Table 2 Conceptual frameworks relating to knowledge translation that could be used by researchers to guide their dissemination activities
Author, Year, Aims | Dissemination elements | Theoretical foundations | Description/Comment |
|---|---|---|---|
Funk [44] 1989 To facilitate the use of research in clinical settings by providing findings that are relevant and ready to use, in a form that maintains the richness of full research reports yet is still understandable to the general reader. | Qualities of Research (described as topic selection based on literature reviews and surveys of clinicians with criteria focussed on relevance, applicability and the perceived gaps between evidence and practice) Characteristics of the communication (including use of non-technical language, emphasis on implications for practice and strategies for implementation). Facilitation of utilisation (provision of enquiry centre for implementation advice and to respond to requests for further information and feedback channel for researchers and practitioners) | None stated Reference to other included frameworks None | Describes an approach devised by the National Center for Nursing Research to make research results accessible to practising nurses via a topic focused conference and monograph series. |
1993 Presents a coordinated implementation model that that seeks to shed light on dissemination processes and on best how to flow research findings into practice. | Dissemination elements within wider implementation model: The message Its source The communication channels The implementation setting | Mixed Full model derived from models of social influence, diffusion of innovations, adult learning theory and social marketing. Persuasive communication Four (source, setting, message, channel) of McGuire's five attributes of persuasive communication evident (explicitly derived from Winkler) Reference to other included frameworks Winkler | Argues that use of research in practice may depend more on a change in researchers behaviour than it does on practitioners-research findings most likely to find their way into practice when they are synthesised, contextualised, packaged to the needs of the end user. Wider model recognises the external influencing factors on the overall practice environment including, economic resources, legislation and regulation, education, personnel as well as public (media) and patient pressures. |
Dobbins[13] 2002 To construct a comprehensive framework of research dissemination and utilisation. | Complex interrelationships that exist among five stages of innovation (knowledge, persuasion, decision, implementation and confirmation) and four types of characteristics (innovation, organization, environment and individual) as progression from research dissemination to research utilization occurs | Diffusion of innovations Explicit application of Rogers diffusion of innovations innovation-decision process Reference to other included frameworks None | Application of Rogers's innovation-decision process to health research dissemination and utilisation. Framework integrates concepts of research dissemination (knowledge, persuasion), evidence-based decision making (decision) and research utilisation (implementation) within the innovations decision process of diffusion of innovations theory. Argues that the extent to which an individual or organisation becomes knowledgeable about new ideas is somewhat dependent on the dissemination strategies employed by health researchers |
Elliot [46] 2003 Present a conceptual and analytic frameworks that integrate several approaches to understanding and studying dissemination processes within public health systems focussed on cardiovascular health promotion | Four categories of factors shown to affect the success of dissemination efforts: Characteristics of the dissemination object Environmental factors, Factors associated with users Relationships between producers and users. | Diffusion of innovations Derived from Diffusion of Innovations-goes on to describe five approaches to dissemination (science push, problem solving, organisational, knowledge transfer and interaction) Reference to other included frameworks None | Authors state that dissemination and capacity exist within a broader social, political, economic context operating at micro, meso and macro levels The framework posits that contextual factors act as mediators shaping the behaviours and values of individuals and organizations, innovations, and influencing the process and outcome of capacity building and dissemination. |
2004 Review of the literature on the spread and sustainability of innovations in health service delivery and organisation Develop and apply (in four case studies) a unifying conceptual model based on the evidence. | Planned dissemination elements within wider model: Address needs and perspectives of potential adopters Tailor different strategies to different groups Use appropriate messages Use appropriate communication channels Undertake rigorous evaluation | Diffusion of innovations Application of Diffusion of Innovations in a health service delivery and organisation context Persuasive communication Not explicitly stated but four (message, setting, audience, channel) of McGuire's five attributes of persuasive communication Reference to other included frameworks None | Formal dissemination programs, defined as active and planned efforts to persuade target groups to adopt an innovation are more effective if the program's organizers (1) take full account of potential adopters' needs and perspectives, with particular attention to the balance of costs and benefits for them; (2) tailor different strategies to the different demographic, structural, and cultural features of different subgroups; (3) use a message with appropriate style, imagery, metaphors, and so on; (4) identify and use appropriate communication channels; and (5) incorporate rigorous evaluation and monitoring of defined goals and milestones |
Green [48] 2006 Review tobacco control dissemination experience to draw guidance for physical activity promotion | Push: strengthening science push by proving, improving, and communicating effective interventions for wide population use; Pull: boosting demand, or market pull for interventions among consumers, and healthcare purchasers and policymakers Capacity: building the capacity of relevant systems and institutions to deliver them | Diffusion of innovations Diffusion of Innovations used to assess how tobacco control lessons diffuse and apply to the field of physical activity Reference to other included frameworks None | Author's state dissemination encompasses the planned facilitation and acceleration of diffusion of innovations, transfer and utilization of knowledge, and implementation of the resulting adaptations in local circumstances. Author suggest lessons from tobacco control include the need for a funded mandate; the mass media to frame the public policy debate and to help undermine negative behaviour; the comprehensiveness of interventions at national and local levels to mutually reinforce each other; the need for systematic evaluation; the need for policy and funding to support programs; the need for coordinated programs to support individuals. |
