1. Design Thinking Knowledge Mobilization and
National Point-in-Time Count of Homeless Persons: Making Everyone Count
Proposed Approach for Discussion and Input
Stephen Gaetz
Professor, York University
Canadian Observatory on Homelessness
Tackling Homelessness: Developing and Sharing Best Practice
Bristol - November 9th, 2016

2. Part 1
Does research matter?

3. Homelessness is a seemingly intractable problem in Canada
count of all sheltered and unsheltered homeless
people in your community on a single night
• Useful for:

5. KEY CHALLENGE:
Homelessness research has NOT had the impact on policy, practice and advocacy that it should.
HOW DO WE CREATE THE IMPACT?

6. Four Uses of Research
Conceptual
Instrumental
Symbolic
Process

7. Conceptual research Contributes to the:
“subtle but potentially weighty shifts in knowledge, understanding and discourse, can be hugely significant in policy and practice settings, not just as a means to more instrumental impacts from research but as an end in themselves.”
(Sandra Nutley).

8. Conceptual research

9. Instrumental use of research
This refers to situations where research can be seen to have a direct and concrete impact on decision-making and actions by policy-makers and practitioners.
Typically focuses on existing policies and practices
Often involves program evaluation research that answers the questions:
What works, for whom and in
what contexts?

10. Hierarchy of Evidence

11. Symbolic research
. . . involves using research results to legitimate and sustain arguments, strategies and positions.

12. Symbolic research

13. Process use of research
. . . engaging in the research process (through program evaluation, for instance), can lead to changes in ways of thinking, alter attitudes about the use of research and raise questions about the value of different kinds of knowledge and evidence.

14. Research Evidence Matters!

15. Part 2
Canadian
Observatory on
Homelessness

16. Knowledge mobilization
A process whereby research knowledge is made readily accessible and understandable to interested individuals, groups and institutions in society, who are then able to use it to effectively generate solutions to problems they have identified.

18. Research
Policy
Makers
Researchers
Service Providers

19. Barriers to Uptake
Limitations of conventional mechanisms of knowledge dissemination
Barriers to utilization by potential users (policy, practice).
Lack of meaningful engagement between these different worlds.
Divergent & sometimes conflicting institutional cultures, goals, timelines, processes and practices.

20. Keys to Community Engaged Scholarship
1. Understand and acknowledge differences
2. Identify mutual benefits
3. Develop and nurture relationships
4. Co-create the research agenda
Think about content and
dissemination in new ways

21. Part 3
Academic Publishing
Why do things differently?

22. ACADEMIC PUBLISHING What we do and why?
count of all sheltered and unsheltered homeless
people in your community on a single night
• Useful for:

23. Publication Research count of all sheltered and unsheltered homeless
people in your community on a single night
• Useful for:

24. Academic researchers do the creation
Academic institutions do the rewarding
Publishing – including production, design, distribution – is handled by someone else
count of all sheltered and unsheltered homeless
people in your community on a single night
• Useful for:

25. >30% profit margin Elsevier: $1.45b on revenue of $4b — 36%
Springer‘s Science+Business Media: $588m on revenue of $1.73b — 33.9%
John Wiley & Sons:$212m on revenue of $506m — 42%
Academic division of Informa plc:
$96m on revenue of $290m — 32.4%
count of all sheltered and unsheltered homeless
people in your community on a single night
• Useful for:
>30% profit margin
Morrison, H. (2011) Of Goats and Headaches. The Economist. May 26, 2011.

28. Part 4
Design Thinking
and the
Homeless Hub

30. What is
Design
Thinking?

31. ULTIMATE GOAL: Increase the impact of research.
DESIGN THINKING integrates collaborative processes of knowledge & content development with a more assertive involvement in different aspects of publishing (and modes of publication) including graphic design, marketing, communications & dissemination.
ULTIMATE GOAL: Increase the impact of
research.
count of all sheltered and unsheltered homeless
people in your community on a single night
• Useful for:

32. How we work Community engagement Content Creation Production &
count of all sheltered and unsheltered homeless
people in your community on a single night
• Useful for:
Production &
Graphic Design
Communications
and Marketing

33. Knowledge Dissemination and Integrated Design Thinking
Content creation
Publication process
Graphic Design
Content Layering
Communications & Marketing
Mobilizing the knowledge
Evaluation
Here are the key features of our approach to knowledge dissemination, as informed by design thinking.

34. 1. Content Creation Importance of relationships & collaboration
Collaboration is key to the COH’s content creation process. To create the reports and books pictured here, we collaborated with researchers, service providers, government officials and people with lived experience. The COH team is also made up of people with a variety of skillsets, from researchers and writers to designers and communications specialists.

35. Community Engaged Scholarship (CES)
Research involving mutually beneficial partnerships with peers in other sectors is referred to as Community Engaged Scholarship. Researchers apply their knowledge, and draw on the knowledge of their peers, to address real world questions and contribute to solutions and new ways of knowing.

36. Community Engaged Scholarship
The peer review process is integral to academic publishing as it ensures a high quality output. The COH has instituted a rigorous blind review process to our papers and books. Unlike the barriers associated with traditional academic publishing, the COH’s research is guided by an ‘open access’ policy in the hopes of increasing it’s reach.

37. Community Engaged Scholarship
The peer review process is integral to academic publishing as it ensures a high quality output. The COH has instituted a rigorous blind review process to our papers and books. Unlike the barriers associated with traditional academic publishing, the COH’s research is guided by an ‘open access’ policy in the hopes of increasing it’s reach.

