ABSTRACT
How is an academic research project in practical theology set up and executed? This chapter describes all kinds of choices and decisions that are made in such a research project. The sum of all these decisions is what we call the research design. The chapter distinguishes eight steps in the design process of a practical theological research project. Each step will be worked out more elaborately in subsequent chapters of the book. The steps are: (1) Why? Showing the reason for the research project; (2) What's the problem? Defining what we do not know yet; (3) What do you ask for? Posing research questions; (4) What is it contributing to? Showing theoretical and practical relevance; (5) How to construct? Setting up a research design; (6) What do you do? Executing the different phases of the research design; (7) What do you see? Reporting the findings of the research project; and (8) What do we learn? Drawing and discussing conclusions.
