http://hdl.handle.net/10900/42132 Fri, 03 Jul 2026 18:11:11 GMT 2026-07-03T18:11:11Z http://hdl.handle.net/10900/181088 Increasing the Practical Relevance of Research: Approaches to Bridge the Gap Between Research and Administration in Education Fröhlich, Nora Louise Stephanie Jutta Johanna Theresa Toyah Dissertation gesperrt bis 18.06.2028!; Over the past few decades, significant investments have been made in making the education system more evidence-based through interventions that are supported by evidence and the rigor of research (e.g., Edovald & Nevill, 2021; Slavin, 2002). Nevertheless, many researchers are concerned about the persistent gap between research and practice (Farley-Ripple et al., 2018; McIntyre, 2005). Some researchers contend that the limited practical relevance of research findings is associated with the gap (Gutiérrez & Penuel, 2014; Welsh, 2021). Therefore, scholars stress that impactful education research should focus on both practical relevance and strong methodology (e.g., Gutiérrez & Penuel, 2014; Ming & Goldenberg, 2021). One emerging approach to increase the practical relevance of research is to focus on which questions researchers pursue. Scholars suggest moving beyond "what works” to questions about implementing interventions and how to make them work (e.g., Century & Cassata, 2016; Joyce & Cartwright, 2020). Other scholars rethink how to conduct research and support collaborative partnerships with stakeholders—an example are research-practice partnerships (RPPs) (Coburn & Stein, 2010; Farrell et al., 2021). Important stakeholders in this context are education administrators, given their key role in shaping education policy and practice at scale (Brown et al., 2011; Van Ackeren-Mindl et al., 2024). For education administrators, relevant research results on the implementation of interventions are not only situated at the student level (microlevel), but also those at the school level (mesolevel) and the system level (macrolevel) (see Spiel et al., 2008). For this dissertation, I combined these approaches (a focus on implementation at multiple levels and working in RPPs with education administrators) into a framework aimed at increasing the practical relevance of research for education administrators. I further applied principles of collaborative research (Penuel et al., 2020) as more specific criteria of such approaches to further increase the practical relevance of research to education administrators. In this dissertation I will explore this framework in terms of (1) how the principles of collaborative research were applied in the three studies of this dissertation, (2) what the approaches included in the framework imply for the practical relevance of research results and the gap between research and administration, and (3) which challenges are encountered in such approaches. To this end I use three exemplary empirical studies that conducted implementation- X focused research at the micro-, meso-, and macrolevels within RPPs with education administrators. The first study (Understanding the “How”: Implementation and Effectiveness of an Evidence-Based Intervention) is situated at the microlevel, investigating an evidence-based reading and writing intervention comprising four training modules. Using a mixed-method quasi-experimental design, the study investigated the effectiveness of each training module and explored the implementation process. Students in the intervention group outperformed those in the comparison group after completing two of the four training modules. Implementation data showed that while most teachers implemented the intervention, they experienced heavy workloads and noted that some materials did not fully address students’ learning needs. The results further demonstrate how data on effectiveness and implementation can be complementary. The effectiveness and implementation results are relevant to educational administrators: information on effectiveness allows insights into whether it “worked”, and implementation information provides insights into feasibility and guides adaptations for future use in different settings. The second study (Changing Attitudes: A Longitudinal, Multiperspective Study on the Development of Attitudes in a School Development Intervention) is situated at the mesolevel, examining attitudes (usefulness and acceptance) toward a school trial replacing grades with alternative performance feedback over 3 years. The study examined changes in the attitudes of teachers, school leaders, and parents at up to six time points in a quasi-experimental design, as well as factors linked to positive attitude changes. Usefulness and acceptance varied by perspective and group. Teachers in the intervention group viewed the competence grid more favorably than those in the comparison group. School leaders and parents involved in the intervention showed positive development trends in usefulness. Furthermore, parents’ perceptions of alternative feedback and their valuation of school performance were slightly negatively associated with changes in attitudes. This information can help educational administrators support and maintain school development by