Critical Participatory Action Research in a Rural Community Committed to Peacebuilding in Times of Crisis

Author(s):  
Lina Trigos-Carrillo ◽  
Laura Fonseca

Conducting critical community research during the COVID-19 pandemic has brought unexpected challenges to academic communities. In this chapter, the authors analyze the obstacles faced in a Critical Participatory Action Research (CPAR) education project with a rural community of former guerrilla members in the Amazon piedmont in Colombia. After this analysis, the authors present four CPAR principles to support critical community work during difficult times. The authors argue that communicative action, horizontal community participation in all the stages of the research process, time commitment, and the leverage of other competing needs should be guaranteed and maintained during times of crisis. CPAR offers opportunities to advocate better conditions for the most affected communities in moments of increasing inequality.

2018 ◽  
Vol 18 (4) ◽  
pp. 414-432 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amie Thurber ◽  
Leslie Collins ◽  
Marilyn Greer ◽  
Demetrese McKnight ◽  
Darlene Thompson

Policies affecting those living in poverty are often created without the direct and meaningful participation of the people meant to be served. This has been especially the case with public housing. To contextualize the need for alternative approaches to inquiry, we begin by examining the history of public housing through the lens of oppression and present critical Participatory Action Research as an alternative approach to research and policy-making. We provide a case study of a critical Participatory Action Research project sited in a public housing project slated for redevelopment. We conclude that engaging “resident experts” in the research process heightened the validity and credibility of the findings, amplified residents' self-determination, and provided greater congruence between the researchers' social justice values and our research methods.


2020 ◽  
Vol 90 (2) ◽  
pp. 229-242
Author(s):  
SARAH ZELLER-BERKMAN ◽  
JESSICA BARRETO ◽  
ASHA SANDLER

In this essay, authors Sarah Zeller-Berkman, Jessica Barreto, and Asha Sandler, members of an intergenerational research team, explore findings from a critical participatory action research (CPAR) project on the lived experiences of young people in New York City who fell behind in middle school and/or who had the Administration for Children’s Services (ACS) in their lives. This qualitative companion project to a Department of Education (DOE) and ACS data-sharing initiative included focus groups that surfaced recommendations for healing-centered approaches, equitable schools, and institutionalized ways young people are part of identifying issues and implementing solutions. This article examines these recommendations in relation to past and concurrent CPAR projects conducted by other intergenerational participatory action research and/or activist groups in New York City. It articulates a theory of action as it relates to youth participation on issues that impact young people’s lives more broadly, not just related to school reform.


Author(s):  
Joanna Ochocka ◽  
Elin Moorlag ◽  
Rich Janzen

The purpose of this article is twofold: to explore the entry process in community-based research when researching sensitive topics; and to suggest a framework for entry that utilises the values of participatory action research (PAR). The article draws on a collaborative community-university research study that took place in the Waterloo and Toronto regions of Ontario, Canada, from 2005–2010. The article emphasises that community entry is not only about recruitment strategies for research participants or research access to community but it is also concerned with the ongoing engagement with communities during various stages of the research study. The indicator of success is a well established and trusted community-researcher relationship. This article first examines this broader understanding of entry, then looks at how community research entry can be shaped by an illustrative framework, or guide, that uses a combination of participatory action research (PAR) values and engagement strategies. Key words: research entry, community engagement, participatory action research, mental health and cultural diversity


2018 ◽  
Vol 56 (4) ◽  
pp. 251-262 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brittany St. John ◽  
Iulia Mihaila ◽  
Katelyn Dorrance ◽  
Leann Smith DaWalt ◽  
Karla K. Ausderau

Abstract Participatory action research methodologies may empower and protect marginalized individuals; however, they remain underutilized. Limited studies have investigated the impact of participatory action research, specifically on individuals with intellectual disability (ID). This study examines (1) the perspectives of co-researchers with ID on their involvement in the research process and (2) the feasibility of their inclusion based on perspectives of research staff (academic faculty and graduate students without ID). Three co-researchers with ID were interviewed regarding their research participation. Thematic analysis of interviews identified four themes: (1) Shared Experience of Disability, (2) Teaching and Guidance, (3) Acquisition of Skills and Knowledge, and (4) Value of Participation. Research staff reviewed field notes and identified benefits and challenges to feasibility of including co-researchers with ID. Inclusion of co-researchers with ID was found to be both meaningful and feasible.


2004 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 130 ◽  
Author(s):  
Komla Tsey ◽  
Mark Wenitong ◽  
Janya McCalman ◽  
Mary Whiteside ◽  
Leslie Baird ◽  
...  

Since 2001 a team of academic researchers and medical practitioners have been collaborating with Yarrabah Men?s Health Group leaders to implement a participatory action research (PAR) process designed to support the men to (in their own words) ?take their rightful place? in contemporary Australian society. The formative stages of the PAR process and progress over the first 12 months have been documented in previous papers in order to provide much needed direction for others interested in undertaking similar community action-oriented research (Tsey, Patterson, Whiteside, Baird, & Baird, 2002; Tsey et al., 2004). The present paper addresses the need for innovative evaluation methodologies to enable participants in the PAR process to monitor and reinforce the small improvement they are making towards achieving their goals, and to maintain their vision for the future. Participation in men?s group activities resulted in modest but significant change in the men?s personal development and growth and in their response to family responsibilities. Men had the opportunity to dialogue and reflect on their gender responsibilities such as housework, which constitutes a major source of conflict in the family. Several men also gained the confidence and motivation to stand for local government. The study highlights the value of demystifying and making research more relevant to people?s day-to-day living experiences.


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