Owen [49] 2006 Outline the main attributes of Diffusion of Innovations and key concepts to consider in the dissemination and diffusion of innovations to promote physical activity | Advocacy: identifying and engaging key stakeholders Increased funding to build the evidence base to supply diffusion and dissemination strategies and to allow investigators to gain experience with type of role Implement surveillance systems to track use of evidence-based interventions | Diffusion of innovations Application of Diffusion of Innovations in a public health context RE-AIM framework can be used to determine the success and impact of dissemination efforts Reference to other included frameworks None | Diffusion of innovations theory can be applied to accelerate the rate of diffusion specifically to promote physical activity interventions. Authors present two case studies and argue that their success illustrates the need for dedicated field staff, product production, marketing, and distribution. |
Landry [50] 2007 To determine the extent of research transfer in natural sciences and engineering among Canadian university researchers; to examine any differences between various disciplines with regard to the extent of transfer; to examine the determinants of research transfer | Four categories of resources (along with the attributes of research knowledge) likely to enable researchers to transfer knowledge: Financial Organizational Relational Personal | Resource-based view of the firm Resource-based view of the firm-researchers have resources and capabilities which are deployed and mobilized in their knowledge transfer activities Reference to other included frameworks None | Based on a survey of 1,554 researchers, presents a model of how researchers in natural sciences and engineering transfer knowledge outside the academic community Two determinants found to be consistently influential: linkages between researchers and research users, and focus of the research projects on end user needs. Other determinants influencing knowledge transfer varied from one research field to another |
Baumbusch [51] 2008 Describe a participatory approach to knowledge translation developed during a program of research concerning equitable care for diverse populations | Two dimensions process (translation) and content (knowledge): Process (translation involving: credible messengers, accountability, reciprocity, respect, and research champions) Content (ongoing cycle of data collection, analysis and synthesis of knowledge) | None stated Reference to other included frameworks Jacobson Lavis | A collaborative model of knowledge translation between researchers and practitioners in clinical settings-derived from a non systematic review of literature and from experiences drawn from a programme of research funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research. Authors state at the core of the approach is a collaborative relationship between researchers and practitioners, which underpins the knowledge translation cycle, and occurs simultaneously with data collection/analysis/synthesis |
Feldstein [52] 2008 To provide a new tool for researchers and healthcare decision makers that integrates existing concepts relevant to translating research into practice. | Program or intervention (consideration of elements from the perspective of the organization and staff to be targeted) External environment (consideration of) Implementation and sustainability infrastructure necessary for success (consideration of) Recipients (Characteristics of both organisational and patient recipients of interventions need to be considered to maximize intervention effectiveness) | Mixed States that aspects of the model derived from diffusion of innovations, social ecology, the PRECEDE/PROCEED model, and the quality improvement/implementation literature. Impact measures derived from RE-AIM Reference to other included frameworks Jacobson Lavis | Practical, Robust Implementation and Sustainability Model (PRISM) considers how the program or intervention design, the external environment, the implementation and sustainability infrastructure, and the recipients influence program adoption, implementation, and maintenance. Designed to help researchers (and organisations) conceptualize, implement, and evaluate healthcare improvement programs. |
Clinton [53] 2009 To present a knowledge transfer model and illustrate how its use can lead to competitive advantage | Comprehensive employee skills assessment Identify the type of knowledge to be transferred (tacit or explicit) Select appropriate media required for knowledge transfer Appropriate generation of corporate university (defined as a strategic commitment to organisational learning and development of intellectual capital) | Knowledge-based view of the firm Reference to other included frameworks None | The authors propose that the type of knowledge to be transferred and the appropriate media to transfer that knowledge, determine the education and training needs required to achieve competitive advantage |
Mitchell [54] 2009 To identify dimensions that could be used to describe and differentiate models of partnerships, and illustrate how these dimensions could be applied using three recent case studies in Australia. | Decision maker involvement in research versus researcher involvement in decision making Investigator versus decision maker driven research Value of decision maker involvement at various stages of the research process. Discrete projects versus programs versus ongoing reciprocity Formal versus informal linkages Active versus passive involvement Concentrated and specific versus diffuse and heterogeneous linkages | None stated Reference to other included frameworks Greenhalgh Lavis | Dimensions derived from a brief narrative review of the partnership literature within health services research and on a selection of theoretical and conceptual references from other fields, particularly organization science. Authors argue building capacity for knowledge exchange demands an evidence-base of its own. They suggest their seven dimensions of partnerships provide a basis for research examining the usefulness of particular partnership models and their applicability and effectiveness in different contexts |
2009 Reviews knowledge transfer frameworks to gain a better understanding of the processes involved in knowledge transfer and presents a five domain model of the knowledge transfer processes to help researchers, practitioners and decision makers plan and evaluate initiatives for transferring knowledge into action | Problem: Identifying and communicating about the problem which the knowledge needs to address Context: Analysing the context which surrounds the producers and users of knowledge Knowledge: Developing and selecting the knowledge to be transferred Intervention: Selecting specific knowledge transfer activities or Interventions Use: Considering how the knowledge will be used in practice | Mixed Practical framework developed from on commonalities from 28 published models including the Diffusion of Innovations Reference to other included frameworks Dobbins Greenhalgh Jacobson Lavis | Authors emphasise that knowledge transfer is an interactive, multidirectional rather than linear process Report outlines a series of domain specific questions for research users and producers to use to think about and incorporate knowledge transfer processes in to their routine practice. |