Social Publishers Foundation: Use Agreement

We welcome and support projects in diverse categories of practitioner-research, including action research, collaborative action research, participatory research, and youth participatory research. Practitioner-research shared through Social Publishers Foundation is situated in practice in a variety of social domains serving the public good, including education, human services, healthcare, community empowerment, among others. There are four rules every Social Publishers Foundation project must follow.

 

1. Projects must meet standards for protection of participants.


Most formal institutions in education and human services have policies regarding conducting research with human subjects. These policies often require completion of some kind of application for conducting research, which is then reviewed by administrators or by a committee of administrators, practitioners, and researchers. The research review process ensures that: (a) organizational operations (e.g., classrooms, service centers) are not interrupted unnecessarily; (b) institutional resources are being put to the best use; and (c) the rights of human subjects are protected as required by law. The Social Publishers Foundation requires that all project proposals accepted for crowdfunding have met the relevant policies set by the institution within which the practitioner-research will be conducted. For more information, please read “Foundation’s Policies Protecting Human Subjects”

 

2. Projects must create knowledge to share with others.


The Social Publishers Foundation supports knowledge production based on practitioner-research. The knowledge is shared with others so that it can be applied to strengthening practice in diverse contexts. Every project supported by the Social Publishers Foundation is based on a clear plan for creating knowledge and sharing it with the world. The knowledge created is owned by the creator; however, the creator is willing to share her or his knowledge with the Social Publishers Foundation and the world for free. (See more information on creative commons in What is a Social Publisher). At some point in the project, the practitioner-researcher needs to be able to say: “Here’s what we found. Hope it is helpful. We will continue to make it better. Hope others do the same.”

 

3. Projects must be authentic, rigorous and clearly presented.


Our community is built on a shared commitment to social publishing with a social conscience. Projects supported by the Social Publishers Foundation are intended to serve the greater good through practitioner-research in a variety of social domains that are not profit-oriented. Projects supported through the foundation are carried out in the field by practitioner-researchers, and practitioner-researchers working in collaboration with others, in diverse social settings. All projects document the production of new knowledge. The knowledge produced and shared through the foundation must reflect high standards of rigor, validity, reflectivity, and accuracy in reporting. Projects can’t mislead people or misrepresent facts. When a project involves producing a product of some kind, such as a curriculum, an instrument, or a healthcare device, we require projects to share detailed plans for their product development.

 

4. Projects can’t offer financial incentives or fundraise for charity.


Projects are for practitioner-led knowledge production. Projects can't offer financial incentives and can’t promise to donate funds raised to a charity. The Social Publishers foundation can’t approve project applications with any of these prohibited items.

These rules don’t address every possible scenario involved in use of the Social Publishers Foundation, but they provide our perspective and the framework within which we work.

We appreciate the global community of practitioner-research, participatory research, and action research. We offer these guidelines to our community in a spirit of respect and care.

Guidelines to Our Community

The Social Publishers Foundation supports and is a part of a diverse community of practitioners committed to producing and sharing knowledge related to social practices for the greater good of societies around the world. Our community is founded on a few core values –– collaboration, social publishing with a social conscience, and purposeful action to strengthen practice. The community of practitioner-researchers and action-researchers can create and share new knowledge globally. The Social Publishers Foundation is a place that shares community support. We provide a few guidelines regarding the use of this Website.

  1. When using this Website for communicating with practitioner-researchers, please be constructive and considerate. Please be respectful and support each other.

  2. Please do not spam and do not promote third-party services. Do not post personal information and do not post improper or insensitive content.

  3. Please let us know if you see something strange happening on the Website. The Foundation will review each and every report we receive and will take action on the person in question accordingly.


As our community of practitioner researchers grows so will the way we assess and implement these guidelines. We hope that you help ensure Social Publishers Foundation remains a safe place to launch, support, and disseminate practitioner-research, participatory research, and action research. We appreciate you being a part of the Social Publishers Foundation community as a practitioner-researcher or as a supporter.