The freedom of information act and sociological research

Keen, Mike Forrest

doi:10.1007/bf02691907

Cited by 22 publications

(23 citation statements)

References 7 publications

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“…The total number of children reported as looked‐after via these FoI requests shows reasonable alignment with other published data (Department for Education, 2017a), notwithstanding the categorisation differences, thereby providing some confidence that the data were accurate. Overall, in line with others who have used this approach (Keen, ; Lee, ; Fowler et al ., 2013; Walby & Larsen, ; Savage & Hyde, ), we think that this is a powerful means of providing a systematic snapshot of local authorities in action, at least at the strategic level.…”

Section: Strengths Limitations and Further Researchsupporting

confidence: 88%

“….unique perspective for scholars who are trying to conceptualize how government agencies work in action' (Walby & Larsen, 2012, p. 39). Keen (1992), writing within the US context, also noted how 'untapped' (p. 44) this mode of data procurement and production was; a sentiment echoed more recently by Walby and Larsen (2012) in Canada, and Savage and Hyde (2014) in the UK.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 96%

“…Using freedom of information (FoI) requests as a source of social and healthcare research data is a ‘very valuable’ (Fowler et al ., , p. 6), ‘viable’ (Walby & Larsen, , p. 32) and ‘powerful tool’ (Savage & Hyde, , p. 304) that can provide a ‘…unique perspective for scholars who are trying to conceptualize how government agencies work in action’ (Walby & Larsen, , p. 39). Keen (), writing within the US context, also noted how ‘untapped’ (p. 44) this mode of data procurement and production was; a sentiment echoed more recently by Walby and Larsen () in Canada, and Savage and Hyde () in the UK.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 97%

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Awareness within local authorities in England of autism spectrum diagnoses of looked‐after children

Parsons

McCullen²,

Emery

et al. 2018

British Educational Res J

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Educational outcomes for looked‐after children on the autism spectrum are significantly poorer than for autistic children not being looked‐after by their local authority (those ‘in care’), and poorer than for most other groups of children with special educational needs who are looked‐after in England. Such poor outcomes have led to calls for specific attention to be paid to the needs of autistic looked‐after children within the care of local authorities. There is also evidence that the numbers of autistic children being looked‐after by local authorities could be under‐represented in official figures. This study sought to find the current numbers of autistic looked‐after children formally recorded across local authorities in England, and whether their needs are given special attention via strategic planning and oversight, using freedom of information (FoI) requests sent to all local authorities in England. From the 147 (97%) local authorities who responded, approximately 3% of looked‐after children in England are recorded as having an autism spectrum diagnosis, although this is still very likely to be an underestimation. The majority of local authorities do not routinely monitor or report on the diagnostic status of autistic looked‐after children at a strategic level. Implications for research and practice are discussed.

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Section: Strengths Limitations and Further Researchsupporting

confidence: 88%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 96%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 97%

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Awareness within local authorities in England of autism spectrum diagnoses of looked‐after children

Parsons

McCullen²,

Emery

et al. 2018

British Educational Res J

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…Researchers could file information requests to investigate how research moneys were allocated for specific grants and learn more about the policy behind, and intent of, strategic funding initiatives. To paraphrase Keen (1992, 46), the uses of ATI/FOI requests are only as limited as researchers’ ingenuity in developing applications in their field of specialty.…”

Section: Researching Higher Education Using Access To Informationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Access to Information, Higher Education, and Reputational Risk: Insights from a Case Study

Lamoureux¹

2019

Can. j. law soc.

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Access to information and freedom of information (ATI/FOI) requests are an increasingly utilized means of generating data in the social sciences. An impressive multi-disciplinary and international literature has emerged which mobilizes ATI/FOI requests in research on policing, national security, and imprisonment. Absent from this growing literature is work which deploys ATI/FOI requests in research on higher education institutions (HEIs). In this article I examine the use of ATI/FOI requests as a methodological tool for producing data on HEIs. I highlight the data-generating opportunities that this tool offers higher education researchers and provide a first-hand account of how ATI/FOI requests can be mobilized in higher education research. I argue that despite the value of ATI/FOI requests for producing data on academic institutions, the information management practices of HEIs limit the effectiveness of ATI/FOI in ways that I detail drawing on my experience using information requests to scrutinize the quality assurance of undergraduate degree programs in Ontario. I suggest that in an age of rankings and league tables HEIs are likely to prioritize the protection of their reputation over the right of access. In conclusion I consider the implications of the article’s findings for higher education researchers and ATI/FOI users.

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“…To provide an accurate description of our subject matter, we need to recognize the more problematic social realities faced by real-life marketing managers and their organizations, even if this concerns prevailing social taboos and even criminality. Failure to address these issues would not be "…an accurate memory of our discipline" (Keen, 1992). This implies a need for an open-minded exploration and analysis of the 'dark side' of real life marketing practices (Tonks, 2002).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Towards a typology of collusive industrial networks: Dark and shadow networks

Pressey

Vanharanta²,

Gilchrist

2014

Industrial Marketing Management

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The prevailing understanding of collusive B2B networks is primarily based on the theories of industrial economists and organizational criminologists. 'Successful' collusive industrial networks (such as price-fixing cartels) have been seen to endure due to formal managerial structures of coordination and control. In this paper, we seek to transcend and challenge the understanding of these illegal forms of co-opetition by drawing on evidence from an in-depth examination of four price-fixing cartels that were facilitated chiefly by marketers. Our contribution introduces the notion of 'shadow networks' (networks where although attempts are made to ensure secrecy, multilateral modes of network structure dominate akin to 'normal' managerial endeavours such as joint ventures) and 'dark networks' (networks which appear more opaque and secretive through the adoption of bilateral modes of network structure and limited bureaucracy) to illustrate the types of collusive network forms that may exist. In addition, this allows us to build a deeper understanding of collusive network forms and related inter-firm interaction for an industrial marketing audience. We provide implications for marketing practice, theory, and policy. Specifically, we outline how organizations and the marketing function can perform self-administered antitrust audits in order to help avoid breaches of antitrust. Further, we consider the importance of the two forms of collusive inter-firm networks uncovered where marketers have attempted to render these secret from antitrust agencies, introducing a relatively new line of inquiry to the industrial marketing literature.

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The freedom of information act and sociological research

Cited by 22 publications

References 7 publications

Awareness within local authorities in England of autism spectrum diagnoses of looked‐after children

Awareness within local authorities in England of autism spectrum diagnoses of looked‐after children

Access to Information, Higher Education, and Reputational Risk: Insights from a Case Study

Towards a typology of collusive industrial networks: Dark and shadow networks

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