# Action Research

*Exported from [Holy-Writings.com](https://www.holy-writings.com/) on 2026-06-18 — 1 clipping.*

---

> Source: Bahá'í Library Online (bahai-library.com), curated by Jonah Winters. Used by permission of the curator. Original citation: Rhett Diessner, Action Research, bahai-library.com.
> ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
> 
> Action Research
> 
> Rhett Diessner
> 
> published in Converging Realities1:1
> 
> Switzerland: Landegg Academy, 2000
> 
> Contents:
> 
> 1. Introduction
> 
> 2. A Focus on Purpose
> 
> 3. What is action?; Who are the "Professionals"?
> 
> 4. Democratic, Consultative, and Bilateral Research
> 
> 5. Critical and Emancipatory Research
> 
> 6. Call for Action
> 
> 7. Summary: The Issues Revisited
> 
> References
> 
> Abstract: Action research is not a technique or particular method of research,
> but rather a focus on the issue of the "final" cause of research, or the
> question of the "purpose" of the research. The purpose of action research
> is transformative action, action that makes a difference in the life-worlds
> of both the researcher and the researched. The applicable domain of action
> research is both description of, and prescription in, the social world
> of humans. Action research is: (1) democratic, consultative
> (viz. Abdu'l-Bahá, 1980) and based on bilateral
> communication (Argyris, 1980; Argyris,
> Putnam, Putnam, & Smith, 1985); and (2) critical and emancipatory
> (Habermas, 1971).
> 
> 1. Introduction
> 
> Action has effect. One act is better than a thousand words.
> Jesus Christ says: 'By their fruits' (actions) and not by their words.
> What is the effect of words alone? The real thing is action.
> 
> Action has made
> man eloquent. There is no eloquent language better than action. As long
> as the sun is bright, is it necessary that it should say 'I am bright'?
> There is no need for that.
> — —
> Cited in Randall-Winckler & Garis
> 
> It is typical to divide research into two broad domains, quantitative
> and qualitative. Quantitative approaches are associated with precision
> of measurement, experimental and correlational design, statistics, "hard"
> data, and the correlation of human behavior in terms of ordinal, interval,
> or ratio scales. Qualitative approaches are associated with ethnographies,
> interpretive techniques, and "soft" data. Occasionally "action research"
> is considered a third, "ultra" soft, approach: I once overheard one of
> my colleagues saying, "They didn't prepare a decent research design, so
> they called it action research." That attitude will be refuted in this
> article.
> 2. A Focus on Purpose
> As defined herein, action research is not a type of research that is
> differentiable from qualitative or quantitative research, nor from nomothetic
> (an approach to science in which universal laws are sought) or idiographic
> (studying the unique individual in her/his own context — no
> attempt is made to generalize the findings to other human beings) approaches.
> Rather, the main difference between action research and other approaches
> is an explicit focus on research for action, change, and transformation.
> Its purpose is to change behavior, to alter action, to cause development
> to occur-both in
> the concern that is under study and in the researcher(s). A critical factor
> in action research is to maximize the meaningfulness of the study. The
> research design should fit the best notions of validity, external and internal,
> and may be either qualitative or quantitative, or a combination thereof.
> The difference between action research and most research published in academic
> journals is that the results of the research are intended to
> feed back
> directly to the researchers' practice, as well as directly influence
> the researched. In other words, action research is intended to advise the
> researchers themselves how to act, as much as to advise others how to act.
> Its main emphasis is on improving the human condition in a specific context,
> with secondary attention given to generalizing the findings.
> Why is it that few researchers focus on action research? Why is that
> most researchers tend to distance themselves from the problems under study
> and expect "practitioners" to read their journal article work and transform
> it into action? One reason is that it is "safer" to study others' behavior
> than your own; it lowers one's responsibility to make significant changes
> in one's own practice. However, this approach is a form of "distancing,"
> which is a disservice to society (cf.
> Argyris, 1980; Argyris,
> Putnam, & Smith, 1985). As a practical example: I work in
> teacher education. There is a plethora of data-based journals in education,
> but teachers seldom read them. The questions/hypotheses addressed in the
> journals are generally not the questions teachers are wondering about;
> they are questions that professional academic researchers are wondering
> about, and teachers seldom find any concrete advice about how to improve
> their practice in these journals. Additionally, the proofs and evidence
> that many researchers use are either not convincing or not meaningful to
> the "practitioners," the teachers.
