The issue of methodology in participatory research

Abstract

The question of methodology in participatory research is a subject of on-going analysis and discussion. No consensus has yet been reached on what constitutes the methodology in participatory research. What this paper proposes to do is to highlight the major "methodological" analyses that participatory research has been subjected to in the past few years and, secondly, to critically examine the validity, constraints and shortcomings of the various methodological positions. In so doing, this paper intends to provide a basis for a further analysis and clarification of the issue of methodology in participatory research. Before plunging into examining the issue of methodology in participatory research, it is necessary to briefly outline what has been conceived as participatory research, its origins and its intentions.