Participatory Action Research

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A North-South convergence on the quest for meaning
(Sage, 1996) Fals Borda, Orlando
Personal experience in Latin America led the author from academic work to fieldwork in participatory action research (PAR). This type of research implies a quest for meaning not only in life experiences but also within the intellectual endeavor. A comparison is made between Agnes Heller's version of such a quest and a previous attempt made in Colombia during the period when PAR was being constructed.
A river of life: Learning and environmental social movements
(Interface: A journal for and about social movement, 2009) Hall, Budd L
What and how can we learn from social movements? According to Dr. Budd Hall, social movements are intense locations for knowledge to come together and for learning to happen. They are seen as one of the best routes to social transformation because they bring together action, learning and social change. In this 2009 paper, Dr. Hall reflects on the epistemic value of social movements in the creation of knowledge. He begins by exploring what a social movement is and outlines its characteristic features as discussed by different schools of thought. The paper is a collaborative effort involving teams from three organisations and presents qualitative analyses based on case studies of environmental social movements from countries like Venezuela, Brazil, Sudan, India, Canada and many more. From these cases, the paper formulates key principles of environmental social movement learning, including seeing humans as part of nature rather than separate from it, deconstructing power relations in our relationship with nature and with each other as a first step toward transforming them, and several other interconnected insights. Through both theoretical reflection and grounded case studies, Hall argues that social movements, while leading to social transformation, also facilitate deep personal transformation by creating powerful spaces for learning.
Collaborative participatory research in gender mainstreaming in social change organizations
(Participatory research in Asia (PRIA), 2006-11-19) Tandon, Rajesh; Farrell, Martha
Unequal gender relations in societies, specially developing countries, have been focus of development programmes for decades. Much of this focus has been on changing gender relations in communities. However, organisations - governmental and private also reflect similar patterns of gender relations. Advocacy for gender mainstreaming in organisations has had limited success due to prescriptive approach. PRIA has adopted a learning process approach to gender mainstreaming in development NGOs in India. Collaborative Research methodology has been utilized towards this end. This paper describes one such case and draws implications for future research and practice.
Conscientizing the evaluator
(1979) Etherington, Alan
This document aims to discuss the political and social aspects of the assessment of non-formal education and community programs. The text claims that social research and evaluation are intrinsically linked to politics since determining goals, methods, values, and priorities is inevitably connected to power relations. This document tries to demonstrate that traditional or dominant forms of research are intrinsically linked to oppressive social relations because they simplify social change, separate individuals from their environment, impose quantification, and favor evaluators. Therefore, it is essential to take a more emancipating approach that would allow the participants to realize their values, judgment, and power through reflective dialogues, reciprocal conversations, and shared learning. Moreover, Freire’s approach requires engaging in action research, understanding connections and interactions through the lens of oppression and power, asking who benefits and who loses from the research, and taking a holistic view of the object of research. The text also mentions that evaluators should make their assumptions and power positions over the communities assessed clear, as community projects seeking social change require critical awareness of how their evaluators contribute to the change.
Description of the methods of participation research
(1978) Le Boterf, Guy
The article describes a research method used to identify the basic educational needs of rural populations in six villages in Central America. The research method is an approach that combines experimental research with a participatory survey of the community to identify educational needs. The communities participated by defining the problems they were facing, discussing their situation, identifying their educational needs, and developing possible solutions. This is different from a typical survey, since community members were given an active role in the research activities. Moreover, they provided feedback and were actively involved in discussions at various stages of the study and research process. This allowed the researchers to discuss and analyse the results with the community and to use their feedback in understanding and addressing specific problems. The study began with an initial exploration of the community, followed by the identification and prioritisation of needs, setting educational goals, developing strategies, discussion with the community, and implementation of the strategies. Researchers and technical specialists acted as facilitators and educators rather than being the sole producers of knowledge. The study links research, education, and community action, which is intended not only to analyse the situation in the communities but also to contribute to solving the problems that were identified.
Doing participatory research: A feminist approach
(Center for International Education, University of Massachusetts., 2000) Maguire, Patricia
In this text the author traces her beginnings as a student researcher trying to understand the biases of traditional research by engaging in participatory research with a group of battered women in Gallup, New Mexico. Using Paulo Freire's concept of dialogue, Pat talks with former battered women in their kitchens, transcribes the interviews and presents the women in their own words. Together they move through a cycle of reflection and action, reaching for a solution to the problem-how to move forward after living with violent men. This highly creative work will involve the reader in theory and practice.
From clarity to anarchy: Participatory research approach (A critique of "The methodology of the participatory research approach")
(1979) Tandon, Rajesh
In this paper, Rajesh Tandon responds to a critique of a paper on the methodology of the participatory research approach, presented at the African Regional Workshop on Participatory Research in Tanzania in 1979. A central fallacy runs through the original argument that the wide range of political activism within PRA produces naive idealism and methodological adhocism. Participatory research is not an invention of the seventies; only its label is new, since people organising the rural poor had long practised its elements without naming them. Two vantage points inform the approach, the activist's and the professional researchers, and reconciling them forms the real challenge. Classical research confines inquiry to thinking alone, while PRA treats feeling and acting as equally valid modes of knowing. A genuine risk of subjective, superficial analysis remains, addressed through joint analysis between researcher and people. PRA's apparent anarchism reflects unfamiliarity and variety rather than incoherence.
