Reclaiming Impact in Qualitative Research

Abstract

In both academic and practitioner literature, the term "impact" is conceptualized broadly. Yet the application of impact is construed much more narrowly, in association with (uni)-directional relationships between variables and methodological frameworks oriented towards a positivist approach. Such a conceptualization is problematic, particularly in the context of initiatives that have a goal of internal, individual transformation. Thus, I suggest reconceptualizing impact to acknowledge human agency and explore change more holistically. I argue for a reclaiming of impact by the post-positivist qualitative research community, given the potential of qualitative methodologies to elucidate dialogic understandings of impact and the intersubjective context through which transformation emerges.