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Citation: Bramer, Paul and Mark D. Chapman. “Action Research for the Doctor of Ministry 
Project: A Practical Definition.” Journal of Christian Ministry no. 6 (2017): 27-41. 
https://journalofchristianministry.org/issue/view/1406 [Accessed May 14, 2021]

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Bramer, Paul and Mark D. Chapman. “Action Research for the Doctor of Ministry
Project: A Practical Definition.” Journal of Christian Ministry no. 6 (2017): 27-41.
https://journalofchristianministry.org/issue/view/1406 [Accessed May 14, 2021]



Action Research for Doctor of Ministry Project:
A Practical Definition1

by Paul Bramer, Ph.D.
Director, Doctor of Ministry Program
Professor of Christian Formation and Leadership

and

Mark Chapman, Ph.D.

Associate Professor of Research Methods
Tyndale University College and Seminary
Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Abstract:

In this article we outline an extended and practical definition of Action Research as a
means of developing a paradigm that can help Doctor of Ministry candidates research in
contexts where they are change agents. This paper gives a brief history of Action
Research, discusses using this methodology in a DMin project, cross-references values
and activities with ATS DMin Standards, and reflects on the compatibility of Action
Research with theological ideals.

To think and act practically in fresh and innovative ways may be the most
complex thing that humans ever attempt,
					Don S. Browning (Browning 1991, 7)

The Standards of the Association of Theological Schools (ATS) for Doctor of Ministry
(DMin) programs requires programs to provide for “the development and acquisition of
skills and competencies, including methods of research...that are required for ministerial
leadership at its most mature and effective level” (Association of Theological Schools
2012, E.2.1.3). The standards also prescribe a terminal research project related to the
nature and practice of ministry (Association of Theological Schools 2012, E1.4, E2).
While the standards do not specify any particular or preferred research methodology, the
values and outcomes espoused in the standards are better fulfilled by some approaches
than others. A number of questions arise when evaluating the most appropriate kinds of
research for a DMin project2: What do leaders already do that looks like research? What

__________________________________________

1 Earlier versions of this paper were given at the Association of Doctor of Ministry Education conferences
in 2011 at New Orleans Baptist Seminary, New Orleans and in 2012 at Western Theological Seminary,
Holland, Michigan.

2 By project we mean that which the candidate does by design to facilitate constructive
development in themselves and their ministry, the research and assessment that entails, and the
written report or thesis that issues from it. The DMin Standards of the Association of Theological
Schools state that, “The program shall include the design and completion of a written doctoral

[ Page ] 27



are other professional fields using to improve practice? What approach would be
consonant with the dual roles of ministry leader and researcher? and What set of skills
and perspectives that would be useful to leaders and pastors for the rest of their ministry?
As we reviewed a variety of research methods that could be used in conjunction with
ministry projects, Action Research seemed to satisfy and even best address these
concerns. Tim Sensing in Qualitative Research: A Multi-Methods Approach to Projects
for Doctor of Ministry Theses concurs that participatory action research is the most
appropriate approach for Doctor of Ministry projects (Sensing 2011, 55 fn16).

Action Research seems obvious and simple at first glance, but as one enters more deeply
into the approach both conceptually and practically, it turns out to be profound and
challenging. In this paper we explore the nature of Action Research; in a subsequent
article, we discuss further some of the ethical, theological, and practical issues that arise
in the use of Action Research in the context of a Doctor of Ministry project.

