Stalemate or Reinvention?

Abstract

Given the inquiry into deep participation, its six elements, and the illustrative case studies, we now begin to have a sense of its inherent complexity. There is also little understanding of participatory dynamics by social theorists, and even participation practitioners, in the context of rapid social change. As a result, there is only minimal support for theorists in their efforts to develop a participatory social theory or for practitioners in their efforts to assist communities in achieving their aspirations in this situation. The intent here, then, is to begin a theoretical discussion on what this category of theory should include. My contribution here in defining deep participation in the context of rapid social change and then offering a beginning formulation of this new theory is a modest one in terms of the large amount of work required to complete the task. But it does provide a substantial starting point upon which participatory social theory can be developed in full.