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Fourth-Generation Realist Evaluation: Research Practice to Empower the NGO – A Reflection on the Case of Sport for Social Change

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Global Handbook of Health Promotion Research, Vol. 1

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Abstract

This chapter describes the types of challenges we face when researching an international non-governmental organization (NGO) or a community-based organization, specifically focusing on the nature of collaboration and how it contributes to the development of the research question. It focuses on fourth-generation realist evaluation (4GE) as a core research practice to engage in health promotion research. This chapter first introduces the key foundational principles of 4GE situated within the constructivist paradigm. In particular, this chapter introduces a hermeneutic dialectic circle (HDC), an interview protocol that structures the negotiation between the researcher and study stakeholder as well as the stakeholder and stakeholder. The rules and processes of this interview protocol encourage the interviewer to reflect upon and interpret the voice of each stakeholder and interpret how they experience a phenomenon in juxtaposition to the experiences of the other stakeholders. What transpires is conversation amongst stakeholders, which yields a holistic description of the problem under review. This process is highlighted through the examination of a current study on a unique case of NGOs known as Sport for Social Change (S4SC). This chapter asserts that this negotiation process is integral to structuring how health promotion research remains accountable to the stakeholder, an integral member of defining the problem and identifying a research agenda to face it.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    SFW is a global network of 135+ S4SC organizations, together employing 8000+ staff and reaching more than 2 million youths around the globe (www.streetfootballworld.org).

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Population Health, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

    Alex Richmond & Anne Bunde-Birouste

  2. Centre for Health Equity Training, Research and Evaluation, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

    Evelyne de Leeuw

  3. Local Health District & Ingham Institute, Liverpool, NSW, Australia

    Evelyne de Leeuw

  4. Healthy Urban Environments Collaboratory of Maridulu Budyari Gumal SPHERE, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

    Evelyne de Leeuw

Authors
  1. Alex Richmond
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  2. Evelyne de Leeuw
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  3. Anne Bunde-Birouste
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Correspondence to Alex Richmond .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. School of Public Health, University of Montreal, Montreal, QC, Canada

    Louise Potvin

  2. UNESCO Chair and WHO Collaborating Centre in Global Health & Education, University of Clermont Auvergne, Clermont-Ferrand, France

    Didier Jourdan

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Richmond, A., de Leeuw, E., Bunde-Birouste, A. (2022). Fourth-Generation Realist Evaluation: Research Practice to Empower the NGO – A Reflection on the Case of Sport for Social Change. In: Potvin, L., Jourdan, D. (eds) Global Handbook of Health Promotion Research, Vol. 1. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-97212-7_23

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-97212-7_23

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