feminist participatory action research to co-produce a research agenda with British Pakistani women
Halima Iqbal and colleagues recently published a paper with ARJ entitled “Reflections from an insider researcher ‘doing’ feminist participatory action research to co-produce a research agenda with British Pakistani women; a seldom heard group.” She introduces her paper:
“Pakistani women’s views are often not included in efforts to set priorities in health research. This is a lost opportunity given that they suffer ethnic health inequalities and have exceptionally high levels of obesity. My article draws on the lessons learnt from undertaking a feminist participatory action research project that aimed to establish the unmet obesity related needs of British Pakistani women living in deprived areas and develop them into a research agenda. In this article, I discuss the steps taken to ensure that women’s voices were prioritised throughout the process at all times while still adhering to research priority setting methodologies. Great emphasis was placed on ensuring that power dynamics were addressed so that women could participate as co-researchers throughout the project, by collecting and analysing data. I highlight some of the barriers I encountered along the way and the strategies I used to overcome them. Co-researchers reported how taking part in the project led to their increased confidence, healthy changes to their lifestyles, development of new friendships, and involvement in further obesity research as co-investigators.
This article demonstrates that it is possible to undertake research priority setting with marginalised groups if you enter the process with an open mind and reflective attitude. Upon recommending final acceptance, our lead reviewer stated: This manuscript explores the processes and learning from a study that fore fronted the co-production of a research agenda with those that are traditionally seldom heard. The topic is pertinent, and grounded firmly in action research principles and approaches, and the author is seeking to share their learning in order to contribute to wider understanding and meaning around such research processes.
DOI forever link:
Iqbal, H., West, J., McEachan, R. R. C., & Haith-Cooper, M. (2023). Reflections from an insider researcher ‘doing’ feminist participatory action research to co-produce a research agenda with British Pakistani women; a seldom heard group. Action Research: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/14767503231191854
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