A virtues-based approach to research ethics offers an alternative perspective to the rule-based approaches that dominate many current ethical regulations. For researchers engaging in insider research where ethical dilemmas can be complex and unpredictable, ethical decisions often need to be made on a case-by-case basis. This requires researchers…

In this article, we discuss the methodological implications of data and theory integration for Theory-Based Evaluation (TBE). TBE is a family of approaches to program evaluation that use program theories as instruments to answer questions about whether, how, and why a program works. Some of the groundwork about TBE has expressed the idea that a…

When engaging in community-based research, it is important to consider ethical research practices throughout the project. While current research practices require many investigators to obtain approval from an ethics review board before starting a project, more is required to ensure that ethical principles are applied once the investigations begin…

In recent times, there has been a surge of impact-oriented, transdisciplinary research programmes and projects integrating multiple disciplines, types of knowledge and practices. An essential element often mentioned in the literature to improve the performance of these programmes and support impact delivery is continuous reflection and learning…

This article challenges an over-reliance on language as the primary means to communicate knowledge by adopting a language"less"ness approach to maker pedagogies and maker literacies. Having conducted makerspace and design-based research for some time, we separately and together noticed a productive relationship between wordless…

Planning inclusive research should center meaningful engagement of co-researchers with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities to address issues that are important to their communities. There are a variety of approaches to planning research projects consistent with the guiding principles of inclusive research. We describe components of…

Background: People with intellectual disability are often defined as a vulnerable group. The feminist philosopher Jackie Scully argues that vulnerability is often associated with qualities such as immaturity, helplessness, victimhood, passivity and so forth. As research is a social activity, the qualities associated with vulnerability affect…

Researchers and research organizations are under increasing pressure to demonstrate that their work contributes to positive change and helps solve pressing societal challenges. There is a simultaneous trend towards more engaged transdisciplinary research that is complexity-aware and appreciates that change happens through systems transformation,…

This paper explores the concept of adaptive research design, in which topic, theoretical framing, method, and data are "in principle" open to adaptation during the research process. The main premise is that adaptations in one element of the research process can trigger changes in other elements. Both positive and negative reasons for…

This article is written with the recognition that, as higher education studies evolve as a multidisciplinary area of inquiry, there is a need to reflect on the theoretical and practical concerns emerging from conducting higher education research. This is especially the case for early-career researchers who enter this relatively new field of study.…

In this article, I explore the challenges of undertaking insider research as a Widening Participation university practitioner and positioning myself as lead researcher with three academic co-researchers. The action research process provided the fertile environment for our complex academic: non-academic relationships to shift into more equitable…

The majority of the world's children live in low- and middle-income countries, yet the majority of early childhood cognitive research is done with a small proportion of high-income countries. These findings cannot be assumed to apply across all contexts. It is therefore necessary to confront entrenched systems of power and privilege in early…

Undergraduate research experiences are key to preparing STEM students for a range of careers and graduate programs, and to impacting retention in STEM. Providing undergraduate research experiences can be challenging for institutions due to the high cost associated with equipment and reagents, lab space, and research mentors. In this study, we…

The importance of undergraduate research as a means of engaging students in higher order levels of thinking has become increasingly recognized in literature. The literature further suggests that benefits accrue most greatly to those in underrepresented groups including racial minorities and first-generation students (Gregerman et al. 1998;…

Drawing upon ongoing research exploring lived experiences of sensory overload, meltdown, and shutdown in autism as a framework, this article reflects on the challenges and benefits of employing participatory methods in doctoral research. In particular, the process of establishing and working with a Research Advisory Group to co-create a…