NCRM is funded by the Economic and Social Research Council Researching Innovation In search of the mother of invention in an academic culture of necessity Andrew Bengry-Howell, Rose Wiles Graham Crow, Melanie Nind

NCRM is funded by the Economic and Social Research Council Case Studies What is the process through which an innovation is developed? How is it publicised, promoted and disseminated? Who are the key ‘champions’? Who are the ‘early adopters’? Has it reached ‘breakthrough’ status? What is the uptake: core/different discipline(s); transnational? Has it been adapted? Do innovators feel/claim a sense of ownership of the innovation? To what extent does the innovation address important methodological issues/challenges

NCRM is funded by the Economic and Social Research Council The Cases Online/Virtual ethnography … Netnography Robert Kozinets Child-led research … Children as Researchers Mary Kellett Creative methods … Lego Serious Play David Gauntlett

NCRM is funded by the Economic and Social Research Council Methods (stage one) Semi-structured interviews: Developers of the method/methodological approach Champions/supporters of method/approach [2 per case] Established academic in topic area [1 per case] Early career user of method/approach [1 per case] User from different discipline to the innovator [1 per case] User from different country to the innovator [1 per case] Author of book review [1 per case]

NCRM is funded by the Economic and Social Research Council Methods (stage two) Systematic Review of Uptake: Social sciences’ bibliographic databases searched for published journal articles/conference papers, in which: (a)Method/approach is applied/adapted/discussed/ referred to/related book reviewed (b) Method/approach is specifically linked to innovators we are studying. (c) Innovators are not authors/co-authors, or otherwise linked to instance of uptake.

NCRM is funded by the Economic and Social Research Council Necessity and Opportunity

NCRM is funded by the Economic and Social Research Council 7 Changed world Development of Internet/social media Global uptake in children’s rights/participation Interest in individual/identity Cultural shiftHow people form community/culture (CMC) More receptive to children’s rights/agency New methodologies; richer/deeper understandings Necessity Adapt research methods/techniques to online context Give children valid research voice/encourage agency Limitations of language-based methods/no reflection Opportunity Access/utilise new social environment/forms of data New knowledge/understandings/insider perspective Richer/more reliable data: ‘what people really think’ KEY: Netnography… Child-Led Research… Creative Research Methods

NCRM is funded by the Economic and Social Research Council Name – ‘coining a phrase’ Distinguishing it from other similar approaches Tool for 21 st Century – adapting/change Addressing methodological limitations/problems Addressing ethical issues Richer/more authentic/valid/reliable data Systematic/procedural approach – staged process Constituting the innovation

NCRM is funded by the Economic and Social Research Council Preserving the innovation Prescriptive: clear procedural guidelines (RK); specific training programme (MK); stage-process (DG) Books (training manuals) Teaching method to students; business clients (RK) Comprehensive training programme for children and adults (MK) Workshops: Learn about the process by doing the process (DG)

NCRM is funded by the Economic and Social Research Council Uptake of Innovations Systematic Review of Literature

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NCRM is funded by the Economic and Social Research Council 12 Mapping uptake Netnography Uptake: 42% applied; 9% adapted/Framing: 21% referred; 16% reference Academic Diffussion: 76% Marketing; 6% economics; 6% ICT; 5% Soc Sci Geographic : 40% USA; 28% Europe; 14% UK; 25 countries/5 continents Child-led Research 1% applied/Framing: 24% [referred]; 56% [referenced]; 14% [discussed] Academic Diffusion: 35% Education; 16% childhood studies; Social Science Geographic : 71% UK; 8% USA; 8% Australasia; 14 countries/4 continents Creative Research Methods Uptake: 8% applied [PG/ECR]/Framing: 41% referenced; 24% discussed Academic Diffusion: 32% media/com studies; 16% Education; 11% Soc Sci Geographic: 51% UK; 22% Europe; 16% Australasia

NCRM is funded by the Economic and Social Research Council Factors impacting on uptake Time Timeliness Support and championing Accessibility and feasibility of uptake Maturity of innovation Dissemination and marketing 13

NCRM is funded by the Economic and Social Research Council Is Innovation a good thing? Academic responses and reservations

NCRM is funded by the Economic and Social Research Council Academic Responses: Interviewees Innovation important People willing to push boundaries, take risks and experiment necessary Cases seen as important methodological developments But reservations about the drive for innovation in general 15

NCRM is funded by the Economic and Social Research Council Reservations about Innovation The nature of innovation in the social sciences: is anything really new? Encouragement to disseminate developments at an early stage: fuelled by the impact agenda, publishers and social media Codification of innovations – to make them accessible and transferable The rush to uptake: researchers feel they should be using ‘new and exciting’ methods 16

NCRM is funded by the Economic and Social Research Council “I worry about innovation being, well I worry about the politics of it. I worry about it being this big machine, you know, which the whole aim is to just churn out something just because it’s new and I don’t think, just because it’s new means it’s going to be any good … what I don’t like, what I suppose I would worry about, is people sort of thinking, here’s a new trendy, tricksy method, I’m just going to try it for fun, you know without thinking, now why would I do that, and what would it do and how would you understand the kind of data that might emerge from that” 17

NCRM is funded by the Economic and Social Research Council Working Papers Nind, M., Bengry-Howell, Crow, G, Wiles, R. (submitted). Methodological Innovation and Research Ethics: Forces in tension or forces in harmony?, Qualitative Research. Wiles, R., Crow, G., Nind, M., Bengry-Howell, A. (in prep). But is it innovation?: The development of novel methodological approaches in qualitative research. Crow, G., Nind, M., Wiles, R., Bengry-Howell, A. (in prep). The challenge of studying innovation: Critically examining the concept of innovation in social science research. Bengry-Howell, A., Wiles, R., Crow, G., Nind, M. (in prep). Researching innovation: In search of the mother of invention in an academic culture of necessity