> 3. What is action? Who are the
> "Professionals"?
> First of all, nearly all producers of work, whether craftsperson, professionals,
> tradespeople, managers, etc., perform informal action research. All human
> actions include three components, although at times we may process the
> components so quickly (milliseconds) that we are unaware of them. Every
> human action involves: (a) a planning phase, (b) an execution phase, and
> (c) an assessment phase. Take the simple action of eating a potato chip
> snack. A human walks by a bowl of potato chips. The human thinks, "I'm
> hungry; those look good. I think I'll eat some." This is the planning
> phase. The human then reaches out a hand, takes some chips, and places
> them in his or her mouth. This is the execution phase. Then, if they
> tasted good (which is the assessment!), they reach for some more. Another
> example: teachers plan a curriculum, execute a method of teaching the curriculum,
> then give their students a test, thus assessing the teacher's effectiveness
> in teaching and the students' effectiveness in learning. A physician makes
> a plan for a cure, provides the medicine, then has the patient come back
> in ten days for assessment of the effectiveness of the cure. A plumber
> plans the method of installing the pipes, executes the installation, then
> turns on the water to check for leaks. The "action research" being advocated
> in this article is an extension of natural human activity (action), with
> careful reflection and systematization of issues of reliability and validity,
> especially in the assessment phase of action.
> Because the term "professional" connotes a privileged class, many workers
> aspire to this status. The present writer, having worked extensively with
> nurses and teachers, is aware of the importance of the designation "professional."
> Normally, physicians, dentists, attorneys, and architects, among others,
> have this hallowed station. Yet, the present writer has argued elsewhere
> (Diessner,
> 1991) that the requirements for professional status should not
> be socioeconomic class, or ability "to police their own profession" but
> rather it is an issue of action research. Those that are "truly" worthy
> of the appellation 'professional' need to actualize being: (a) involved
> in choosing the "ends" of their practice, and (b) then making/having the
> opportunity to evaluate the success of their "means" of attaining
> those ends. Action research is required to produce valid evaluation.
> 4. Democratic, Consultative,
> and Bilateral Research
> In the best of action research, the lines between the "researcher" and
> the "researched" are blurred and may become one and the same. A question
> may be initiated by a social scientist or by any group of humans. A group
> of workers may ask, How can we be more productive?; or a researcher may
> be hired by the business administration to ask the same question. Regardless
> of the starting point of the question, those immediately and substantially
> affected by the potential outcome of the research should have a voice in
> framing or reframing the question under study, a voice in selecting the
> means of answering the question (which is what we normally call "the research"),
> and a voice in determining the criteria to decide whether the question
> has been validly answered.
> On the "practical" side, if the "researched" are not included in the
> decision making, the results are always suspect. If the researcher brings
> in her set of questions, they may be irrelevant to the researched. If the
> researched do not have a hand in determining the research questions, if
> they do not get to help decide the methods of completing the study, and
> if they are not included in assessing the effectiveness and accuracy of
> the outcome of the research, they are likely either to sabotage the research,
> be apathetic, and not be intrinsically motivated to solve the problems
> under study. This can easily be seen now in the so-called development projects
> imposed on the "Third World" by the "First World." Most of them did not
> "work." For examples of such failures, and the solutions through "participatory"
> involvement, the reader is referred to the following sources: Social
> and Economic Development: A Bahá'í Approach (Vick,
> 1989); "The Development of Communication and the Communication
> of Development"
> (Stephens,
> 1990); "Developing a Participatory Approach to Learning" (Pihlainen,
> 1991); and "Principles
> of Consultation Applied to the Process of Innovation in a Corporate Environment"(Rosenfeld
> & Winger-Bearskin, 1991).
> One of the great pioneers in action research is
> Chris Argyris (Argyris, 1980; Argyris,
> Putnam, & Smith, 1985). He has described how most research follows
> "normal science" (Kuhn, 1970), which is based
> on a paradigm he calls "Model-One". Argyris documents how Model-One style
> research is based on the values of unilateral control of the research situation,
> "winning" (proving oneself right), and suppression of any data that does
> not fit one's preconceived notions. His description and explanation of
> "Model-Two" represents a consultative approach, in which the researcher
> and the researched have "bi-lateral" control of any studies, wherein winning
> is not being "right," but rather uncovering the truth, and no dialogue
> is suppressed, even if it is painful.