In from the cold? Reflections on participatory research from 1970 - 2005
(Convergence, 2005) Hall, Budd L
Participatory Research is a term which was first articulated in Tanzania in the early 1970s to describe a variety of community-based approaches to the creation of knowledge. Taken together these approaches combine social investigation, education and action in an interrelated process. The International Council for Adult Education provided a home in 1976 for what became the International Participatory Research Network, the means by which the ideas and practices of participatory research became more widely visible. Participatory research was a concept which, unlike most contemporary research paradigms, originated in the majority world. It originated in the rapidly expanding networks of non-governmental organisations in the 1980s and 90s. It has been the research approach of choice in many of the social movement interventions of the past 20 years. Participatory research and its sister concept participatory action research have in the past 15 years been taken up in many universities around the world both as a teaching subject and as a research method for graduate studies. One might say that, participatory research has come “in from the cold”, that it has come in from the margins to become an accepted member of the academic family.
International perspectives on participatory monitoring and evaluation
(Participatory Research in Asia (PRIA), 2009-11-25) Participatory Research in Asia (PRIA)
This paper developed by PRIA presents international perspectives on participatory monitoring and evaluation, examining its origin, and analysing the principles, methods, and practices that define it. The historical roots of Participatory Monitoring and Evaluation are traced to the emergence of participatory research which was influenced by practices of adult educators, and critiqued traditional social science methodologies that devalued popular knowledge and perpetuated elite control over knowledge production. The paper contrasts conventional forms of monitoring and evaluation with participatory forms and discusses the objectives and principles of Participatory M&E. It also outlines core steps in developing Participatory monitoring and evaluation, from identifying stakeholders to collecting information, analysis, and using results, and examines some objectives of innovative participatory techniques. Further, four case studies are used to illustrate participatory monitoring and evaluation in practice. The paper concludes by asking some important questions for proper establishment of participatory monitoring processes such as what information is needed, who will collect it, how it will be collected, and how findings will be used.
Issues and experiences in participatory research in Asia
(1979-06-25) Tandon, Rajesh
In this paper Dr. Rajesh Tandon examines characteristics and issues of participatory research as practised across Asia during the late 1970s, drawing on meetings held in India and Thailand alongside field reports from researchers. Practitioners engaging with participatory research bring varied motivations, ranging from disillusioned social scientists seeking relevance beyond classical research paradigms to activists redirecting failed development strategies toward decentralized alternatives and educators treating research itself as a vehicle for social transformation. Rural settings dominate the Asian experience, reflecting both the scale of rural populations and the concentration of documented efforts in land, health, and adult education. The paper situates participatory research in close and often uncomfortable relation to social action, tracing the political consequences that follow from this link across varied Asian contexts. It also addresses the largely unorganized condition of underprivileged groups and the corresponding need to build organization alongside inquiry, along with the personal values and behavioural skills researchers need to genuinely facilitate participation rather than reproduce authoritarian patterns. The paper closes by treating these issues as unresolved questions for the ongoing evolution of participatory research in the region, rather than settled conclusions.
Notes on participatory research methodology for forest studies
(1982-09) Tandon, Rajesh
This document outlines a participatory research framework for studying the impact of forest legislation on forest-dwelling communities in India. It emphasizes involving local activists and residents directly in data collection, analysis, and reporting so that research becomes both documentation and a tool for mobilization.
Participatory research network
(1987-03) Tandon, Rajesh
As dissatisfaction with mainstream social science grew in the 1970s and 1980s, participatory research began to take shape as an alternative way of producing knowledge that was more closely tied to people’s struggles. This paper provides an appraisal of the first decade of participatory research and the networks that emerged around it. The study traces the evolution of the movement through three distinct phases: inception, consolidation, and diffusion. The initial years were shaped by a strong critique of conventional social science and the search for an alternative paradigm rooted in adult education and people’s struggles. The consolidation period witnessed the growth of regional networks, the establishment of participatory research as a recognized program within the International Council for Adult Education, and the development of organisations like PRIA in Asia. The phase of diffusion, then marked a shift toward deeper connections with social movements, as participatory research became more explicitly linked to issues such as land, deforestation, workers’ rights, and women’s empowerment. The paper emphasizes that the future of participatory research lies not only in refining methodology but also in expanding its influence within academia and linking more strongly with people’s concerns. By situating knowledge creation in the context of social struggles, the research underscores participatory research as both a methodology and a worldview that continues to inspire collective action and empowerment.
Should participatory research be taught in a university?
(Society for Participatory Research In Asia (PRIA), 2003) Tandon, Rajesh
This excerpt is based on a keynote address delivered by Rajesh Tandon in February 2003, reflecting on whether and how participatory research can be taught. It questions the limits of conventional research, opens up debates on methodology and power, and invites readers to think of knowledge as something shaped through dialogue rather than instruction.
The ILO in participatory research
(1980-03-31) Rahman, Md. Anisur
Transformative learning through environmental action: An overview of an IDRC sponsored project
(1995) Hall, Budd L
Dr. Budd L. Hall presents an overview of a research project on transformative learning in environmental action, carried out with colleagues at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, York University, and partner organizations in Brazil. The project grew out of work around the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro and the Treaty on Environmental Education for Sustainable Societies and focused on what people learn through environmental campaigns linked to food production, distribution, and consumption. Drawing on case studies from India, Sudan, Germany, Canada, Brazil, Venezuela, and El Salvador, along with an international survey and a collective workshop, Hall and his co-researchers look at what needs to change in current systems, including life conditions, power relations, and ways of thinking, and set out ten principles of transformative learning, among them recovering a sense of place, reconnecting with nature, and recognizing historical struggles. The paper also describes practical methods used across the case studies, such as community meetings, learning from elders, and seed festivals, along with possible indicators of success. Hall notes that although computer networking was planned as a central tool, it ultimately played only a minor role in the project.