Examples & Case-studies » Research
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Overview

Ketso offers support for every stage of the research process, from initial brainstorming of possible areas to research, to developing a research questions with stakeholders and a research team, to data gathering, to analysis, to dissemination and exploration of the uses and impact of results.

Ketso can also be used to help plan and structure  writing reports and articles from research.

For more insight into how Ketso can be used in research, take a look at our Ketso in Research Video.

Examples of how Ketso has been used in research include:

You may also wish to look at these examples of using Ketso to engage the public with Universities.

Ketso offers a tried-and-tested method that helps participants to express their ideas - even those who find it difficult to talk in front of groups. The hands-on nature of the tool makes it ideal tool for managing focus groups and other consultations. Participants are able to go beyond just giving data, and are able to actively engage in finding patterns and prioritising ideas.

Ketso has been used to gather data from groups that are traditionally seen as 'hard-to-reach', including young people and refugees and asylum seekers. The fact that data can be gathered rapidly also makes it ideal for data gathering with busy people, such as executives and policy makers, and Ketso has been used in research in major companies and government agencies as well as in community settings.

Ketso emerged from research, and is now a case study for the ESRC in impact from social science, as can be seen in this booklet from the ESRC and this accompanying brief video.

Ketso is highly portable and can be used just about anywhere - on a tabletop, hung on wall, outdoors in a park - and without the need for batteries, cables and other limitations.

Data from participants (in the form of ideas written on leaves and developed into patterns on the felt) is captured in a physical artefact, which can then be transcribed into spreadsheets and analysed in depth. See this page for more information on the tools we provide for capturing and analysing data.

"What struck me most, aside from the speed at which information and data can be generated, was the speed at which one can begin to analyse and see patterns coming out of the data. Ketso as a flexible, yet methodical way to both collect and bring together focus group type data, is a something I will definitely consider using when conducting my own group workshops".

Samuel Hayes, PhD Researcher in the School of Environment and Development at the University of Manchester

 

NEW! Participatory research in Russia

In late 2011, Ketso was introduced to the Nizhny Novgorod State University and used in participatory research in Russia.

Participatory approaches to poverty reduction: a view from small-town Russia
The main period of fieldwork took place in November 2011 in the small provincial town of Pavlovo, Nizhny Novgorod Region. A team of 6-8 researchers, led by Prof Nina Ivashinenko (professor of Economic Sociology, Nizhny Novgorod State University); Dr Ann-Mari Satre (Senior Lecturer in Eurasian Studies, Uppsala University, Sweden) and Prof Rebecca Kay (Professor of Russian Gender Studies (Central and East European Studies), University of Glasgow), worked together. 

The team used the following methods of enquiry:

  • Open-ended semi-structured 'expert' interviews with professionals involved in welfare policy implementation and provision, with the leaders of local NGOs and advocacy groups, and with local entrepreneurs involved in 'socially responsible business' programmes
  • Ethnographic interviews with families experiencing poverty
  • Participant observation - researchers attended regular activities and events organised by a range of state and non-state support structures, NGOs and advocacy groups working on poverty issues in the town

In addition, one participatory consultation event was organised bringing together a range of stakeholders from policy makers, social service professionals, current and former welfare recipients etc. This workshop was facilitated using Ketso.  One participant commented on the use of Ketso: "You should play this with Putin!".

Following this successful use of Ketso in this research, a second workshop was run in Nizhny Novgorod State University  (NNGU), in which Prof Kay introduced Ketso to students and university staff.

The Faculty of Social Science is planning on making full use of Ketso kit in their practical training of sociologists and social scientists within the faculty, as well as in the research the faculty conducts.

Research with refugees, asylum seekers and migrants (University of Glasgow)

GRAMNet is a network based in the University of Glasgow, which brings together community groups, researchers, practitioners, NGOs and policy makers working with migrants, refugees and asylum seekers in Scotland.

GRAMNet’s research has been featured in the publication: Big Ideas for the Future, published by Research Council UK (RCUK) and Universities UK. To see a brief video about their research, click here.

Through GRAMNet, Ketso has been used in events across Scotland, Jordan, the Palestine and Russia.

GRAMNet uses Ketso in a variety of ways, from working with Masters students and groups working in the community to develop ideas for collaborative masters, to engaging with refugees and asylum seekers in research and workshops to find out everyone's views.