> For example, at the university level, students
> and professors shall co-determine the "ends" of the research, and the "means"
> to attain these ends, along with mutually deciding what will be convincing
> proof that the "ends" were attained or not (evaluative aspect of action
> research). Thus, students would have a say in the objectives of the course,
> how those objectives are met (the methods of teaching and learning), and
> what assessment would convince both the students and the professor that
> the objectives were accomplished. Hence, the line between researcher and
> researched blurs, leaving all significant parties as participants: not
> an observer and the observed, not the subjector and the subjects (Carr
> & Kemmis, 1986).
> In research into the efficacy of psychotherapy,
> the clinician and clients would consult together on what should be the
> goal of the therapy, how the therapy should proceed, and what would be
> convincing evidence to both of them that the therapy "worked." This approach
> does not devalue the expertise of the professor or the clinician, and it
> does not assume that the professor has "equal" status with the students,
> or that the "clinician" has "equal" status with the client. What is does,
> is to engage all ranks of society in a mutual pursuit of truth, in a consultative
> manner.
> 5. Critical
> and Emancipatory Research
> Research is aimed at creating or uncovering knowledge.
> Habermas
> has argued that seeking knowledge always serves some interest (1971).
> He reasons that the empirical sciences, which aim to discover "laws" of
> nature, have a "technical" interest (he means "techne" in the traditional
> Greek sense which is the instrumental interest of science to control and
> predict). The goal of this technical interest, its "final" cause, is to
> be able to predict and control nature, things, and beings. This, however,
> becomes problematic in both moral and truth-oriented ways. It is immoral
> to treat humans as things that can be controlled for the interests of someone
> else. This is treating humans as a "means" and not as an "end," thus violating
> Kant's categorical imperative. It also violates truth-seeking if one believes
> humans have free-will. If humans do have free-will, then they are inherently
> unpredictable, as they are creative beings and are not bound by their genetic
> inheritance or the rewards and punishments from their environment.
> The second human interest that Habermas addresses
> is that of the historical-hermeneutic sciences. These "sciences" have a
> "practical" (praxis, normativity) interest; the goal of that practical
> interest being the understanding and interpretation of humans. The typical
> domain of this interest are the humanities and non-nomological (sciences
> that don't seek universal predictive laws) social sciences.
> The third human interest, in regard to knowledge,
> Habermas calls the "emancipatory," and it deals with the domain of philosophy
> and critique. Its goal is to set humans free from the fetters of the past,
> both the cultural past, and their own alienation during their ontogeny
> (natural history). He uses Marx as an example of emancipating us from the
> cultural past, and Freud as an exemplar in freeing the individual of the
> errors of her/ his development. Although Bahá'ís will take
> exception to the materialism of Marx and Freud, the interest of emancipation,
> and
> freedom from the imitation of our forebears is a critical goal for Bahá'ís
> (viz.
> Bahá'u'lláh in the Kitáb-i-Íqán, 1950;
> and Saiedi, 1997).
> Action research is aimed, not at the interest
> of techne, but rather at the practical interest of understanding and the
> emancipatory interest of truth. This parallels the goal of Bahá'í
> consultation, which is truth. The Bible says, "And ye shall know the truth,
> and the truth shall make you free" (John 8:32).
> 
> The purpose is to emphasize the statement that
> consultation must have for its object the investigation of truth.
> (Abdu'l-Bahá
> 1982, p. 72)
> Man must consult on all matters, whether major
> or minor, so that he may become cognizant of what is good. Consultation
> giveth him insight into things and enableth him to delve into questions
> which are unknown. The light of truth shineth from the faces of those who
> engage in consultation. Such consultation causeth the living waters to
> flow in the meadows of man's reality, the rays of ancient glory to shine
> upon him, and the tree of his being to be adorned with wondrous fruit.
