The chapter uses an opportunistic sample of 16 Kampalan entrepreneurs who have been surveyed and ... more The chapter uses an opportunistic sample of 16 Kampalan entrepreneurs who have been surveyed and interviewed on multiple occasions during the past four years to explore the salience of Hubinger’s concept of ‘precarious prosperity’ in a Sub-Saharan African context (Hubinger, 1996). When the participants were first surveyed, they were at a similar economic level and working in a range of businesses from selling bananas to electronics repair. However, the past four years have seen dramatic changes in their lives, reflecting their differential positioning within social space and access to capital. In some cases, these changes have frustrated their plans, but in others, they have enabled them; in all cases challenging the notion of a linear life course. In this chapter, we look at how entrepreneurs – a category celebrated in the Ugandan media - are positioned within social space in Uganda and the resources or capitals they draw on to achieve often fleeting social mobility. In explaining ...
Supplemental material, Appendix_to_Camfield,_Rigor_and_ethics_in_the_world_of_a_big_quala for Rig... more Supplemental material, Appendix_to_Camfield,_Rigor_and_ethics_in_the_world_of_a_big_quala for Rigor and Ethics in the World of Big-team Qualitative Data: Experiences From Research in International Development by Laura Camfield in American Behavioral Scientist
Impact evaluation is an important tool in research and policy making, as policymakers and donor a... more Impact evaluation is an important tool in research and policy making, as policymakers and donor agencies are under increasing pressure to justify public spending on social and economic interventions. This book will guide the reader through both the basic and more advanced methods of impact evaluation, with a particular focus on impact evaluation within evidence-based policy making and in international development. It will address the design, commissioning, and management of impact evaluations, data management, statistical econometric analyses, and theory-based approaches to impact evaluation. It will also cover other components of evidence-based policy making such as systematic reviews, replication, and ethics in impact evaluation research and practice. The book is organized in four parts, each part divided into stand-alone chapters. The chapters provide a theoretical discussion of the various topics related to impact evaluation, complemented with exercises, case studies and worked ...
This chapter makes a methodological contribution to wellbeing approaches by exploring how mixing ... more This chapter makes a methodological contribution to wellbeing approaches by exploring how mixing qualitative and quantitative methods in developing measures of factors contributing to wellbeing can increase researchers’ understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of survey data. I argue that mixing methods highlights the subjective nature of ‘objective’ data, for example, the conscious, unconscious and often contingent influences on the way people respond when asked about their income. It also highlights the fragility of ‘subjective’ data such as judgements of satisfaction where there is no external referent against which a response can be evaluated. In the first part of the chapter, I look at cognitive interviewing or debriefing, which is not widely used in survey development outside the Global North. Using an example with young entrepreneurs in South Africa, I suggest that given the dominance of survey approaches within applied economic and health research, there may be a role for cognitive debriefing, not least in highlighting the temporal and cultural specificity of this form of measurement. But while cognitive debriefing can capture the conscious and articulable aspects of how people respond to questions (Tourangeau 1984), there are also processes that operate beneath people’s awareness. I briefly discuss whether theories from psychology and behavioural economics can be applied in very different settings to help researchers understand these processes.
The Vulnerability and Poverty Reduction Team aims to construct dynamic and multi-dimensional pers... more The Vulnerability and Poverty Reduction Team aims to construct dynamic and multi-dimensional perspectives on vulnerability and poverty in order to transform thinking, policy and practice Vulnerability is a major obstacle to social and economic development. Poor people are especially vulnerable, as they have few buffers or resources to cope with hazards or shocks. They are also significantly more likely to be affected by ill-health, unemployment, trade shocks, famine or conflict. If we are to achieve sustainable poverty reduction, we must improve our understanding of vulnerability.
The paper explores the conceptual and methodological issues entailed in using subjective measures... more The paper explores the conceptual and methodological issues entailed in using subjective measures of wellbeing, especially outside the Euro-American context in which they were developed. In the first part I define, situate and contrast subjective quality of life (QoL), subjective wellbeing (SWB), and wellbeing. I also look at the conceptual and methodological shortcomings of subjective measures of wellbeing and suggest ways of overcoming these by combining different approaches. I then explore how an expanded concept of subjective quality of life fits into the theoretical framework of the UK-based Wellbeing in Developing Countries study (or WeD) , specifically how it will adapt the methodology of the WHOQOL group [1995; 1998] to produce a new measure of ‘development-related ’ QoL.
