Community-Based Research
DefinitionExamples of community-based research at Stanford
Community-Based Research Funds for Faculty
Community-Based Research Fellows Program
Definition
There are dozens of ways that Stanford faculty and students can make connections between their public service and academic scholarship through community-based research. In community-based research, faculty and students form partnerships with community organizations to explore questions of interest to all parties.
The Haas Center encourages faculty to pursue community-based research projects with the assumption that through work with real projects and real clients, students will learn more about the design and implementation of research. The Haas Center supports faculty and students interested in developing successful community-based research projects by assisting with the identification of potential community partners, development of a productive relationship with these partners and the dissemination of project results to the community.
Examples of Stanford service-learning courses include:
Ron Barrett, Anthropological Sciences.
This project assesses the coping strategies of local area families who are caring for dying relatives in their homes. This project builds upon the Anthropology of Death and Dying Course (Anthsci 172) in which students trained and worked as home hospice volunteers in partnership with the Pathways Hospice Program. The Family Caregiver Project assesses the strategies by which family members cope – or do not cope – with the demands of home hospice in the context of limited social and financial resources. Student researchers conduct semi-structured interviews with participating families to determine coping strategies and resource needs. Pathways Hospice will use the results of the research to establish new policies and practices to improve their standards of care.
Todd Davies, Symbolic Systems.
Students in the Symbolic Systems Program work with the staff from the local organization Plugged In, to pursue the two goals of closing the gap in Internet access and computer usership in East Palo Alto and facilitating uses of the Internet that empower residents to more fully engage in community decision making processes. As a part of this effort, students conduct interviews and surveys of community members to determine the needs, challenges, and opportunities to expand internet use among the diverse language and ethnic populations of East Palo Alto. In addition, students examine the process of community decision-making, both on and off the Internet. The research includes designing, building and testing of an online meeting space where community groups can hold asynchronous meetings, deliberate and make decisions.
Community-Based Research Funds for Faculty
The Haas Center has funding for faculty interested in engaging undergraduate students in community-based research activities.
Please contact Karin Cotterman, karinc@stanford.edu for more information about Haas staff support and funding opportunities related to community-based research. Haas Center staff are available to consult with faculty members interested in adding a service component to their courses.