Streams of Action Research

Action Research is not unique to ministry or doctoral research. It is increasingly used in
business, industry, athletics, and the arts, in professions such as education, health care,
and social services, and in academia where it has given rise to a number of scholarly
journals: the Center for Collaborative Action Research lists over 40 journals on or open
to publishing action research (Center for Collaborative Action Research 2016). The term
itself is often nuanced and referred to variously as participatory action research (PAR),
contextual action research, collaborative action research, praxis, emancipatory research,
collaborative inquiry, experiential learning, community-based research, reflective
practice, continuous improvement, etc. Throughout the latter half of the twentieth century,
Action Research (as a method, though not always as a term) has been employed in
different movements including social action as pioneered by Kurt Lewin in the 1940’s
(Lewin 1946), continuous improvement cycle championed by W. Edwards Deming
(Deming 1986) in Japan in the 1950s, liberationist movements with Paulo Freire (Freire
2005) as a leading advocate in Latin America in the ’60’s, experiential learning inspired
by John Dewey and articulated by David Kolb (Kolb 1984) in the 70’s, living educational
theory or practitioner research by the British-based Jean McNiff (McNiff 2010) and her
collaborator Jack Whitehead, appreciative inquiry developed by David Cooperrider and
colleagues at Case Western Reserve University (Cooperrider and Whitney 2005) in the
1980s, and adaptive leadership articulated by Ronald Heifetz (Heifetz, Grashow, and
Linsky 2009) in the past two decades.

__________________________________________________________________________________________________

level project...[that will] demonstrate the candidate’s ability to identify a specific theological
topic in ministry, organize an effective research model, use appropriate resources, and evaluate
the results. It should also reflect the candidate’s depth of theological insight in relation to
ministry.[and] that contributes new knowledge and understanding of the practice of
ministry.[with] upon completion...an oral presentation and evaluation” (Association of
Theological Schools 2012, 2012, E.2.4, E2.4.1-2). In some cases, we may refer to the project in
the traditional business or science sense of the research and action involved, with the report or
thesis distinguished from it.

[ Page ] 28



Action Research takes a different tack from orthodox positivism, which still informs
much of academic research. Many gains in knowledge have been made through the
“objective” method of study, and occasions of detachment continue to be an important
discipline in all research. However, traditional academic research usually stops short of
constructive involvement in the group being studied and does not necessarily extend to
enhancing the professional practices of the agent - two of the primary goals of the DMin
- while “Action Research is more appropriate than traditional research for developing
professional competencies and organizational learning” (Zuber-Skerritt and Perry 2002,
171).

Action Research fits well with recent perspectives in practical theology. In the latter part
of the 20th century, most practical theologians moved from a deductive approach, in
which there was an attempt to apply directly to real life the axioms and findings from
other branches of theology, to an inductive, praxic, contextual theology with personal
experience and cultural realities being full dialog partners (Fleischer 2000, 23-25). The
rich history of writers in this vein includes Bernard Lonergan (Lonergan 1968), James
and Evelyn Whitehead (Whitehead and Whitehead 1995), Thomas Groome (Groome
1991), and Richard Osmer (Osmer 2008). A major contributor to Action Research theory
and practice, David Coghlan (Coghlan and Brannick 2010), has written on Action
Research from an Ignatian point of view (Coghlan 2004). Their approach is "at once
personal, communal, and historical” (Lonergan 1968, 12) stressing community
involvement in interpretation of the context, clarification of the informing values, and
development of responses for transformation. Action Research adds to this conversation
in its insistence that we go beyond thinking practically and planning for action to actually
acting as an essential element in the cycle, generating data for better understanding as
well as constructive change.

Moreover, Action Research is the way reflective ministers and Christian leaders do part
of their work. Leaders initiate or facilitate a common-sense way of moving into the future:
problems and issues are identified and explored, preferred conditions and practices are
articulated, initial steps to altering the situation are imagined and implemented, the
effects on self, others, and the organization are assessed (and sometimes made public),
and the cycle is repeated. As a database search of the Theological Research Exchange
Network reveals, numerous DMin theses have now been published that demonstrate the
value of Action Research in ministry (Theological Research Exchange Network, 2016).

A Definition

We define Action Research as an iterative project cycle with action, research, and
reflection guided by a leader with the participation of others in the situation and
consonant with the ideals of the group to effect positive individual and social change and
to develop transferable and theoretical knowledge.

There are two principle dynamics, the cycle and the spiral which occurs when there are
further iterations with added learnings; there are two principle activities, action and
research, with a number of attendant activities including discerning, planning and
reflection; there are two principle parties, the leader-researcher and the participants; and

[ Page ] 29



there are two principle purposes, constructive change in the person or organization and
generating new knowledge.