fostering positive attitudes through support structures. The third study (Does the Format Matter? Examining the Quality of Online and Face-to-Face Teacher Professional Development in a Statewide Evaluation) is located at the macrolevel, assessing formal teacher professional development (TPD) activities offered by the XI federal state of Baden-Württemberg using statewide evaluation data. The study examined differences between online and face-to-face TPD activities, focusing on TPD quality measured by cognitive activation, content focus, and open communication. TPD quality was rated high in both formats, but significantly less favorably in online formats, particularly for open communication and cognitive activation. However, the differences were relatively small. Information on TPD quality is vital for education administrators, helping to ensure that offerings are of high quality and to identify areas for improvement, allowing data-based monitoring and decision-making. Education administrators could use the results to offer additional training for TPD facilitators on providing, for example, more opportunities for social interaction in online formats. The dissertation provides insights into how the principles of collaborative research (Penuel et al., 2020) can be applied to research projects that (a) focus on the investigation of intervention implementation at multiple levels and (b) work in RPPs with education administrators. It further outlines the potentials of these approaches in terms of the practical relevance of results and narrowing the gap between research and practice, in this case administration. Sun, 18 Jun 2028 00:00:00 GMT http://hdl.handle.net/10900/181088 2028-06-18T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/10900/180750 AI in biomedicine and healthcare: Sociological perspectives on personalized HIV therapy and skin cancer detection tools Baumgartner, Renate AI-based technologies in biomedicine and healthcare are gaining more importance due to the new hype around AI and the increasing concerns about future challenges in healthcare. It is assumed that the logic within these tools, depending on which data can be digitalized in the first place, what is considered relevant, and the way data and information is used within these tools, influences knowledge constructions within the field they are used, including which information is seen as relevant. If we want to understand how medicine and healthcare might change through the usage of AI-based tools, a sociological analysis of how these tools influence constructions of knowledge in the context in which there are used is paramount. This cumulative dissertation chose two cases of AI-based tools for this endeavor: HIV treatment optimization tools as one of the first successful AI-based tools within personalized medicine, and skin cancer detection tools. These were analyzed through the lenses of sociology of categorization and classification, sociology of risk and uncertainty, and feminist science and technology studies. A key goal of the work was to explore the categories made relevant in the AI-based tools compared to categories made relevant within the context of use. The situational analysis of HIV treatment optimization tools concluded how patients, as marginalized implicated actors are discursively constructed by other social worlds. The feminist STS analysis of skin cancer detection tools identified how racial discrimination in the field led to racially biased AI-tools. The comparative analysis between the two cases studies shows how different categories of people are made relevant in the tools and which categories were regarded as relevant to solve the problem at stake. Only a minor part of the relevant categories in the field found their way into the digital tools. While social constructions inform actions in the field of HIV treatment optimization tools, the AI-based tool itself is solely based on genetic data. Differently, for skin cancer detection tools, the social category of race can become highly relevant. The dissertation concludes that AI-based tools can lead to further naturalization of social categories such as race, even more so as categorization is increasing in relevance to account for fairness through AI-based tools. Fri, 12 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT http://hdl.handle.net/10900/180750 2026-06-12T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/10900/180623 Recognition of social identities as a mechanism to increase the resilience of individuals, liberal democracies, and societies Babst, Axel This Ph.D. thesis investigates how recognition of social identities may serve as a mechanism to increase the resilience of individuals, liberal democracies, and societies. This topic is highly relevant in political and societal terms due to the polycrisis of Western societies. I present a possible mechanism for overcoming the polycrisis in the form of the recognition of social identities to in-crease resilience. My dissertation makes three contributions to expand the current state of re-search. 1) From a theoretical perspective, I synthesize Tajfel and Turner's Social Identity Theory (SIT, 1979) with Honneth’s (1992) and Fukuyama's (2019) work on recognition. 