> The members who are consulting, however, should behave in the utmost love,
> harmony and sincerity towards each other. The principle of consultation
> is one of the most fundamental elements of the divine edifice. Even in
> their ordinary affairs the individual members of society should consult.
> 
> (Abdu'l-Bahá, 1980)
> 
> 6. Call for Action
> This plea for action research is not entirely
> new; Corey in 1949, from Teachers College, urged
> us to move from "fundamental research" to action research, because teachers
> were not consuming research. The problem is not just among educators, however.
> Even among social scientists studying social issues, reports of action
> research are relatively rare. This is why Deutsch
> (1969) and Sanford (1970), invoking Kurt
> Lewin, have begged for action research to be the mode of study reported
> in the Journal of Social Issues. This type of action is also congruent
> with Paolo Freire's seminal work in critical pedagogy
> (1970).
> 7. Summary:
> The Issues Revisited
> 
> Selecting ends. Research in Spiritual Psychology
> must be "spiritual' and moral in its mode of conduct. It cannot do research
> "on" humans, but only "with" other humans in a collaborative, consultative
> search for truth. Therefore, the goals of research should be co-determined
> by both the researcher and the researched, and it is best if the "question"
> (the "end" of the research) is generated by the researched themselves.
> 
> The means of examining the question must also be
> co-determined by the researcher and the researched. This is normally called
> the method of the study.
> 
> The means of assessment must be agreed upon by both
> the researcher and the researched. What will "count" as valid proof? Those
> that will be involved in the action under study must help set the criteria
> for what will be acceptable confirmation or disproval of any hypotheses.
> This will be crucial for the researched to be intrinsically interested
> in making the results actionable.
> 
> In all of the above three aspects of action (a) the
> planning, (b) the execution, the method, (c) the results, the assessment,
> a consultative methodology which is bilateral must be followed (Argyris,
> Putnam, & Smith, 1985). Both the researcher and the researched
> will need to follow this practice, to reach actionable truth:
> 
> They must clearly advocate their ideas.
> 
> They must provide data, facts, or reasons for their
> ideas.
> 
> They must explain why their data, facts or reasons
> warrant their advocated idea.
> 
> They must invite inquiry from their collaborators,
> the researchers and researched alike, about the quality of their advocacy,
> data, and explanation.
> 
> This four-step process will help ensure that all
> research agreements have the least bias and prejudice, the most truth-value,
> and the best likelihood of all parties being intrinsically motivated to
> make the results actionable.
> 
> Unless these thoughts are translated into the
> world of action, they are useless. The wrong in the world continues to
> exist just because people talk only of their ideals, and do not strive
> to put them into practice. If actions took the place of words, the world's
> misery would very soon be changed into comfort. (`Abdu'l-Bahá,
> 1969, p. 16)
> If we are true Bahá'ís speech is
> not needed. Our actions will help on the world, will spread civilization,
> will help the progress of science, and cause the arts to develop. Without
> action nothing in the material world can be accomplished, neither can words
> unaided advance a man in the spiritual Kingdom. It is not through lip-service
> only that the elect of God have attained to holiness, but by patient lives
> of active service they have brought light into the world. (`Abdu'l-Bahá,
> 1969, pp. 80-81)
> 
> References
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá (1980).
> Quoted in: Consultation: A compilation (Compiled by the Research
> Department of the Universal House of Justice). Wilmette, Il.: Bahá'í
> Publishing Trust.
> — — .(1969).
> Paris talks. 11th ed. London: Bahá'í Publishing Trust.
> — — .(1982).
> Promulgation
> of universal peace (2nd ed.). Wilmette, IL: Bahá'í Publishing
> Trust.
> Argyris, C., Putnam,
> R., & Smith, D. (1985). Action science. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
> Argyris, C. (1980).
> The inner contradictions of rigorous research. New York: Academic Press.
> Aristotle. (1963). The
> philosophy of Aristotle. R. Bambrough, Ed., (A. E. Wardman &
> J. L. Creed, trans.). NY: Mentor.
> Aristotle. (1991).
> The metaphysics (J. H. McMahon, trans.) Amherst, NY: Prometheus.
> Bahá'u'lláh.
> (1950). The Kitáb-i-Íqán: The Book of Certitude.
> Wilmette,
> Il.: Bahá'í Publishing Trust.