Iterative Project Cycle

Action Research involves a cycle with phases typical to projects: comprehending the
situation, focusing on something that needs attention, imagining a constructive response,
implementing the plan, and assessing the outcomes. Action Research theorists Kemmis
and McTaggart describe it as “plan, act and observe, and reflect” (Kemmis and
McTaggart 1988, 5). Coghlan and Brannick’s model includes a pre-step of context and
purpose, and four basic steps: constructing, planning action, taking action, and evaluating
action (Coghlan and Brannick 2010, 10).

However, Action Research usually involves and even requires multiple cycles. Lewin’s
original conception for Action Research was “a spiral of steps, each of which is
composed of a circle of planning, action, and fact-finding about the result of the action”
(Lewin 1946, 34-35). Edward Deming’s “Wheel of Continuous Improvement”
(12Manage 2008) emphasizes this aspect of Action Research. So Action Research
presupposes multiple iterations, each one arising from reflection on and assessment of the
previous cycles, narrowing or extending the scope and refining or transferring the
innovation. So Action Research is more than a planning model; it is a process, an
approach to understanding and improvement that requires real-life engagement (action)
with observation and feedback loops at each stage of the process (research).

Action

Action - initiating, guiding, implementing, performing, executing - is intrinsic to
leadership and to ministry; it is part of the job. The standards of ATS requires that the
DMin program provide for “the formulation of a comprehensive and critical
understanding of ministry in which theory and practice interactively inform and enhance
each other” (Association of Theological Schools 2012, F.2.1.2). Consequential action
embedded in and issuing in research is the critical feature that distinguishes Action
Research (and raises many of the philosophical and practical issues associated with it).
As Edgar Schein notes, “In actual practice what most change agents have learned from
their own experience is that “diagnostic” activities such as observations, interviews, and
questionnaires are already powerful interventions and that the processes of learning about
a system and changing that system are in fact one and the same” (Schein 1996 65)

The action in Action Research refers to the intentional altering of conditions, effecting
real change in the real world. It is a deliberate interposition through starting, stopping,
modifying, or continuing (especially in the face of opposition) something in the life of an
individual, group, or organization. It involves shaped experience, experimental action. It
is not just research for or about action but also research during action and research by
way of action. Action is not merely a recommendation from findings or an application of
a principle but an intrinsic part of the discovery process. This action is experimental in
the sense of “testing-out;” one cannot know for certain how things develop, whether or
not it is something one would want to continue, or what the next steps should be. As such,

[ Page ] 30



it requires a posture of openness and flexibility on the part of all, in particular the leader
or initiator or researcher.

Research

“If you want truly to understand something, try to change it,” Lewin reportedly said
(Cherry 2006). An intrinsic element of Action Research is research, “learning about.”
The action in Action Research becomes the occasion for research at a number of levels.
Research for the sake of the project occurs at many points along the way including
research on the context, the process, the people, the innovation, the issues, and the
outcomes. This involves probes such as surveys, focus groups, histories, personal
narratives, participant-observation, literature searches and parallel cases. Research as
knowledge derived from the project also occurs at many points. Observation and
evaluation of the context and action yield data on process, product, effect, people, and
system which in turn guides future action. And this data also yields findings relevant to
the confirming or building of models and theories, a step in the direction of more
generalized knowledge.

Responsible leaders and ministers engage in research prefatory to intentional change, and
then generate learning from those projects for the benefit of others. This is congruent
with the ATS assumption that DMin project will be “of sufficient quality that it
contributes to the practice of ministry as judged by professional standards and has the
potential for application in other contexts of ministry” and will make “a contribution to
the understanding and practice of ministry” (Association of Theological Schools 2012,
F.2.4, F.2.1.4).

Reflection

Reflection is intrinsic to Action Research. It is a pause or deliberation in the flow of
engagement to ask questions of the whole project and to gain insight into what is being
observed. Dorothy Craig defines reflection “as a mental process during which events,
experiences, problems, or situations are revisited and examined in order to promote
further understanding that leads to solutions, ideas, improvement and change” (Craig
2009, 145).

