What Are We Doing?

The Participation Unit is engaged in a range of activities to further develop Ipsos MORI's expertise in participative research. In addition to undertaking specific projects for clients such as the Department of Local Government and Communities, the Home Office, Transport for London, the English Secondary Schools Association, Harcourt publishing and various Local Authorities, we are also thought leaders on this subject. Examples of our recent activity in this area include:

Assessing the impact on citizens of participation in civil society:

Few practitioners and policy makers have managed to convincingly measure what impact participation in civil and civic society has on those who participate, the society itself and the services delivered within it. Using advanced statistical analysis on three large survey datasets, we argue that there is a positive relationship between community engagement approaches and feelings of satisfaction with an area and a community. However, it is much more difficult to find quantifiable evidence of the tangible benefits of community engagement initiatives to service providers, due in part to a lack of appropriate and viable indicators that take into account the scope and quality of various engagement initiatives.

Exploring the nature of influence in the 21st Century:

For over 30 years Ipsos MORI has been monitoring the activities of socio-political activists. Over this time our understanding of influence has evolved and has been extended to move beyond direct efforts to influence to look at indirect influence through changing the opinions and behaviour of friends, colleagues and acquaintances. This paper explores the similarities and differences between activists and influencers and highlights the roles that both have to play in policy debates.

Understand the implications of undertaking high quality peer research:

Our recent conference paper to the flagship Market Research Society conference showed how we have been putting the theory behind participative research into practice. In particular, we explored the advantages and drawbacks of using peer researchers to meaningfully connect public and private sector clients with participants, and the implications this has for the research sector.

Deliberative stimulus materials:

Building on our 2005 publication 'Who do you Believe: Trust in Government Statistics' we are currently working with Energywatch to understand what impact different ways of presenting and delivering information have on participants' attitudes and subsequent behaviour.

Speaking at events and leading knowledge enhancement seminars:

We are involved in a number of debates and discussions in this area, including regularly appearing at conferences to discuss issues around what the public think about increased involvement and choice and the impact of participation. We also hold regular evening seminars for our clients and stakeholders to discuss specific topics in more detail, as well as running online discussions through our website.