Participatory research: Main concepts and issues

Abstract

Dr. Rajesh Tandon examines participatory research as an alternative to the classical social science tradition, which he argues has created an ethically problematic separation between the researcher and the researched. Tracing the historical roots of this crisis through Western epistemology and its uncritical transplantation into Indian academic institutions, the paper contends that conventional research has rendered knowledge generation largely irrelevant to marginalized communities. In contrast, participatory research repositions actors in a social setting as joint owners of the knowledge process, sharing control over problem identification, methodology, and outcomes alongside the professional researcher. The paper distinguishes this approach from academic, policy-commissioned, and action research while acknowledging its ideological commitment to the weakest sections of society. It also underlines the organizational and methodological challenges this entails in the Indian and third-world contexts.