Begin with the End in Mind
Session 2
Session Objectives
 Understand the value of a communication plan in
improving the use of research results
 Understand the importance of stakeholders in the
research and research use processes
 Introduce the Stakeholder Analysis Matrix
 Establish the criteria for meaningful research
questions
Who Will Use Study Results?
 Developing a communication plan
 Ensures communication activities are
budgeted
 Identifies key audience – decision maker
and other consumers of information
 Identifies appropriate communication
method for each audience
Developing a Communication Plan
Different stakeholder audiences
• Have different perspectives
• Need/want different information
• Need information at different levels of
complexity
• Have different intensities of interest
Communication Plan – 4
Questions
1. What are the objectives of the
communication strategy?
2. Who are the target audiences?
3. What are appropriate channels of
communication?
4. How will you assess information use?
Developing a Communication
Strategy
1. What are the objectives of the
communication strategy?
 Multiple research questions often included
in a study
 Identify key potential findings and align
them with appropriate target audiences
2. Who Are the Target Audiences?
Decision maker
Primary
stakeholders
affected
Secondary
stakeholders
affected
Role of Stakeholders in the
Research Process
What Is a Stakeholder?
 Any person or group with a particular interest
or ‘stake’ in your research
 Providers / Implementers
 Policy makers
 Program managers
 Partners
 Funding agencies
 Beneficiaries
 Professional associations
Context of Decision Making
Information
/data
Stakeholders
Decisions
Involving Stakeholders Throughout
the Research Process
Relevance of data
Ownership of data
Appropriate dissemination of data
Use of data
Implications of Expanded
Stakeholder Involvement
Additional actors in the research process can:
 Increase timelines
 Add complexity to the process
 Increase study cost
When to Involve Stakeholders in
Research Activities
 Study planning
 Study question development
 Protocol development
 Data collection
 Data interpretation & recommendation
development
 Dissemination
 Assessing effects
How to Involve Stakeholders?
 Study planning
 Stakeholder analysis
 Communication plan development
 Study question development
 Protocol development
 Data collection
 Data interpretation & recommendation development
 Dissemination
 Assessing effects
Stakeholder Analysis Matrix
Name of
Stakeholder Potential
Stakeholder Description Role in
Organization
Activity
(and specific
and Use
individual)
of Results
Gov’t sector
Political
sector
Commercial
sector
NGO sector
Civil society
Donors
Level of
Knowledge
of
Research
Topic
Level of
Commitment
to Topic
(positive and
negative)
Constraints When to
to
Involve
Participate
in Activity
Stakeholder Analysis Matrix
Name of
Stakeholder
Organization
(and specific
individual if
required)
Stakeholder
Description
Potential
Role in
Research
Activity and
Use of
Results
Level of
Knowledge of
Research
Topic
Level of
Commitment
to Research
Topic
(positive and
negative)
Constraints
When to
to Participate Involve
in Research
Activity
Div. of
Maternal
and Child
Health,
MOH
MCH
service
delivery
Primary
audience;
access to
sites;
service
guideline
revision
High,
extensive
Strongly
supports
scale-up of
PMTCT
services
Busy
schedule;
Need 4week lead
time to
participate
in
meetings
Study
planning,
question
developme
nt, data
collection,
interpretati
on,
disseminat
ion & use
How to Involve Stakeholders?
 Study planning
 Stakeholder analysis
 Communication plan development
 Research question development
 Protocol development
 Data collection
 Data interpretation & recommendation development
 Dissemination
 Assessing effects
Formulating Meaningful Research
Questions
Identifying, Assessing, Refining, and
Prioritizing Questions
Initial
Question
Refined
Question
Important
Priority
Actionable
Data gap
Not already underway
Final Question
 Answerable
 Method available
 Reasonable time period
Criteria for Meaningful Research
Questions
Important: Could the answer to the question lead to a policy or
program change that would have a large effect on the
population in question?
Priority: Does the question address a current and pertinent
issue?
Actionable: Can the results of the research be used to identify
clear policy or program recommendations?
Answerable: Are data available, or can data be collected, to
address the question?
Let’s Look at an Example
Research topic: Number of children borne by a woman
(parity) & contraceptive use
Research problem: Do women with few (or no) children
have a lower demand for family planning?
Research question: How does contraceptive use vary
by number of existing children among married women?
Hypothesis: Low parity married women will have lower
contraceptive prevalence rates.
Key Messages
 Identify your target audiences and how you will
communicate your research findings
 Involve stakeholders throughout the process, not
just at the beginning and the end; this facilitates
uptake of results
 Develop research questions that fill an
information gap so that your research is linked to
program/policy development and improvement
Small Group Activity 2:
FORMULATING MEANINGFUL
RESEARCH QUESTIONS &
IDENTIFYING STAKEHOLDERS
Small Group Activity 2: Instructions

Select a reporter to record the group work on flip chart paper and report back to
the plenary. Locate Exercise 2 worksheet.

Develop a hypothesis for the research question assigned to your group. The
hypothesis is the provisional theory guiding the research (see Exercise 2
worksheet – part 1).

Identify the primary program or policy implication for the research question
assigned to your group. The program implication will be the action undertaken if
the hypothesis is supported by the data.

Assuming the hypothesis is correct, what additional questions need to be
answered to implement the recommendation of the study effectively?

Assuming the hypothesis is not correct, what additional information would help
to interpret the results?

Considering where the research falls in the program-policy continuum, what
stakeholders need to be involved in the research activity? Use the Stakeholder
Analysis Matrix to guide this discussion (see Exercise 2 worksheet – part 2).
When filling out the stakeholder analysis, complete only columns 1–3
(stakeholder name, description, and role).
Small Group Activity 2: Report
Back
 Each group has 10 minutes to discuss what they
found challenging when developing research
questions and identifying stakeholders, and how
they overcame these challenges.
MEASURE Evaluation is funded by the U.S. Agency for
International Development and is implemented by the
Carolina Population Center at the University of North
Carolina at Chapel Hill in partnership with Futures Group
International, ICF Macro, John Snow, Inc., Management
Sciences for Health, and Tulane University. The views
expressed in this presentation do not necessarily reflect
the views of USAID or the United States Government.