38. Community Engaged Scholarship
The peer review process is integral to academic publishing as it ensures a high quality output. The COH has instituted a rigorous blind review process to our papers and books. Unlike the barriers associated with traditional academic publishing, the COH’s research is guided by an ‘open access’ policy in the hopes of increasing it’s reach.

39. 2. Publication Process Peer review Creative Commons
The research produced by the COH is guided by an ‘open access’ policy.
FREE to download and share
The peer review process is integral to academic publishing as it ensures a high quality output. The COH has instituted a rigorous blind review process to our papers and books. Unlike the barriers associated with traditional academic publishing, the COH’s research is guided by an ‘open access’ policy in the hopes of increasing it’s reach.

40. Peer reviewed research
Research Outputs
POLICY
Reports
Briefs
PRACTICE
Reports
Toolkits
Promising Practices
RESEARCH
Public
Engagement
News articles
Lectures
The peer review process is integral to academic publishing as it ensures a high quality output. The COH has instituted a rigorous blind review process to our papers and books. Unlike the barriers associated with traditional academic publishing, the COH’s research is guided by an ‘open access’ policy in the hopes of increasing it’s reach.
Scholarship
Peer reviewed research

41. 3. Graphic Design Cover design Style guide Engaging layout
Consistent fonts, colours
Engaging layout
Infographics

42. Report Design
Social Media
cover
Full report design
interior

43. 4. Content Layering Research Report Presentations Social Media Videos
Infographics
Blog Posts
Press Releases
Plain Language Summaries
Shorter pieces of content highlight the key messages
The report is available for those who want to go deeper
Academic article(s)
Research Report

44. Layering in Action!
Report, Infographic, FB graphics, Podcast, intro video, webinar, Hub promo images, hashtag, tweets…

45. 5. Communications & Marketing
Conventional Media
Press releases
News conference
Television
Radio
New Media
Blogs
E-newsletters
Social Media
Public Engagement
Conference Presentations
Community meetings
Public Appearances

46. Developing a Communications & Marketing plan

47. A Attract the attention of the target
I Raise interest in the message or evidence
D Encourage a desire to act or to know more
A Prompt action and present a solution

48. The Homeless Hub and social media

49. Newsletter – Continuous Communication
Social Media
Highlight the report, blog post, infographics and more…

50. Public Engagement Social Media
Highlight the report, blog post, infographics and more…

51. 6. Mobilizing Outputs
The peer review process is integral to academic publishing as it ensures a high quality output. The COH has instituted a rigorous blind review process to our papers and books. Unlike the barriers associated with traditional academic publishing, the COH’s research is guided by an ‘open access’ policy in the hopes of increasing it’s reach.

52. Think carefully about what it is you want to to have happen …
Be STRATEGIC!
Think carefully about what it is you want to to have happen …
The peer review process is integral to academic publishing as it ensures a high quality output. The COH has instituted a rigorous blind review process to our papers and books. Unlike the barriers associated with traditional academic publishing, the COH’s research is guided by an ‘open access’ policy in the hopes of increasing it’s reach.

53. Don’t underestimate the importance of RELATIONSHIPS
The peer review process is integral to academic publishing as it ensures a high quality output. The COH has instituted a rigorous blind review process to our papers and books. Unlike the barriers associated with traditional academic publishing, the COH’s research is guided by an ‘open access’ policy in the hopes of increasing it’s reach.

54. Seize opportunities
The peer review process is integral to academic publishing as it ensures a high quality output. The COH has instituted a rigorous blind review process to our papers and books. Unlike the barriers associated with traditional academic publishing, the COH’s research is guided by an ‘open access’ policy in the hopes of increasing it’s reach.

55. Be patient
The peer review process is integral to academic publishing as it ensures a high quality output. The COH has instituted a rigorous blind review process to our papers and books. Unlike the barriers associated with traditional academic publishing, the COH’s research is guided by an ‘open access’ policy in the hopes of increasing it’s reach.

57. User Input/Feedback HOW WE DID IT Surveyed Users
1. used Social Media and our list to ask users to participate in a short survey we created in Survey Monkey (how did you hear about the hub, what do you use the hub for, what would help you? – generic questions)
2. Conducted follow-up interviews either by phone or to gather additional, more in-depth responses (how did you use the resources that you found?)
2-Day Usability experiment
Invited 10 users (mix of users: regular, long-time users and new users (our CHRN students)) to come to our office for a 1-hour usability test.
Incentive: See the new Hub and provide your input; receive a free copy of our Youth Homelessness book.
Prepared a script to keep us on track during the usability test.
Prepared scenarios for the user to see how they interacted with the website (ie. You are a teacher looking for a lesson plan for your course)
First asked participant to familiarize themselves with the new site, and once they had a chance to look around, we asked them questions like “What would you expect to find in the Library?”
As we were trying to determine the layout/phrasing for some of the new sections, part of the usability test was done on paper. We printed mockups of the proposed design and asked the user to imagine working through the tasks.
We asked the participant to talk aloud as they determined the steps to take to find what they were looking for. Describe what you are looking at, what you are trying to do and what you are thinking.
We used Camtasia to record users working through the tasks so we have a record of their experience.
Usability testing:
Helped us determine what worked and what could work better for our users.
This helped us better understand how our users think and use our site.
An important task when redesigning . ie, important to distinguish Library vs. DOING Research; indicated that the Library’s search field is the same as the site search field by simply appending the text “Search the Library”.

58.
Questions or comments?