Steven Baker Research Proposal 2014_09_15

Steven Baker (sop255@bangor.ac.uk) 15 September 2014 1
Steven Baker
Master of Arts Degree in Social Policy by Research
ResearchProposal
If information is part of the solution… What’s the problem?
Exploring the meaning, role and use of information for carers
Contents
1. Purpose .........................................................................................................................................2
2. Background...................................................................................................................................2
3. Methods of Data Collection ........................................................................................................3
a. Staff survey; ...........................................................................................................................3
b. Semi-structured telephone interviews with staff;..............................................................4
c. In-depth interviews with carers; ..........................................................................................4
4. Analysis of data ............................................................................................................................5
5. Research Ethics ...........................................................................................................................6
6. Impact, Anticipated Outcomes & Dissemination.....................................................................8
7. Timetable.......................................................................................................................................9
Appendix 1: ....................................................................................................................................... 10

1. Purpose
Quantitative and qualitative research methods will be used to explore the complex
issues surrounding the role and use of information by carers.
The research draws on complexity theory and is underpinned by three main
objectives, to:
i. Explore key stakeholder perspectives about the meaning and role of
information in the context of supporting carers to achieve positive well-
being outcomes.
ii. Examine the ways in which and the extent to which information is used to
help carers.
iii. Generate evidence-informed recommendations for policy makers and
practitioners that will help to support the implementation of the Social
Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 20141.
These objectives will be addressed through surveying the perspectives of
professionals who work with carers (social care staff) and carrying out in-depth
interviews with carers.
2. Background
Carers tell us that the right information presented at the right time in the right way is
a fundamental requirement to coping with the demands of their caring role and to
achieving positive outcomes2.
In 2007 the Welsh Government3 recommended the provision of an early intervention
‘information rich’ social care approach to maximise independent citizen ‘self-care’
and management of personal circumstances. However; research has found that a
lack of information is a common problem experienced by carers4. Furthermore,
carers’ informational rights and needs are often seen as a secondary concern
compared to those of the person they care for5.
The Social Services Well-being (Wales) Act (2014) will replace the Carers Strategies
(Wales) Measure (2010) in 2016, setting out a new framework of requirements
aimed to link care and support for both the person cared-for and their carer to their
achievement of positive well-being outcomes as set out in the emergent National
Outcomes Framework (2014-15)6. The Welsh Government states that it will be a
requirement for local authorities to provide information as part of the social care
1
Welsh Government (2013), Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014
2
Information needs of people w ith dementia p5; and carers WGoutcome p5 Carers Strategy
3
Welsh Government (2007), Fulfilled Lives Sustainable Communities.
4
The Carers Trust (2013) A Road Less Rocky available from
http://www.carers.org/sites/default/files/dementia_executive_summary_english_only_final_use_this_one.pdf [accessed 06 February 2014]
5
Gray, B. Robinson, C. Seddon, D. Roberts, A.. (2008). 'Confidentiality Smokescreens' and carers for people with mental health
problems: the perspectives of professionals. Health and Social Care in the Community. 16 (4), 378-387.
6 The national outcomes framew orkfor people w ho need care and support and carers who need support, 2014-15; working document