What was striking for GRAMNet researchers was the fact that unlike many research data gathering tools (e.g. recorded interviews or surveys using a clipboard), Ketso does not looks anything like the tools used in interviews with the authorities. Such tools can often raise unpleasant associations for people who have been through traumatic deportation interviews.

Alison Phipps, Professor of Languages and Intercultural Studies, Former Associate Dean (Postgraduate) at University of Glasgow and a co-founder of GRAMNet commented:
“I have done workshop after workshop, all of them consultative and consent building. Ketso is the best tool I have come across. I know all of the research you have built this on, and it really makes sense. I have worked in research training for a decade, and this is a superb tool for building skills as well. Some of my PhD students were in the workshop you ran, and were asking me afterwards if I could get a kit for them.”

Rights to the City (University of Manchester)

Dr. Melanie Lombard (Lecturer in Urban Development, Global Urban Research Centre)

Rights to the city

A research workshop focussed on Rights to the City was held by the Global Urban Research Centre (GURC) at the University of Manchester. Ketso was used to gather perspectives from the international researchers who came together to explore this emerging area of research.  During the session, two groups were formed of six and nine participants respectively. One branch of the Ketso was dedicated to a discussion on people’s experiences of the ‘Right to the City’; another for how they believe this concept influences research; and a further for the policy implications of such a concept.

"I found the brainstorming tool quite useful as I find visual aides helpful. Condensing thoughts into one word for the leaf was productive, too. Mainly, it helped tie the day together for me, after the different lectures. The different outcomes of the trees for the two groups were very interesting too, showing that the metaphor of a tree with branches is not only thought-provoking, but flexible enough to accommodate different group dynamics" (Claudia, participant).

Rights to the city 2

Several participants agreed that Ketso’s metaphorical use of a tree was excellent at cultivating a natural flow of discussion between participants rather than the commonly used markers and paper. They felt that the use of leaves to denote types of thoughts was not only a novel idea, but allowed participants to see the connections between the negative and the positive aspects of the concept.

"At the end of the Right to the City workshop, all participants shared their opinions and points of view about the role of the urban planning in improvement quality of life, of the policies’ transparency and of the accessibility of citizenship rights. … The result has been a mix of inputs, from which a debate has begun about their relationships and conflicts. Especially for me, as a young Italian PhD student, this has been the first occasion to share thoughts and observations in a formative, multicultural and multidisciplinary context. So, I have been not only a passive spectator, but an active member in stimulating the debate" (Giuseppe, participant).

Please see GURC's website for the full workshop report, pg. 24 has more information on the use of Ketso.

Business and Biodiversity (University of Pretoria)

Dr. Eben le Roux (Centre for Responsible Leadership, University of Pretoria)

This exploratory workshop on Sept. 15, 2010 brought together interested stakeholders for investigating the opportunities and challenges relating to the interface between business and biodiversity - the importance of which has been highlighted explicitly by inter alia conventions such as the Convention On Biological Diversity, charters such as the Jakarta Charter on Business and Biodiversity, and research reports such as the TEEB report  for business. In recognition of the importance of research and collaboration into this area, the Centre for Responsible Leadership at the University of Pretoria and the Forestry and Agricultural Biotechnology Institute (FABI) wanted to explore the current actions already undertaken by business and other stakeholders in this area.

The workshop focus was therefore to obtain stakeholder perspectives on the uniqueness, potential format, as well as value proposition of a platform for hosting collaboration and research in the Southern African context. The workshop was attended by representatives from the Endangered Wildlife Trust, the environmental media, the CSIR, the South African National Biodiversity Institute, Eskom, and the Department of Environmental Affairs, as well as a multidisciplinary group of staff members from the University of Pretoria.

The key differentiator (focus area) of the business and biodiversity initiative came to be seen as 'Thought leadership for a changing paradigm'. Further unpacking of this focus is still required, and developing a business and biodiversity charter was seen as a first step towards defining a common goal.

The main ideas in terms of ‘how’ this focus could be achieved, included: 1) awareness raising and training, 2) generating impetus for changes in policy, and 3) inter-disciplinary research and collaboration.

Participants envisaged a one-stop shop (institute) on advisory and expert opinions/services, in which options and approaches (information, best practice, tools, collation) could be provided to business, so that business could adapt as they see fit. There would also have to be targeted science/policy dialogues. In the interest of maintaining effectiveness, participants also highlighted general principles that they considered important on an operational & strategic level, for such a ‘one-stop shop’.