In Doing Action Research in Your Own Organization, Coghlan and Teresa Brannick call
it “the critical link between the concrete experience, the judgment and taking new
action...the activity which integrates action and research” (Coghlan and Brannick 2010,
25). Experiential learning theorist David Kolb locates “observation and reflection”
between experience and the formation of abstract concepts or theory (Kolb 1984, 21).
Craig explains that reflective practice includes critical analysis, problem solving, self-
analysis and professional growth and application (Craig 2009, 147).

Critical theological practitioner reflection is rightly emphasized because it is an essential
ingredient of effective leadership and ministry (Schön 1983). Christian thinkers like
Eugene Peterson (Peterson 1993.), James and Evelyn Whitehead (Whitehead and
Whitehead 1995), Sally and Paul Nash (Nash and Nash 2009), Pádraigricia Killen and
John De Beer (Killen and de Beer 1995), Henri Nouwen (Nouwen 1971), and Johannes
van der Ven (van der Ven 1998) have argued that critical theological reflection is a key

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ministry task. However, constant action is often the reality of the contemporary ministry
life. An objective of the DMin program is to provide “opportunity for disciplined
reflection on one’s experience and needs for educational growth” (Association of
Theological Schools 2012, F.3.1.1). Recent presentations to the Association of Doctor of
Ministry Education annual conference indicate the ongoing interest in this (e.g., Bell
2011, Jones 2009). This all points to the value of an approach to research that requires
critical reflection. It serves both as a vital research skill and as a much needed life
practice. To further this, some programs require students to meet with one or more of a
counselor, coach, or spiritual director as well as a project/thesis advisor during the course
of their DMin program.

Context

Action Research takes place in the social and cultural arena, not in general, but in
particular arenas. It is “in situ,” in the situation. Action Research involves exegesis of the
context (called an ethnography in other contexts). ATS mandates programs to “make
effective educational use of the candidate’s ministerial context” (Association of
Theological Schools 2012, F.3.1.2). Carl Savage notes,

	Critical pastoral/theological reflection begins with reflection on contemporary
	situations confronted in the storied realities of discipleship and ministry. Such
	reflection invites the pastoral theologian, the DMin student, to raise questions
	about what God is doing in the situation, and how the faithful might join God’s
	transformative action. And, because the situation is always nestled within a
	specific contemporary context, the wisdom as well as the folly of that
	contemporary society and its dominant discourse must be folded into our
	reflection. God’s intention can, with the Spirit’s leading, be discovered through
	reflection on the convergence of forces in contemporary society as well as on, say,
	the experience of the apostles. (Savage 2009, 16)

Typically, Action Research takes place within the organization or group to which the
Action Researcher belongs. Nancy Gibson notes that,

	This approach increases the validity of research by recognizing contextual factors
	within the research environment that are often overlooked with more structured
	approaches. Action Researchers are sensitive to culture, gender, economic status,
	ability, and other factors that may influence research partners, results, and
	research communities...The rigor of the research is also enhanced when the
	methodology and project goals are measured by their relevance to the research
	context. (Gibson 2003, 4-5)

It is not appropriate to take abstract ideals or a successful model from elsewhere and
press them upon a group without taking into account the existing reality. People and
groups perceived to be in inferior positions are more vulnerable to this kind of
imperialism and it has been the source of much resentment and failed change attempts.
Many people have become sensitized to the problem of imposed meanings. David Lyon
explains that in postmodernity, “.the very idea of meaning becomes questionable. For
meaning to mean anything, some stable boundaries, fixed structures, shared consensus

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are assumed (Lyon 2000, 96).” Jean-Francois Lyotard (Lyotard 1984) argued that such
shared meanings could only be established in a local context. While we do not have to
fully accept that claim we can conclude that one role religion plays in the contemporary
world is to establish these shared meanings but that such shared meanings need to be
arrived at through conversation rather than through fiat. All this to say that Action
Research as a methodology is particularly suited to the contextual nature of contemporary
culture.

A possible response to this need within a DMin program would be to require students to
write a paper on their ministry context and a paper describing their leadership narrative
early in their program.