mechanism that is being designed to deliver the policy objectives detailed in section
17 of the Act (2014)
But will carrying out ‘minimum standard’ informational interventions be enough to
satiate the needs experienced by carers? What features will ensure information is
useful for carers? And what is the role of multi-agency staff in ensuring information is
central to carers’ solutions?
Setting out to make sense of the seemingly multifarious nature of this research topic,
complexity theory will be employed to seek new insights and understandings from
the analysis of primary data collected from carers and social care staff across wales.
3. Methods of Data Collection
Through surveying the perspectives of staff and carrying out in-depth interviews with
carers, both quantitative and qualitative research methods will be used to build a
comprehensive picture of carers’ experiences from which to explore information as
an intervention. Enquiries with both carers and social care staff will create the
opportunity to look deeper into this complex topic by comparing and contrasting the
data from the two key stakeholder perspectives.
An interpretivist approach will be employed to uncover the meaning of information
from both carers’ and staff perspectives.
The following methods will be employed to gather experiential data from research
participants; from adult carers involved with looking after other adults and from social
care staff working with that group of carers. Health staff will not be approached to
collect primary data during any element of this research project; this decision was
made following an appraisal of the limited resources available to complete this study.
a. Social care staff survey;
i. An online survey will be employed to gather data from a
comprehensive cross section of social care and third sector staff who
work with carers.
ii. Staff will be approached by email to invite their participation. This will
involve contacting staff directly and/or through contact with senior
management in the organisation where they work e.g. social service
departments, third sector organisations, Association of Directors of
Adult Social Services, the Welsh Government, and British Association
of Social Workers etc.
iii. Staff who are invited to participate in the online survey will be provided
with an information sheet detailing what will be involved, ensuring the
person’s choice whether to participate is by informed consent.
iv. The survey will include open and closed questions inviting staff to
share their perspectives about the nature of information as an
intervention for carers.
v. Seeking to identify the important commonalities that cut across the
perspectives of staff, the research study is not concerned with the
different political approaches or specific expertise held by separate
sectors and organisations, rather the wholesale perspective that
defines the nature of information in support of carers well-being.

vi. It would be ideal to gain a perspective built from all staff in Wales or at
least from a representative random sample. Given the resources
available for this research study it would not be possible to devise such
a list, let alone administrate the process of surveying such a sample.
The research sampling method chosen to identify and engage staff will
be a convenience sample.
vii. A target of around 150 responses will be aimed for to provide sufficient
data to carry out a meaningful analysis.
b. Semi-structured telephone interviews with social care staff;
i. Telephone interviews with staff are included in the research study
design to provide the opportunity to gain an increased understanding of
staff perspectives and to gather further information about key issues
arising from the survey work.
ii. The staff interviews will explore the construction of ‘carer need’ to see
how it guides brokerage of information and offer a position from which
to compare carer’s actual perspectives about the usefulness of
information and highlight any potential bifurcation.
iii. The interview structure will be informed by the online staff survey
findings to ensure the data collected is complimentary and further
develops knowledge about staff perspectives of information as an
intervention.
iv. The online staff survey will include a question asking for participants to
indicate whether they would be willing to participate in a telephone
interview so as to select potential willing participants.
v. A purposive sample of around fifteen staff will be approached to take
part in a telephone interview. This sample will be chosen from
respondents of the online survey who also indicated willingness to
participate in the telephone interviews. Participants will be contacted by
email to confirm their participation and a Staff Interview Information
Sheet will be forwarded to them. The participants reply will confirm their
voluntary informed consent.
vi. Combining the online survey and telephone interview data for analysis
will enable this study to comprehensively explore the topic, providing
the opportunity for an in depth understanding of staff perspectives to be
gained.
c. In-depth interviews with carers;
i. Carers’ perspectives will be sought through one-off in-depth interviews,
informed by a topic guide; exploring the nature of information as an
intervention, its meaning and role in the context of supporting Carers to
achieve positive well-being outcomes.
ii. Interview data, with permission, will be recorded to an MP3 file and
then transcribed.
iii. Intermediaries (social care staff) will invite carers to participate with the
research study to ensure potential participants are provided with the

