Abstract
Participatory action research aims to reduce power differentials in research. In this chapter we problematise the blurred boundaries when a participant becomes a researcher. We reflect on a PhD undertaken by the first author who was a member of a social enterprise in the UK that provided user-led research and training with a diversity of communities. Experiences of ten members of the collective were gathered through creative arts-based methodologies designed to be inclusive. We describe three tensions that arose when trialling participatory video production, when data analysis could not be undertaken collaboratively, and when reflecting on the solitary nature of PhD thesis writing. We outline the ways these tensions were worked through and explore ways of writing about participatory research in a PhD thesis.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Notes
- 1.
In this chapter, ‘I’ indicates the voice of the first author. ‘Our’ and ‘we’ are used to indicate the voices of both authors and to refer to our research partnership.
- 2.
This remains a key policy objective of the current government.
- 3.
Social enterprises are similar to charities and not-for-profit organisations in that they trade goods and services that have a social betterment purpose. Unlike charities and not-for-profit organisations that rely on grants or donations, social enterprises are income generating and are expected to become financially self-sufficient.
- 4.
Ethical approval for this project was granted by the York St John University Research Ethics Committee on 15 February 2011 (UC/15/2/11/JL).
References
Aron, A., & Corne, S. (Eds.). (1996). Ignacio Martín-Baró: Writings for a liberation psychology. New York: Harvard University Press.
Bery, R. (2003). Participatory video that empowers. In S. A. White (Ed.), Participatory video: Images that transform and empower (pp. 102–121). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2006). Using thematic analysis in psychology. Qualitative Research in Psychology, 3(2), 77–101. https://doi.org/10.1191/1478088706qp063oa
Brett-Maclean, P. (2009). Body mapping: Embodying the self living with HIV/AIDS. Canadian Medical Association Journal, 180(7), 740–741. https://doi.org/10.1503/cmaj.09035
British Psychological Society. (2008). Professional Practice Board Social Inclusion Group: Discussion paper, socially inclusive practice. Retrieved November 10, 2013, from http://www.bps.org.uk/content/socially-inclusive-practice-discussion-paper
Burton, M. (2013). A renewal of ethics. The Psychologist, 26(11), 802–806.
Butler, J. (2001). Giving an account of oneself. Diacritics, 31(4), 22–40. https://doi.org/10.1353/dia.2004.0002
Dudley, M. J. (2003). The transformative power of video: Ideas, images, processes and outcomes. In S. A. White (Ed.), Participatory video: Images that transform and empower (pp. 145–156). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Fals Borda, O. (1995). Research for social justice: Some North-South convergences, Plenary address at the Southern Sociological society meeting, Atlanta, April 8.
Freire, P. (1970). Pedagogy of the oppressed. Harmondsworth, Middlesex: Penguin.
Gastaldo, D., Magalhães, L., Carrasco, C., & Davy, C. (2012). Body-map storytelling as research: Methodological considerations for telling the stories of undocumented workers through body mapping. CAIS (Centre for Support and Social Integration). Retrieved from http://www.migrationhealth.ca/undocumented-workers-ontario/body-mapping
Gilligan, C., Spencer, R., Weinberg, M. K., & Bertsch, T. (2003). On the listening guide: A voice-centred relational method. In P. M. Camic, J. E. Rhodes, & L. Yardley (Eds.), Qualitative research in psychology: Expanding perspectives in methodology and design (pp. 157–172). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
Grande, S. (2004). Red pedagogy: Native American social and political thought. New York: Rowman and Littlefield.
Jacobson, N., & Greenley, D. (2001). What is recovery? A conceptual model and explication. Psychiatric Services, 52(4), 482–485. https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ps.52.4.486
Leadbeater, C. (2008). Social enterprise and the with economy: Notes for talk to world social enterprise forum. Retrieved March 25, 2011, from http://www.charlesleadbeater.net/
Lunch, C., & Lunch, N. (2006). Insights into participatory video: A handbook for the field. Oxford: Insightshare. Retrieved June 6, 2010, from http://www.insightshare.org/resources/pvhandbook
Mampani, D. C. (2014). 44 liters of tears: Tears of joy and tears of sorrow are shed daily in this world. Charleston, SC: Createspace.
McIntyre, A. (2008). Participatory action research. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Montero, M. (2000). Participation in participatory action research. Annual Review of Critical Psychology, 2, 131–143.
Parker, I. A. (Ed.). (2005). Qualitative psychology: Introducing radical research. Milton Keynes: Open University Press.
Pattison, S. (2000). Shame: Theory, therapy, theology. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Reason, P., & Torbert, W. R. (2001). Toward a transformational science: A further look at the scientific merits of action research. Concepts and Transformations, 6(1), 1–37. https://doi.org/10.1075/cat.6.1
White, S. A. (Ed.). (2003). Participatory video: Images that transform and empower. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2018 The Author(s)
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Lovell, J., Akhurst, J. (2018). Whose PARty Was This? The Dilemmas of a Participatory Action Research Process of Evaluating a Social Enterprise. In: Macleod, C., Marx, J., Mnyaka, P., Treharne, G. (eds) The Palgrave Handbook of Ethics in Critical Research. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-74721-7_24
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-74721-7_24
Published:
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-74720-0
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-74721-7
eBook Packages: Behavioral Science and PsychologyBehavioral Science and Psychology (R0)