Project Overview
Project Grant Year:
2017 to 2018
December 2017 to June 2018 (Final Report)
NED Inc. engaged, subsidised and supervised two Sociology undergraduate students from Macquarie University to initiate research within the following framework:
Research Framework PACE
Overall approach: conduct a Formative Evaluation of the SDN workshop as a model of social development for facilitating change on a personal and community level.
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Analysis of the context and field of Social Development (“What’s happening out there?”):
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Establish a foundation for the examination of what constitutes ‘Social Development’ (includes a literature review).
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Collation of the primary exponents of Social Development, and their areas of operation – firstly nationally, then globally.
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Analysis of SDN’s core practice – the SDN Workshop (“Do we satisfy people’s needs?”):
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The design and format of SDN workshops (in preparation for further study).
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Examine the reasons participants want to attend a workshop. (Comparisons to alternative offerings.)
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Explore the interpersonal and group dynamics that unfold within an SDN workshop.
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Initiate a body of feedback from past SDN workshop participants, to assess what are the perceived areas of longer-term effectiveness or otherwise of the workshop’s influence socially and personally.
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Future evolution of SDN (How can we adapt and participate?):
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Expanding demographics at workshops: how can we bring in, or how can we reach out to, a wider demographic?
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Roles for the SDN Workshop as a support in the wider fields of social and personal development.
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Embracing Social Media: how can we carry the essence of SDN into the new social environments that are evolving?