2) Methodologically, I develop new items for measuring the recognition of occupational and social class identities. 3) Substantively, I demonstrate in three empirical, peer-reviewed journal articles the assumed connection between the degree of perceived recognition and indicators of resilience in relation to three different crises. The first paper shows that occupational groups that were particularly challenged during the pandemic (“essential” occupations, careworkers, “base workers”) did experience an increase in symbolic recognition, but that this did not translate into financial compensation. At the same time, it is evident that recognition of occupational identities promotes compliance with infection control measures, enhancing societal resilience during a pandemic. Study 2 addresses the rise of populism. It shows that a lack of recognition of social identities is a significant predictor of populist attitudes, which has hardly been discussed in the extensive literature on the causes of populism to date. In the third paper, I show that the recognition of social class identities correlates positively with the acceptance of climate change mitigation measures. Despite limitations (cross-sectional data, sample, selection of social identities), the results are promising and already provide a basis for relevant policy recommendations such as increasing the salaries of essential and base workers, involving citizens in policy design, and transparent and honest political communication that also takes citizens' needs into account. With my dissertation, I am making an important contribution to labor market research, and political sociology, and provide a foundation on which future research on the recognition of social identities and its effects on the resilience of individuals, liberal democracies, and societies can build. References: Fukuyama, F. (2019). Identität: Wie der Verlust der Würde unsere Demokratie gefährdet (3. Auflage). Hoffmann und Campe. Honneth, A. (1992). Kampf um Anerkennung: Zur moralischen Grammatik sozialer Konflikte. Suhrkamp. Tajfel, H., & Turner, J. C. (1979). An integrative theory of intergroup conflict. In S. Worchel & W. G. Austin (Eds.), The social psychology of intergroup relations (pp. 33–47). Brooks Cole. Wed, 10 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT http://hdl.handle.net/10900/180623 2026-06-10T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/10900/180164 From Knowledge to Action in Technology-Enhanced Teaching: An Integrative Approach to Action-Oriented Teacher Professionalization Gazar, Franziska Teaching with technology is a demanding task that requires teachers to respond to rapidly unfolding classroom events. A central competence is teachers’ professional vision – the ability to notice instructionally relevant events and interpret them using professional knowledge (knowledge-based reasoning). Research shows that pre-service teachers often focus on salient features and struggle to use knowledge to interpret and respond to classroom situations, underscoring the need to foster professional vision early in teacher education. Despite substantial work on professional knowledge, professional vision, and video-based learning, an integrative, action-oriented account of professionalization for technology-enhanced teaching remains limited. First, little is known about how professional knowledge is connected and applied across instructional contexts, so it is not readily usable for noticing and reasoning. Second, evidence is fragmented regarding which design features of video-based analysis reliably foster professional vision and how learner prerequisites shape effects. To address these gaps, this dissertation pursued two complementary aims across four studies using context-based assessments. First, it examined knowledge integration across systematically varied instructional contexts involving technology use and across levels of teaching experience (Study 1). Findings indicated context-sensitive differences in knowledge application, consistent with more fragmented patterns among pre-service teachers and more connected patterns among in-service teachers. Second, it investigated how video-based analysis can be designed to foster professional vision by disentangling technological affordances (annotation tool) from instructional guidance (prompts, modeling examples) and considering prior knowledge and cognitive load (Studies 2-4). Tool support primarily strengthened noticing; modeling examples supported knowledge-based reasoning; prompt-based guidance was not beneficial and could disadvantage learners with low prior knowledge, and cognitive load effects were less pronounced than expected. Overall, the dissertation advances an integrative, context-specific account of action-oriented professionalization in technology-enhanced teaching and shows that fostering professional vision in video analysis requires differentiated support rather than one-size-fits-all guidance.; Die Dissertation ist gesperrt bis zum 19. Mai 2028 ! Fri, 19 May 2028 00:00:00 GMT http://hdl.handle.net/10900/180164 2028-05-19T00:00:00Z