Guided by a Leader

Action Research involves the facilitation and guidance of a leader. A popular definition
of a leader is someone who has followers. Implicit in this is the assumption that the
leader knows and should know the destination and the best way to get there. An Action
Research approach to leadership still requires leadership but the approach changes. The
leader becomes a change facilitator rather than a change director. While Action Research
is a simple strategy, it embraces many complexities. Those engaged in the action project
and the research project will benefit from leadership that understands the process. Linda
Cannell comments that, “Heifetz and others, when understood rightly, are really getting
at the need for leaders to help people develop critical capacities for ‘seeing’ into
situations from articulated values, asking the right questions, discerning patterns and
trends, synthesizing findings, determining responsible actions, and reflecting on what
happens (Cannell 2011).” So the expertise of the leader in process and issues is still
needed but more people are brought into the conversation with the result that both
direction and destination can change.

Action Research provides an approach to change that helps get people involved in this
critical “seeing” and has the reflective component that is necessary for discerning
appropriate action. To express this using contemporary popular theology, Action
Research provides a model for discerning what God is doing as opposed to an earlier
model which valued strategy and action based on established patterns, traditions, or edicts
rather than critical reflection. In this respect Action Research takes advantage of
reflective skills already developed in other ministry competencies. Most theologically
trained ministry leaders have been taught to approach the scriptures reflectively rather
than just mechanically. With some adjustment this skill can be applied to the work of
Action Research.

Action Research recognizes that researchers are change agents and change agents need to
be researchers. But this cannot be an isolated or solo activity.

Participation of Others

Action Research involves the participation of others. It is necessary, of strategic
importance for effective action and ethical significant. Action Research takes place in a
real-life situation and it affects (and intends to affect) the practices, attitudes, beliefs,

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values and understanding of certain people, groups, and organizations. Those in the
situation need to be able to participate in the research and action for their own sake as
well as for the sake of insight needed for the change. To include people in their own
situation as participants is a justice issue, to invite people to become part of the process
that will lead to a change in their conditions is intrinsic to their ownership, empowerment,
and enlightenment. Such inclusion is a critical factor in what makes Action Research
ethical. In addition, an awareness of the social construction of knowledge makes
participation critical. From the research perspective, subjects become active participants
in the research process.

Lewin, who coined the term “Action Research” was an exile from Nazi Germany and
committed to extending democratic values and addressing social conflict. The first two
intentional Action Research projects undertaken by Lewin were to investigate and reduce
violence between Catholic and Jewish teenage gangs and to integrate African-American
and Caucasian sales staff in New York department stores (Marrow 1969) referenced in
(Burnes 2004, 984). Obviously, neither social-change goal could be accomplished
without the participation and insight of those in the gangs and stores. Freire used a form
of Action Research first to advance literacy but ultimately for conscientization and the
liberation of the oppressed. He insisted that even with urgency to find solutions to
distressing problems, solutions needed “to be solutions with the people and never for
them or imposed on them (Freire 2005, 13).” An insight that explains why Action
Research can be the most ethically appropriate approach to research when working with
oppressed or minority peoples. In Canada the Tri-Council Policy Statement: Ethical
Conduct for Research Involving Humans advocates a participatory approach when
working with aboriginal peoples (Canadian Institutes of Health Research 2014, Article
9.12).

Within the Christian tradition it has long been acknowledged that the actions of the
contemporary church rest on understandings and experiences that are a product of
communal experience. One often-used application of this idea to theological reflection is
the Wesleyan Quadrilateral (i.e., scripture, tradition, reason, experience) (Choun and
Lawson 1997). While some might argue over whether or not the use of reason is an
individual or communal activity, the other three have a strong communal element.
Furthermore John Wesley, as presented by Albert Outler (Outler 1964, iv) was not
arguing that we could pick one but rather that all these authorities (with scripture
privileged) are necessarily involved in theological reflection. Another example would be
the development of doctrinal statements and church policies. While an individual may be
an initial author of such documents they do not have any force unless collectively agreed
upon. In a ministry context run largely by volunteers, ministry cannot proceed without
the participation of those volunteers. Furthermore, recent commentators on cultural
change have pointed to a cultural shift towards a “bricolage” or consumerist approach to
religion (Lyon 2000). Religious participants with these kinds of expectations will expect
to contribute to the development of knowledge.

