Edgar Elliston’s Introduction to Missiological Research Design outlines the basic issues of research design for missiological and church-related research. This book describes the logic of the research process for a wide range of missiological research. Whether this research is from a single academic discipline or a multidisciplinary approach, this text will provide relevant guidelines for the design. Elliston provides instruction, examples, and exercises for inexperienced but serious researchers as they seek to design research that will serve the Church in mission. Elliston also provides experienced researchers with checklists and easy-to-review tables to further aid in research design. This text raises some of the key issues to designing research in a multicultural or cross-cultural context and guides researchers toward ethical and effective study.

"Stanley H. Skreslet offers an inviting new proposal for conceptualizing the field of missiology. Comprehending Mission includes a concise overview of the development of missiology of the last century, introducing its characteristic methodologies, and offering insight into the kids of questions missiologists typically ask. In the last hundred years missiology has moved form emphasizing the practical challenges of foreign mission service to highlighting the intercultural aspects of Christian outreach. Today, missiology is lesss a form of practical theology than a field of study where theological concerns intersect with critical studies undertaken by anthropologists, historians, and other scholars." --

This comprehensive volume is one you will pull off your shelf again and again as you delve into missiological study. The editors could not have made a more thorough or straight-forward volume that will serve researchers across disciplines. Each chapter succinctly defines the method, summarizes its process, suggests resources for more advanced interaction, and provides an exemplar journal article with abstract. Features to look forward to include: Enjoy the benefits of 14 veteran practitioner-scholars who provide clear and concise guidance to empirical research methodology, biblical-theological inquiry, and the integration of the two interdisciplinary approaches.

The updated Fourth Edition of Gretchen B. Rossman and Sharon F. Rallis’s popular introductory text leads the new researcher into the field by explaining the core concepts through theory, research, and applied examples. Woven into the chapters are three themes that are the heart of the book: first, research is about learning; second, research can and should be useful; and finally, a researcher should practice the highest ethical standards to ensure that a study is trustworthy. The Fourth Edition includes an elaborate discussion of systematic inquiry as well as a nuanced discussion of developing a conceptual framework.

There has been heightened interest and prolific publication by missiologists about contextualization since the term was first coined in 1972. There has been ongoing debate, particularly amongst evangelicals themselves regarding which of these meanings, methods, and models of contextualization are acceptable to use. Much of the debate has been carried out by academics and practitioners whose observations and conclusions have been largely shaped by the social sciences and practical theology. In contrast, the disciplines of biblical studies and Christian thought have not featured significantly in the debate. The purpose of this research is to establish that biblical studies and Christian thought in general (and Scripture and the church fathers in particular) have an essential contribution to make in the contextualization debate and should form part of an evangelical approach to contextualization of the gospel alongside the social sciences and practical theology. Following a review of the literature on contextualization over the past forty years, the research examines the book of Acts as representative of Scripture, and the work of John Chrysostom as a representative church father. Contextual principles that are consistent with an evangelical approach to contextualization of the gospel are drawn from each work, establishing the value of biblical studies and Christian thought in contextualization.

Qualitative research is designed to explore the human elements of a given topic, while specific qualitative methods examine how individuals see and experience the world. Qualitative approaches are typically used to explore new phenomena and to capture individuals′ thoughts, feelings, or interpretations of meaning and process. Such methods are central to research conducted in education, nursing, sociology, anthropology, information studies, and other disciplines in the humanities, social sciences, and health sciences. Qualitative research projects are informed by a wide range of methodologies and theoretical frameworks. The SAGE Encyclopedia of Qualitative Research Methods presents current and complete information as well as ready-to-use techniques, facts, and examples from the field of qualitative research in a very accessible style. In taking an interdisciplinary approach, these two volumes target a broad audience and fill a gap in the existing reference literature for a general guide to the core concepts that inform qualitative research practices. The entries cover every major facet of qualitative methods, including access to research participants, data coding, research ethics, the role of theory in qualitative research, and much more—all without overwhelming the informed reader. Key Features Defines and explains core concepts, describes the techniques involved in the implementation of qualitative methods, and presents an overview of qualitative approaches to research Offers many entries that point to substantive debates among qualitative researchers regarding how concepts are labeled and the implications of such labels for how qualitative research is valued Guides readers through the complex landscape of the language of qualitative inquiry Includes contributors from various countries and disciplines that reflect a diverse spectrum of research approaches from more traditional, positivist approaches, through postmodern, constructionist ones Presents some entries written in first-person voice and others in third-person voice to reflect the diversity of approaches that define qualitative work Key Themes Approaches and Methodologies Arts-Based Research, Ties to Computer Software Data Analysis Data Collection Data Types and Characteristics Dissemination History of Qualitative Research Participants Quantitative Research, Ties to Research Ethics Rigor Textual Analysis, Ties to Theoretical and Philosophical Frameworks The SAGE Encyclopedia of Qualitative Research Methods is designed to appeal to undergraduate and graduate students, practitioners, researchers, consultants, and consumers of information across the social sciences, humanities, and health sciences, making it a welcome addition to any academic or public library.

Dr Fohle Lygunda li-M provides a thorough analysis of missiological teaching in theological institutions in Africa, with special reference to ten Christian universities in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. His detailed examination of current teaching of mission theory and practice builds a solid foundation for the articulation of a new paradigm of missiological education. In this book, Dr Lygunda presents the case for a transformed approach to raising up seminarians who are equipped to lead indigenous missional churches that will fulfil the Great Commission in their own communities and beyond their national borders.