AltaMira Press
Pages: 224
•
Trim: 6 x 9½
978-0-7591-0011-4 • Hardback • July 2001 • $138.00 • (£106.00)
978-0-7591-0012-1 • Paperback • July 2001 • $59.00 • (£45.00)
978-0-7591-1702-0 • eBook • July 2001 • $56.00 • (£43.00)
James Beebe is Professor in the Doctoral Program in Leadership at Gonzaga University in Spokane, Washington. He has a Ph.D. in International Development Education, an M.A. in Anthropology, and an M.A. in Food Research (International Agricultural Development). As a practitioner/scholar in qualitative research methodology, Beebe has worked for the U.S. Agency for International Development in long-term assignments in the Sudan, Philippines, Liberia, and South Africa and short-term assignments in nine other countries. He teaches, researches, and consults on the relationship between leadership and technology.
Preface and Acknowledgments
Introduction
Chapter One: To RAP or Not to RAP and the Basic Concepts
Chapter Two: Data Collection: Triangulation and Getting the Insider's Perspective
Chapter Three: Iterative Analysis and Additional Data Collection
Chapter Four: Teamwork: Polish State Farms and the Community College
Chapter Five: Trusting RAP
Chapter Six: Successful RAP
Chapter Seven: Who Benefits, Who Pays, and Who Calls the Tune
Chapter Eight: The RAP Family Tree
Appendix A. Executive Summary, Community College RAP
Appendix B. Executive Summary, Polish State Farms RAP
Appendix C. Learning to RAP
Appendix D. Glossary of Terms
References
James Beebe is the master of RAP. In this book he provides the basic explanation and methodological justification for the use of RAP. He draws upon his own rich experience to illustrate its implementation and demonstrate its practical value. It is unusual for a methods book to be written so clearly and to be so accessible to the reader. I recommend it both as a teaching tool for the classroom and as a handy guide for seasoned professionals.
— John L. Young
This admirable treatment is particularly straightforward and comprehensive. Chapter-opening summaries of main points, boxes relaying important points in single sentences, a chapter comparing RAP to similar methods, well-chosen examples, helpful figures, and a comprehensive glossary add to the book's usefulness. For both students and specialists.
— M. A. Gwynne, (SUNY at Stony Brook); Choice Reviews
Professor James Beebe has written a highly useful, reader-friendly book on Rapid Assessment Process. The book combines concise presentations of research and analytical techniques with clear conceptual explanations about the purpose and ways of using these procedures. This enables Beebe to simultaneously emphasize speed in field work and caution against excesses, when a rapid pace may not be slow enough to capture and reveal what is essential. To my knowledge, there is no other similar manual in the literature available for those interested in employing social science inquiry methods in a time effective manner, with practical goals in mind. Social scientists doing applied research — sociologists, anthropologists, political scientists, social geographers — will find in this volume a treasure trove of methods, ideas, and advice for their work. Government agencies or private sector corporations interested in benefiting from direct social research will know better from Beebe's book what to request and what to expect from able investigators mandated to carry out rapid assessments and generate insights, knowledge, and recommendations for action. I highly recommend this book to both practitioners and teachers of social investigation methods.
— Michael Cernea, (World Bank)
This book is an easy read and provides pragmatic suggestions for engaging in rapid assessment process research. As a university professor and researcher as well as a practitioner I find Beebe's text to be a welcome addition to the growing number of useful resources for qualitative researchers.
— Charles Lee Cole, (University of Louisiana at Monroe); Forum: Qualitative Social Research, Vol. 3.4
I found James Beebe's new book on Rapid Assessment Process to be interesting and useful. I enjoyed reading personal experiences coupled with well-stated principles. The book will be very helpful to both novice and experienced ethnographers: novices will gain a concisely presented introduction to rapid assessment work on which they can build through practice in the field. Experienced ethnographers will benefit from the remembering and reorganizing of research habits that happened to me throughout the book. I also look forward to using the book with my graduate students in community health nursing...
— Noel Chrisman, (University of Washington)