> Carr, W., & Kemmis,
> S. (1986). Becoming critical: Education, knowledge, and action research.
> London:
> Falmer.
> Corey, S. (1949). Action
> research, fundamental research, and educational practices. Teachers
> College Record, 50, 509-514.
> Deutsch, M. (1969).
> Organizational and conceptual barriers to social change. Journal of
> Social Issues, 25, 5-18.
> Diessner, R. (1991).
> Teachers as professionals. Unpublished manuscript. Lewis-Clark State College,
> Lewiston, ID, USA.
> Diessner, R. (1994).
> Action
> research and teaching professors. Lewiston, ID: Lewis-Clark State College,
> Division of Education. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED 366 257.
> Diessner, R. (1997).
> Probing the foundation of research methods for spiritual psychology: Seeking
> an interpretive framework for the primary causes of human phenomena and
> noumena. Unpublished paper, Landegg Academy, Weinacht, Switzerland.
> Freire, P. (1970). Pedagogy
> of the oppressed (M. B. Ramos, trans.). New York: Seabury Press.
> Habermas, J. (1971).
> Knowledge and human interests (J. Shapiro, trans.). Boston: Beacon.
> Kuhn, T. (1970). The
> structure of scientific revolutions (2nd ed.). Chicago: University
> of Chicago Press.
> Pihlainen, M. (1991).
> Developing a participatory approach to learning. Journal of Bahá'í
> Studies 4(2),41-76.
> Randall-Winckler,
> B. & Garis, M. (n.d./1996?). William Henry Randall: Disciple of
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá. Oxford: Oneworld. ("I asked Him ['Abdu'l-Bahá]
> many questions concerning the Cause which He answered and they were interpreted
> by Shoghi Effendi and taken down in Persian by Dr. Lutfu'lláh Hakím.
> Translated afterwards by them into English and many of the answers referred
> again to the Master, Who confirmed the same and occasionally changed a
> word, and these talks are certified as above stated" [p. 110].)
> Rosenfeld, R. B.,
> & Winger-Bearskin, M. H. (1991). Principles of consultation applied
> to the process of innovation in a corporate environment. Journal of
> Bahá'í Studies 3(1), 31-48.
> Saiedi, N. (1997). Bahá'í
> Faith and mysticism: Four valleys and seven valleys. Unpublished Manuscript,
> Landegg Academy, Weinacht, Switzerland.
> Sanford, N. (1970).
> Whatever happened to action research?
> 
> Journal of Social Issues 26, 3-23.
> Stephens, K. D. (1990).
> The development of communication and the communication of development.
> Journal
> for Bahá'í Studies 2(4), 59-80.
> Vick, H. H. (1989). Social
> and economic development: A Bahá'í approach. Oxford:
> George Ronald.
> 
> METADATA
> 
> Views29277 views since posted 2000-02-03; last edit 2012;
> 
> previous at archive.org.../diessner_action_research;
> URLs changed in 2010, see archive.org.../bahai-library.org
> Language
> English
> Permission
> author
> Share
> 
> Shortlink: bahai-library.com/1541
> Citation: ris/1541
> 
> select Collection:
> Archives
> Articles
> Articles-unpublished
> Audio
> Bibliographies
> BIC
> Biographies
> Books
> Chronologies
> Compilations
> Compilations-NSA
> Compilations-personal
> Documents
> East-asia
> Encyclopedia
> Essays
> Etc
> Excerpts
> Fiction
> Glossaries
> Guardian
> Histories
> Introductory
> Letters
> Maps
> Music
> Newspapers
> NSA-documents
> NSA-letters
> Personal
> Pilgrims
> Poetry
> Presentations
> Resources
> Reviews
> Scripts
> Software
> Statistics
> Study
> Talks
> Theses
> Transcripts
> Translations
> UHJ-documents
> UHJ-letters
> Video
> Visual
> Writings
> 
> home
> 
> sitemap
> 
> series
> 
> chronology
> 
> search:
> author
> 
> title
> 
> date
> 
> tags
> 
> adv. search
> languages
> 
> inventory
> 
> bibliography
> 
> abbreviations
> 
> links
> 
> about
> 
> contact
> 
> RSS
> 
> new
>
> — *Action Research (Used by permission of the curator)*