The keynote address on which this article is based considers four stages or types of studies that qualitative researchers undertake in the field of education. The reason that I explored this focus was to illustrate the benefits and the dangers of designing studies to serve policy makers. The research that I selected sought to uncover information directly applicable to schools. Furthermore, because the studies came from the same field, the examples could show how researchers influenced each other and how they responded to wider social changes. The conclusion described the work of Gregory Bateson to indicate an approach researchers might use to pursue practical knowledge while advancing the general understanding of human behavior.