Since this workshop, funding has been granted to establish a new Unit for Business and Biodiversity Leadership, with the following roles:

  • foster inter-disciplinary research and collaboration,
  • advocate for changes in policy,
  • capacity building, encompassing the development and roll-out of training / action research interventions

Download the full report here.

Tesco and the Sustainable Consumption Institute (University of Manchester)

Tippett, Dr. Joanne; Farnsworth, Dr. Valerie; How, Fraser; Le Roux, Dr. Ebenhaezer; Mann, Dr. Pete; Sherriff, Dr. Graeme

Sir Terry Leahy, Tesco’s CEO, set the stage for Tesco to be a leader in creating a low carbon economy, saying in 2007: “We are going to have to re-think the way we live and work.” 

Dr. Joanne Tippett and a team of researchers undertook two action research projects funded by the Sustainable Consumption Institute, working with Tesco staff. These were: "Improving sustainability skills in the workplace" and "Scaling up sustainability learning" (Nov 2008 - July 2010). The aims of the two projects were:

  • To identify effective training and communication methods to enable people to understand sustainability issues and take action – and to implement and assess a learning pilot which delivers this in Tesco
  • To find effective ways to embed new thinking that maximises people’s understanding of sustainability and changes in behaviour, in the context of ‘training the trainers’

Feedback from Tesco staff involved was positive, demonstrating significant shifts in attitude and awareness, and increased motivation to take action towards a sustainable future.

Ketso was used a key data-gathering tool in these project. Overall, both projects involved 78 members of staff (30 in Stores and 48 in Head Office) attending training (five courses in total), with 105 additional members of staff being interviewed or attending focus groups facilitated with Ketso.  The questions explored: Participants’ understandings of sustainability; what works well in sustainability training and learning in Tesco; how new approaches and practices are introduced and embedded in Tesco; and examples of sustainable behaviour and practice in Tesco.

Ketso was also used as a tool for encouraging dialogue in the training, which enabled the gathering of rich research data to explore staff perceptions and changes in knowledge, understanding and attitudes as a result of the training programme. 

The Ketso toolkit used in this research provides a concrete example of an action research method deployed purposefully for both development of learners (action) and collection and clustering of data (research). In the first round of research, participants were asked for their reaction to the use of Ketso in learning. Of the 23 respondees,12 found using Ketso to be 'very helpful' for their learning, 9 found it to be 'helpful' and 2 found it to be 'in the middle', whilst none found it to be 'unhelpful' or 'very unhelfpul'.

Overall, the groups expressed positive reactions to the use of felt-based visual representations of the RoundView Guidelines and the use of interactive, moveable felt based tools.  Comments included:

  • Different and more engaging.
  • Somehow less corporate and more personal.
  • More interactive and ‘refreshing’.

We used a combination of 'felt based animation' and Ketso leaves to incorporate ideas from participants into the Guidelines for Sustainability.  Participants commented that it was good to be able to add and remove parts, and to use this as a way to ‘drive points home’. It was also seen as ‘easier to visualise the issues’ and understand ‘how it all relates to each other, e.g. cycles animation’ and to ‘see it build up over time’. Additionally, it was noted from a practical point of view, Stores are unlikely to have computers and projectors and this approach may therefore be more practical for training in Stores.

Ketso not only allows the researcher to gather data from all participants, it enables the capture of a good deal of data quickly. From a research methodological standpoint, the Ketso toolkit supports the inductive character of action research, that of ‘doing the particular’ to generate ‘understanding of the general’.

To download reports from this project, click here, and for an article about this research- click here.

Action Research- Capacity Building in Environmental Planning

Dr. Joanne Tippett and Dr. Emma Griffiths conducted a research project sponsored by the Environment Agency NorthWest called: Joining-up participation in environmental planning – developing a learning resource for capacity-building.

This project developed new methods for developing practitioners’ abilities to facilitate stakeholder engagement in planning. The Project Manager developed a capacity building programme for an integrated approach to participation, and tested it with trainee facilitators. Ketso was used for both the capacity building for facilitators and gathering ideas for the launch of the Green City Network, where trainee facilitators worked with a group of over 100 people.

The research highlighted several key themes for effective training in these skills:

  • Create an action learning approach
  • Actively encourage reflective practice
  • Develop peer networks and mentoring opportunities
  • Create supportive conditions for learning
  • Develop learning from participants’ own understandings
  • Incorporate a diversity of approaches and perspectives
  • Encourage a holistic view and working across scales
  • Incorporate learning about systems thinking and sustainability

You can download the full report about capacity building here, and the report from the launch of the Green City Network here.