioners and will join and 'in conversation' event at the 2023 Research Methods e-festival. c.) We have experienced high levels of engagement with the Changing Research Practices in the Context of Covid-19 project and researchers have told us that they are using the outputs, both directly, and in their support of their students and mentees. New informal support networks were formed during the workshops for the project. We have used the findings to inform the work of research students and researchers through invitations to speak to staff groups, student groups, special interest groups, a Doctoral Training Partnership annual conference and the World Conference on Qualitative Research. We have also developed a suite of resources based on the findings to help guide researchers in their search for relevant, high quality material to guide their decision-making in response to the crisis. d.) The interdiscipline reports have been used by NCRM to inform the NCRM engagement strategy and to prioritise areas for engagement, as well as TCB activities. This has already led to impact and will continue to lead to a variety of impact and will reach users and key stakeholders in many different ways.
First Year Of Impact 2020
Sector Digital/Communication/Information Technologies (including Software),Education,Healthcare,Government, Democracy and Justice
Impact Types Societal,Policy & public services
 
Description Professor David Martin's membership of the UK Statistics Authority Methodological Advisory Panel - Census
Geographic Reach National 
Policy Influence Type Participation in a guidance/advisory committee
URL https://uksa.statisticsauthority.gov.uk/the-authority-board/committees/national-statisticians-adviso...
 
Description Changing Research Practice: Undertaking social science research in the context of Covid-19
Amount £57,921 (GBP)
Organisation Economic and Social Research Council 
Sector Public
Country United Kingdom
Start 07/2020 
End 06/2022
 
Description The impact of Covid-19 on survey data collection methods in the social sciences : Survey Data Collection Network (SDC-Net)
Amount £64,133 (GBP)
Organisation Economic and Social Research Council 
Sector Public
Country United Kingdom
Start 11/2021 
End 10/2022
 
Description Contribution to the ESRC Festival of Social Sciences 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach Regional
Primary Audience Public/other audiences
Results and Impact Sophie Woodward (and Sheehan, J) participated in the ESRC Festival of Social Sciences. Their contribution : 'I had one of those: objects based methods and memories' was delivered to an audience of 60 members of the Public at Chorlton Library in November, 2021.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2021
 
Description Panel presentation for Academy of International Business Research Methods SIG 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Industry/Business
Results and Impact Melanie Nind contributed to a Panel presentation 'Doing Research During Covid-19: A meta view' for the Academy of International Business Research Methods SIG to an audience of approximately 250 people from 31 countries on 3rd December 2020.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2020
 
Description Workshop for the World Conference on Qualitative Research (WCQR) 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Professional Practitioners
Results and Impact Melanie Nind (with Lewthwaite, S.) lead an online workshop on 'Changing Research Practices for Covid-19' at the 5th World Conference on Qualitative Research (WCQR) on 21st January 2021.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2021
URL https://wcqr.ludomedia.org/previous-editions/
 
Description Workshop for the World Conference on Qualitative Research (WCQR) 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Professional Practitioners
Results and Impact Melanie Nind (with Lewthwaite, S.) lead an online workshop on 'Teaching Qualitative Research in Covid-19 Times' at the 6th World Conference on Qualitative Research (WCQR) on 28th January 2022.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2022
URL https://wcqr.ludomedia.org/