Background: 'Embedded research' (co-locating researchers within non-academic organisations) is advocated as a way of developing more effective services through better creation and application of knowledge. Aims and objectives: The existing literature on embedded initiatives has largely been descriptive. There has been less in the way of analysis,…

This paper demonstrates how fictional narratives can address ethical and epistemic problems in the creation and conduct of qualitative research. A story about international students with parental responsibilities in the UK is presented. Through this 'performance,' fictional narratives can address issues linked to ethical and epistemic desires.…

Background: Embedded research involves co-locating researchers within non-academic organisations to better link research and practice. Embedded research initiatives are often complex and emergent with a range of underlying intents, structures and processes. This can create tensions within initiatives and contributes to ongoing uncertainty about…

When a pronounced taste for science leads researchers to self-select themselves in academia, higher education systems must be able to protect it. By relying on the economic theory of higher education, the international mobility and the sociology of science literature, we compare the working condition in the four major European higher education…

Significant investments have been made in the last five years to further strengthen the relationship between the United Kingdom (UK) and African continent for science and innovation partnerships. This has enabled the enhancement of longstanding relationships for joint research and development activities as well as the establishment of new,…

Located within a context of intercultural counselling research, this paper highlights the pertinence of the researcher's reflexivity and cultural awareness in relation to research relationships. It draws on an excerpt between a white European interviewer and an Asian trainee counsellor discussing the latter's experience of intercultural…

This paper introduces a model for collaborative working to facilitate knowledge mobilisation in public health. The model has been developed by university researchers who worked collaboratively with public health commissioners and strategic partners to evaluate a portfolio of short-term funded interventions to inform re-commissioning. Within this…

Despite a robust body of evidence of effectiveness of social programs, few evidence-based programs have been scaled for population-level improvement in social problems. Since 2010 the federal government has invested in evidence-based social policy by supporting a number of new evidence-based programs and grant initiatives. These initiatives…

The UK research base is world class. It is second only to the USA on leading scientific indicators and crucially, during the current economic climate, ranks first on publication productivity and citations in relation to research and development public spend. Commonly known as quality-related (QR) funding because it is allocated selectively on the…

Since the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child was ratified in 1991, children's right to have a voice, and to have their opinions heard, has led many providers and practitioners in the field of early years to seek ways to involve children's perspectives in the evaluation and development of practice. Those who value democracy understand that…

The "No Outsiders" research consortium draws upon the Cultural Historical Activity Theory (CHAT) notion of a community of practice with a shared focus on "researching approaches to sexualities equality in primary schools". While the word "community", for some, may carry connotations of harmony and even homogeneity,…

Critics of education research in the recent years have pointed the finger at what they saw as its low quality, impact, and "value for money." In the context of the Research Assessment Exercise, particular concerns have been raised about applied and practice-based educational research and how best to assess its quality. This contribution…