The chapter uses an opportunistic sample of 16 Kampalan entrepreneurs who have been surveyed and ... more The chapter uses an opportunistic sample of 16 Kampalan entrepreneurs who have been surveyed and interviewed on multiple occasions during the past four years to explore the salience of Hubinger’s concept of ‘precarious prosperity’ in a Sub-Saharan African context (Hubinger, 1996). When the participants were first surveyed, they were at a similar economic level and working in a range of businesses from selling bananas to electronics repair. However, the past four years have seen dramatic changes in their lives, reflecting their differential positioning within social space and access to capital. In some cases, these changes have frustrated their plans, but in others, they have enabled them; in all cases challenging the notion of a linear life course. In this chapter, we look at how entrepreneurs – a category celebrated in the Ugandan media - are positioned within social space in Uganda and the resources or capitals they draw on to achieve often fleeting social mobility. In explaining ...
Supplemental material, Appendix_to_Camfield,_Rigor_and_ethics_in_the_world_of_a_big_quala for Rig... more Supplemental material, Appendix_to_Camfield,_Rigor_and_ethics_in_the_world_of_a_big_quala for Rigor and Ethics in the World of Big-team Qualitative Data: Experiences From Research in International Development by Laura Camfield in American Behavioral Scientist
Impact evaluation is an important tool in research and policy making, as policymakers and donor a... more Impact evaluation is an important tool in research and policy making, as policymakers and donor agencies are under increasing pressure to justify public spending on social and economic interventions. This book will guide the reader through both the basic and more advanced methods of impact evaluation, with a particular focus on impact evaluation within evidence-based policy making and in international development. It will address the design, commissioning, and management of impact evaluations, data management, statistical econometric analyses, and theory-based approaches to impact evaluation. It will also cover other components of evidence-based policy making such as systematic reviews, replication, and ethics in impact evaluation research and practice. The book is organized in four parts, each part divided into stand-alone chapters. The chapters provide a theoretical discussion of the various topics related to impact evaluation, complemented with exercises, case studies and worked ...
This chapter makes a methodological contribution to wellbeing approaches by exploring how mixing ... more This chapter makes a methodological contribution to wellbeing approaches by exploring how mixing qualitative and quantitative methods in developing measures of factors contributing to wellbeing can increase researchers’ understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of survey data. I argue that mixing methods highlights the subjective nature of ‘objective’ data, for example, the conscious, unconscious and often contingent influences on the way people respond when asked about their income. It also highlights the fragility of ‘subjective’ data such as judgements of satisfaction where there is no external referent against which a response can be evaluated. In the first part of the chapter, I look at cognitive interviewing or debriefing, which is not widely used in survey development outside the Global North. Using an example with young entrepreneurs in South Africa, I suggest that given the dominance of survey approaches within applied economic and health research, there may be a role for cognitive debriefing, not least in highlighting the temporal and cultural specificity of this form of measurement. But while cognitive debriefing can capture the conscious and articulable aspects of how people respond to questions (Tourangeau 1984), there are also processes that operate beneath people’s awareness. I briefly discuss whether theories from psychology and behavioural economics can be applied in very different settings to help researchers understand these processes.
The Vulnerability and Poverty Reduction Team aims to construct dynamic and multi-dimensional pers... more The Vulnerability and Poverty Reduction Team aims to construct dynamic and multi-dimensional perspectives on vulnerability and poverty in order to transform thinking, policy and practice Vulnerability is a major obstacle to social and economic development. Poor people are especially vulnerable, as they have few buffers or resources to cope with hazards or shocks. They are also significantly more likely to be affected by ill-health, unemployment, trade shocks, famine or conflict. If we are to achieve sustainable poverty reduction, we must improve our understanding of vulnerability.
The paper explores the conceptual and methodological issues entailed in using subjective measures... more The paper explores the conceptual and methodological issues entailed in using subjective measures of wellbeing, especially outside the Euro-American context in which they were developed. In the first part I define, situate and contrast subjective quality of life (QoL), subjective wellbeing (SWB), and wellbeing. I also look at the conceptual and methodological shortcomings of subjective measures of wellbeing and suggest ways of overcoming these by combining different approaches. I then explore how an expanded concept of subjective quality of life fits into the theoretical framework of the UK-based Wellbeing in Developing Countries study (or WeD) , specifically how it will adapt the methodology of the WHOQOL group [1995; 1998] to produce a new measure of ‘development-related ’ QoL.
An expansion in funding for 'basic' research has provided space for development researchers to re... more An expansion in funding for 'basic' research has provided space for development researchers to reflect on their practice and on their ethical responsibility to do research that is 'accountable and of the highest quality' (ESRC Framework 2006). The growth in qualitative as well as quantitative data archiving, which is now a requirement of many funders, brings these issues to the fore. For secondary data to be usable there needs to be a robust methodological account reflecting on the challenges of data production and the implications of these for potential conclusions. The recent emphasis on evidence-based policy making by DFID means it is doubly important to ensure that quantitative and qualitative studies make full disclosure of their methods of data production and analysis, although there is little guidance provided in relation to this. This volume responds to these challenges, drawing on best practice from other fields, and provides a fresh perspective on perennial debates such as how to integrate qualitative and quantitative approaches and the relationship between data and theory.
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