The action-project method in counseling psychology.

• DOI: 10.1037/0022-0167.52.2.215
• Publication Date: 2005-04-06T13:20:43Z
• Authors: Richard A. Young; Ladislav Valach; José F. Domene
• Keywords: 05 social sciences; 0501 psychology and cognitive sciences

The qualitative action-project method is described as an appropriate and heuristic qualitative research method for use in counseling psychology. Action theory, which addresses human intentional, goal-directed action, project, and career, provides the conceptual framework for the method. Data gathering and analysis involve multiple procedures to access information from 3 perspectives: manifest behavior, internal processes, and social meaning. The method has a number of advantages, including its conceptualization, which is close to human experience; its systematic data gathering and analysis procedures; its usefulness in describing processes of interest to counseling psychologists: and its uniqueness among qualitative research methods.