Confronting espoused theories with theories-in-use: Challenges of participatory action research with marginalized communities in contributing to social change and theory building

How to counteract hundreds of years of ethnic stigmatization and exclusion that lead to marginalization and segregation for many? How can participatory action research (PAR) contribute to working against social exclusion? In this paper, we reflect on a PAR process conducted in partnership with segregated Roma communities in Hungary where local middle-class researcher-activists and stigmatized, […]

Inmates vs. The Guards

Patients Jointly Developing their Own Agenda

Working on an equal footing with patients or people with disabilities. Who would oppose to that? Many doctors and healthcare professionals feel this is a good way to increase the relevance of their work. Some feel it is a moral obligation. But what does it mean to work collaboratively and share power? Can we overcome […]

Participation in co-design: In search of a recipe for improved cookstoves in urban Indian slums

In 2015 we set to explore methods of breaking down the conventional dichotomies of ‘givers’ and ‘receivers’, ‘developers’ and ‘underdeveloped’, ‘experts’ and ‘users who need to be taught‘. The context of exploration? Urban Indian slums. The central actors? Residents of slums, designers and engineers, and us, the researchers. Main topic? Reducing indoor air pollution, designing […]

Teacher Participatory Action Research (TPAR): Politicizing Teacher Research

These are difficult times for teachers, particularly those in urban and/or low-income schools. Unfortunately, we seldom hear directly from them in conventional education research. To help them tell their stories, I partnered with a group of veteran, insightful, and knowledgeable teachers for two years of action research. These dedicated teachers (with a combined 110 years […]