correct environment to make an independent, informed and voluntary
choice to participate or not to participate.
iv. Potential carer participants will be provided with an introductory letter
and Carer Information Sheet by the intermediary, detailing the interview
requirements and commitments of participating with this research
study.
v. A purposive sampling technique will be used to identify the intended
sample of carers; gaining insight into lived experience of carers,
building a rich and illustrative data set from which analysis will take
place.
vi. To enable meaningful results, it may be decided to focus on one
specific group of carers. This decision will be guided by a preliminary
literature review and analysis of data from the staff survey. The
inclusion criteria guiding invites of adult carers of adults may include
factors such as focussing on Welsh Government policy priorities;
nature of the relationship with the person cared-for; personal
circumstances or sampling a diverse range of carers who have
different personal circumstances.
vii. A pragmatic approach will be taken to determine the in-depth interview
sample size. The balance will need to be found between the need to
have an adequate number of interviewees to ensure that a
comprehensive understanding can be discovered, whilst permitting a
deep analysis of the data to take place within the resources available to
this level of study. It is thought that approximately fifteen carer
interviews will fulfil these requirements.
d. All participation with this research study will take place after voluntary
informed consent has been gained from the participant.
4. Analysis of data
a. The mixed-method research strategy has been designed in response to the
complex nature of the subject being studied; developing an understanding of
the meaning of information in support of well-being and describing the
objective reality of information as an entity. An interpretivist and positivist
epistemology will be used to analyse the appropriate data sets to uncover
understanding about both the subjective meaning of information as a positive
intervention and the objective nature of information sources that are available.
b. Both carers and staff will be invited to engage with this study to generate a
rich and comprehensive data set from which a multi layered analysis can be
carried out.
c. Using the survey of staff, the research study will quantitatively explore the
presentation of information for carers and the staff’ perspective of the purpose
of information.
d. The detailed ‘thick’ data collected from carers during interview will be
analysed using content analysis methodology, aiming to objectively and
subjectively study the content that is physically present and the extended

symbolism communicated by each carer. Narrative analysis of the interview
data will assist in developing a rich understanding of the carers’ perspective.
e. A comprehensive and systematic literature review will present what is known
about this subject to this study, enabling the student researcher to develop
knowledge from which to carry out detailed analysis of the primary data
collected from carers and staff.
f. Analysis of all data considered together will enable the study to compare and
contrast the different stakeholders’ perspectives, using methods such as
triangulation to gain a deeper understanding of the subject being studied.
g. The comprehensive understanding of the subject will be the essential
foundation for evidence-informed recommendations to be developed to
improve the effectiveness of informational interventions.
5. Research Ethics
a. The research student is aware of their ethical responsibilities to both the
research participants and to their own professional7 and postgraduate student
roles; as described in Bangor University Research Ethics Policy8 and Data
Protection Policy9.
b. The research study will be conducted under the supervision of Bangor
University. The research student’s academic role will remain separate to their
professional role. Confidential information will not be permitted to pass
between the student’s academic and professional roles to ensure participants
and those people cared-for are protected from harm arising from participation/
non-participation.
c. Appropriate documentation10 will provide the means by which this research
project will ensure all participation with the research study will be agreed
through voluntary informed consent:
i. Research Study Risk Assessment
ii. Participant Invitation Letters and Information Sheets specific to the
participant circumstances and research method (bilingual)
iii. Consent to Interview and Record Interview forms
d. It is proposed to establish a Virtual Research Reference Group to provide an
objective viewpoint through which to test the research study products and
approach to ensure ethical appropriateness. It will comprise of carers and
staff. Members of this group will be engaged as research collaborators and
the project will be completed in partnership with them. The nature of the
collaborative relationship between the reference group and the research study
will be managed to ensure members do not have access to any confidential
research data. Regular involvement from the group (face to face and virtual)
will be sought, where members will be invited to comment on: -
i. The research proposal and participant documentation
7
Local Government Officer, WrexhamAdult SocialCare Department
8
Research Ethics Policy
9
DPP
10
Ethics w orkproducts – see appendix 1

