Becker (1967) poses the question "Whose side are we on?," a question which has become an enduring part of discussions within social scientific methodology. This paper explores the key issues in Becker's argument and considers its relevance to researchers today, locating this within a consideration of evaluation-based research and policy.…

This article sets out to look critically at the use of systematic reviews in the cross-disciplinary field of early childhood and international development. Systematic reviews--a specialist methodology involving the secondary analysis of existing knowledge on a particular topic--is prevalently used to address complex questions in social and…

While the methods used to study 'elites' are of particular relevance in policy research, to date there has been little examination of the particular challenges associated with 'elite' interviewing in this field. More specifically, the issues associated with interviewing 'elites' while conducting qualitative research in a contested policy domain,…

Recently, there has been an increase and abundance of literature measuring flexicurity across countries. However, there is yet to be any agreement on the definition of the key concepts of flexicurity as well as the framework in which to base one's research. Due to this, the outcomes found in the existing studies are rather diverse, far from…

The EU Action Plan on Drugs (2005-2008) calls for member states of the European Union to provide information on five key epidemiological indicators. These are: general population surveys, prevalence and patterns of problem drug use, drug related infectious diseases, drug related deaths and mortality of drug users, and demand for drug treatment.…

This paper analyses and compares the measurement of indicators and variables in the construction of education index in Human Development Index (HDI) at the global, national and 18 sub-national human development reports in India since 1990. The results show non-comparability of measurement of the education indicators and variables. This implies…

The purpose of this research was to explore the experiences of low-income college students who participate in community service scholarship programs. By examining the experiences of the participants the existing literature will be enhanced with a grounded theory related to student engagement and civic identity development through involvement in…

The broader question regarding the issue of runaways as a social problem requires incidence figures to estimate the extent of this problem. This paper examines how differing definitions used to describe running away can produce varying estimates of incidence. Due to these variations, levels of incidence range from a low of .0011% to a high of…

Presents an analysis of the significant parts of the census data Moynihan used to support his argument to determine whether the conclusions he reached are supported by such data, finding that he presents no data to substantiate his argument that black social problems are a function of family instability. (Author/JM)

United States Department of Agriculture defines food insecure as answering affirmatively to three or more food insecurity questions describing a household's ability to acquire enough food. Households indicating low levels of food insecurity (one or two affirmative responses) are considered food secure. This paper compares the characteristics of…

The Council of Australian Governments (COAG) has endorsed a "Closing the Gap" agenda designed to improve the lives of Indigenous Australians. The agenda is distilled in a series of targets, one of which is the goal of halving the gap for Indigenous students in Year 12 attainment or equivalent (Certificate II or above) attainment rates by…

This paper expresses concerns about implementing the behavior analysis values for community intervention expressed by Stephen Fawcett in EC 602 711. Concerns include inclusion of participants in selecting research goals, methods, and outcome measures; research impact on public policy; tension between research requirements and research settings;…

Cherlin argues that Gill's procedural criticisms of Cherlin's work are groundless, and underlying themes of both of Gill's articles do not guide public policy concerning children and families. Gill's response to Cherlin notes that anecdotal evidence shows that increased availability and social acceptability of divorce cause more marital problems.…

This article looks at how the discipline of rhetoric may be helpful when thinking about methods for social justice. Specifically, it explores how rhetoric and composition can help those interested in social justice to construct knowledge that is both multidisciplinary and intercultural, to view the constructive processes of research participants,…

This article reviews the processes, issues and dilemmas involved in evaluation research undertaken in the context of changing and evolving government policy in education. The article is grounded in an evaluation of the National Partnership Project (NPP), the team conducted on behalf of England's Teacher Training Agency (TTA) in 2004-2005. It will…