So while Action Research is usually guided and sometimes initiated by a leader, the
action researcher, it is not to be patronizing or manipulative in its process. This is
considered by some such a non-negotiable that they prefer the term Participatory Action
Research commonly referred to as PAR. Issues around control of the project and ethical

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considerations attend to this feature of Action Research. They suggest that stakeholder
participation is needed for the success of action and to develop knowledge at the research
level.

Consonant with the Ideals of the Group

Action Research incorporates many values, but it does not have within itself the criteria
for what is good or most beneficial. Nevertheless, one cannot speak of guiding change
without considering the normative aspect of life. One of the distinguishing characteristics
of variant forms of Action Research is the telos or good that it assumes. Lewin (Lewin
1946) is motivated by ideals of democracy, Deming (Deming 1986) is interested in better
quality products, and Freire (Freire 2005) is guided by a Marxian-Christian notion of
freedom; Elizabeth Conde-Frazier has social justice in mind (Conde-Frazier 2006);
Cooperrider (Cooperrider and Whitney 2005) uses Appreciative Inquiry, an Action
Research variant, for self-determined constructive cultural improvement. Each uses
Action Research to attempt to achieve their goal.

Ernest Stringer believes that Action Research has an “explicit set of social values” which
incorporates the above ideals:

	It is democratic, enabling the participation of all people; it is equitable,
	acknowledging people’s equality of worth; it is liberating, providing freedom
	from oppressive, debilitating conditions; and it is life enhancing, enabling the
	expression of people’s full human potential (Stringer 2014, italics in original).

Christians value the norms of the Realm of God, the virtues of Christ, and the
actions of the Holy Spirit. Missional Christians seek to discern how and where God is
already working and become co-labourers with God (I Cor. 3:9). This requires
engagement with Scriptures where the characteristic ways and values of God are
exhibited, engagement with prayer in which we are sensitized to the movement of the
Spirit, engagement with the community of Christ-followers who are called and gifted for
the work of ministry, and engagement with the world where the work of God is occurring.
Generically, this part of the definition reads, “consonant with the highest ideals of the
group;” in a Christian context, the missio Dei provides us with an orientation and clues as
to what individual and social change should look like and how that might be worked out.

Constructive Social Change

Action Research involves constructive, positive change, or more accurately, the intent to
produce positive change. The change is at the individual and social level and includes
both function and knowledge. The qualifier positive, while obvious and ethical, still
presupposes some criteria. For industry, this means a motivated workforce and a quality
product; for liberationists operating with a Marxian backdrop, it means expanding the
sphere of freedom and rearranging power relationships; for education, it means increasing
student learning and professional satisfaction; for organizations, it means learning a new
way to engage problems and move into the future; for professional development, it means
discovering and adopting best practices for individuals and groups. For Christian
ministers and leaders, the criteria is going to involve a exegesis of the Scriptures, the

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church, and the community to understand what is the ‘good.’ Jesus speaks of the kingdom
or realm of God as the ideal culture and the apostles speak of Jesus as embodying the
virtues of the ideal person. These or some extension of these will form the theological
rationale for the project.

Ortrun Zuber-Skerritt and Chad Perry (Zuber-Skerritt and Perry 2002, 178) suggest three
types or levels of Action Research that have increasing scope: aims, facilitator’s role, and
relationship between facilitator and participants. These three levels help us understand the
kinds of roles Action Research can play in constructive social change. The first type is
technical resulting in professional proficiency, the second is practical aiming at
professional awareness and organizational proficiency, and the third is emancipatory
issuing in conscientization and organizational learning and transformation. Some would
argue that only the third qualifies as true Action Research, but in any case, Action
Research invariably challenges the status quo.

Action Research is a transferable concept. It results in a clearly defined procedure that
can be taught to others without being dependent on the details of a specific ministry
context. For example, a leader can take the principle of bringing those affected by
decisions into the decision making process and teach them to others in the process of
refining the small group ministry. One of those leaders could then take those principles
and apply it to working with the parents of children in the nursery. Action Research is a
transferable concept resulting in organizational learning. Same skill set, entirely different
context.