ii. Survey instruments and interview schedules
iii. Analysis of the research data
iv. Policy and practice implications
v. Dissemination of the research findings
e. Data will be collected, stored and used in accordance with data protection
requirements:-
i. Data provided by research participants will remain confidential between
the participant, research student and their supervisor; except in specific
circumstances outlined in section 5.f. below.
ii. All research study products will protect the participant’s anonymity.
Individuals will not be identified in any documents. Direct identifiers will
be recorded and stored separately to research documentation and data
records. Indirect identifiers will be removed using pseudonyms and
replacement terms.
iii. Hard copies of research data and documents relating to participants
will be stored securely in a locked filing cabinet and electronic
documentation (preferred format) will be saved using a password
protected document to the research student’s M drive on the
University’s servers, which is confidential to the research student and is
automatically backed-up.
f. There are certain circumstances where there will be a requirement to share
information outside of the research student/participant relationship. The
Participant Information Sheets will state that it might be necessary to disclose
information obtained in the course of the research if that disclosed information
suggests that an individual is at risk of significant harm or if malpractice is
disclosed (s6.4.1 p22 Wrexham area procedures11). If the researcher
becomes concerned that the information being disclosed is suggestive of risk,
they will advise the participant accordingly, and discuss the concerns with the
participant. The researcher will take advice from the Team Manager of the
local Adult Social Care department. Information will be disclosed only for the
purpose of protecting the person. It will be shared in accordance with the
agreed procedures for the Local Authority area where the person at risk is
located (i.e. Wrexham area procedures).
g. The research project will be sensitively designed to cause minimal negative
impact to people involved with the research project. The research student
has previously established procedures that are described in the associated
research study risk assessment (see 3.1.2.d) to guide their actions should the
process prompt strong emotional response aiming to minimise the negative
impact i.e. should a participant become upset during their interview, the
research student will pause the recording and offer verbal assistance, offering
to pause or stop the interview as appropriate to the circumstances.
11 http://www.wrexham.gov.uk/assets/pdfs/social_services/key_documents/wales_vulnerableadults_protection_pandp.pdf

6. Impact, Anticipated Outcomes & Dissemination
a. The knowledge outcome from this study will be a greater understanding of
information’s role as an intervention for carers in the Welsh social care
construct, supporting the achievement of positive well-being outcomes.
b. The knowledge gained will be applied to generating evidence-informed
recommendations for policy makers and practitioners that will help to support
the implementation of the Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act (2014).
c. The study will continue to remain sensitive to the emergence and identification
of any outcomes (positive or negative) that were not planned for throughout
the period of time this this study.
d. It is proposed that the following dissemination methods are employed to share
the findings:
i. Final report
ii. Practitioner papers and peer-reviewed papers
iii. National and international conferences
iv. Research summaries, circulated to participants
v. Study participants will be sent project up-dates, presented in
accessible formats that detail key findings.
e. The Virtual Research Reference Group will inform the dissemination activities
to ensure their relevance to practitioners and their sensitivity to and
appropriateness for carers is assured.

7. Timetable
Months: Activity:
1 – 3
Oct - Dec 13
Research Proposal; Ethics Proposal
4 – 6
Jan – Mar 14
Research Proposal; Ethics Proposal; Literature Review
Strategy
7 – 9
Apr – Jun 14
Survey Participant Identification & Invites; Research Publicity;
Literature Review
10 – 12
Jul – Sept 14
Analysis of Survey Data; Interview Participant Identification &
Invites; Literature Review; Survey Analysis and Dissemination
of Findings
13 – 15
Oct – Dec 14
Interviews; Literature Review
16 – 18
Jan – Mar 15
Analysis of Interview Data; Literature Review
19 – 21
Apr – Jun 15
Analysis & Synthesis of Interview Data, Survey Data and
Literature Review Data; Dissemination of Findings and
Analysis
22 – 24
Jul – Sept 15
Final Synthesis of Data; Description of Research Study
Findings;

Appendix 1:
Research Study Risk Assessment and
Management Strategy
5 Steven Baker RISK
ASSESSMENT research project activities v1 2014_05_01.docx
Staff’ online survey
3 Steven Baker staff
EMAIL to participate in ONLINE survey v1 2014_05_01.docx
3.1 Information
Sheet Staff Survey Cymraeg English 2014_07_17.docx
Staff’ telephone interviews
4 Steven Baker staff
EMAIL to participate in TELEPHONE interview v1 2014_05_01.docx
4.1 Steven Baker
staff telephone interview INFORMATION SHEET v1 2014_05
Carer interviews
2 Steven Baker
carers LETTER research interviews v1 2014_05_01.doc
2.1 Steven Baker
carer interview INFORMATION SHEET v1 2014_05_17.docx
2.2 Steven Baker
carer CONSENT to interview v1 2014_0
2.3 Steven Baker
carer consent to RECORD interview v1 2014_05_01.docx

Steven Baker Research Proposal 2014_09_15

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