Ask better questions.
Deepen understanding.
Put evidence into practice.
Inquiry In Practice (IIP) is an independent research, evaluation, and learning practice focused on complex questions about people — the dynamics they share and the systems they inhabit. It investigates how communication, relationships, behavior, context, and systemic conditions interact to shape experiences and outcomes. That understanding is used to inform practice, programs, and learning.
RIGOROUS INQUIRY, ANALYSIS, AND INTERPRETATION ARE RARELY LINEAR.
IMPORTANT QUESTIONS SELDOM FIT NEATLY WITHIN ONE DISCIPLINE, ONE DATASET, OR ONE WAY OF KNOWING.
QUESTIONS EVOLVE. EVIDENCE CLARIFIES, AS WELL AS COMPLICATES.
WHAT WE LEARN CAN CHANGE WHAT WE NEED TO ASK NEXT.
The Expertise
SUBJECT-MATTER EXPERTISE — PEOPLE, COMMUNICATION & SYSTEMS
Relationships · Support · Identity · Behavior · Organizations · Social Contexts · Systems
METHODOLOGICAL EXPERTISE — RESEARCH, EVALUATION & LEARNING
Research Design · Evaluation Strategy & Methods · Analysis · Synthesis · Interpretation
The Practice
RESEARCH & EVALUATION
Investigate what is happening, why, and what can be learned from it.
Research and evaluation of needs, experiences, processes, and outcomes.
PROGRAM & LEARNING
Use evidence to develop, examine, and strengthen programs and learning.
Evidence, content, frameworks, and evaluation for programs and learning experiences.
INTERPERSONAL COMMUNICATION LAB (ICL)
Look beneath the words. Navigate with awareness.
ICL is IIP’s research and public-scholarship initiative on consequential human communication.