Positive Individual Change

Positive individual change is not limited to the personal and professional development of
the Action Researcher, but that is certainly one of the goals for the leader-minister
undertaking this work. ATS standards include “the development and acquisition of skills
and competencies, including methods of pastoral research, that are required for pastoral
leadership at its most mature and effective level” and “opportunities for personal and
spiritual growth” (Association of Theological Schools 2012, F.2.1.3, F.2.2.4). We must
attend to the whole person of the leader, his or her inner well-being and development,
behavior and competencies, discernment of culture, and fulfillment of social roles,
thereby promoting the balance needed for sustaining both the person and work of the
Christian leader.

With few exceptions individuals in ministry want to improve in their ability to do
effective ministry. It is not the desire that is missing but rather that many professionals
lack training in a systematic and practical method of action and reflection that allows
them to make judgments not just on what is effective about what they are currently doing
but also on the underlying values that drive what they are doing and on the possibilities
for alternative action, themes explored by Robert Quinn in Deep Change (Quinn 1996).
The oft-repeated dictum that, “We can't solve problems by using the same kind of
thinking we used when we created them” is as true in ministry as it is in science. Many
ministry professionals are also aware of this truism but the actual practice is often to find
a program or approach that has worked elsewhere and apply it directly to their context.

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These approaches are insufficient in times of rapid change, fearful groups, and high
demands on the leader.

Action Research can provide an approach to ministry improvement that addresses these
needs. Action Research is participatory and can be applied to the whole person because it
is as applicable to the inner well-being of the individual as it is to the collective ministry
of an organization.

Theoretical Knowledge

Action Research includes the development of knowledge expressed in models and
theories. A theory promotes understanding by abstracting key elements in a phenomena
and describing their function and relationship. Theory related to ministry and leadership
cannot be separated from practice; it needs to be derived from practice and to inform of
practice. Kurt Lewin captured this relationship when he remarked that, “There is nothing
so practical as a good theory” (Lewin 1944, 169). ATS requires that DMin programs
provide for “the formulation of a comprehensive and critical understanding of ministry in
which theory and practice interactively inform and enhance each other” (Association of
Theological Schools 2012, E.2.1.2).

Having a good theory is part of wisdom and leadership and ministry arts are essentially
about wisdom. Pentti Routio (Routio 2007) develops a model of how Action Research
contributes to theory building. His steps follow that of Kolb’s experiential learning model.
When a real-life problem is creatively engaged, evaluation surfaces currently held theory
and reflection on the derived data often leads to refining or reformulating a working
theory of the situation. The resultant new model is then applied to the context where its
efficacy is evaluated. A number of DMin project theses illustrate this (Rempel 2014, Van
Ginkel 2012, Leung 2014, Seabrooke 2013, Friesen 2013).

Concluding Discussion

Action Research includes attention to iterations of action, research, and reflection, to
context, leadership, and participation, and to social and individual change and the
development of theory. These elements make it ideally suited as a research approach in
Doctor of Ministry programs. It is an approach to research that takes the collaborative
and focused social change elements of contemporary ministry seriously.

Yet an Action Research approach in DMin research does have tension points and
challenges. These include the relationship of the project to the thesis, the need for
multiple iterations, the difficulty of limiting projects, the incipient nature of proposals,
participant and research willingness, ministry stability, risks to participants and leaders,
contextual destabilization, and the need to reconceptualize ones’ approach to research
ethics. These concerns are discussions to be addressed in a subsequent paper.

Such tensions and challenges do not outweigh the potential of Action Research to
promote social and individual change, develop valid and reliable knowledge, and
contribute to a missional approach to ministry. It is for these reasons that we think that
Action Research is ideally suited to ministry research in Doctor of Ministry programs.

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Contact Information

Paul Bramer PhD (Trinity Evangelical Divinity School) Professor of Christian Formation
	and Leadership, DMin Director. Tyndale Seminary, Toronto Canada. (416) 226-
	6620x2272; pbramer@tyndale.ca.

Mark Chapman, PhD (University of Toronto) Associate Professor of Research Methods,
	DMin Project-Thesis Coordinator. Tyndale Seminary, Toronto Canada. (416)
	226-6620x2208; mchapman@tyndale.ca.

[ Page ] 41


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