This paper will explore the dichotomy of direction and stimulus through a reflection on arts-based methods used in a research study into post-industrial communities in South Wales and consider whether in participatory processes, a catalyst for artistic creativity could become construed as researcher-led control over the activities. Through an…

There has been encouragement from funders, universities and academics to co-produce research. Co-production of research can be considered a methodology in its own right, or an underpinning set of principles for other methods. Co-production aims to reshape relations between the researched and the researcher. Yet, co-producing research rarely starts…

This paper/visual art/puppet show is about the more-than-human entities who help me include my whole self in my teaching and other research. It is about how generative it is to be our whole, sacred, profane, glorious selves. This art reminds us of the importance of dreaming beyond what we have been told is possible. It demonstrates how irreverent,…

Practitioners and scholars have argued that youth participatory action research (YPAR) challenges systemic injustice in education, as youth and adults research mechanisms of oppression and propose recommendations. However, oftentimes YPAR does not lead to new policies, as institutional decision-makers ignore youth's moral pleas and empirical…

The article examines the question of asymmetries in participatory research relationships in institutional contexts. The principle of ethical symmetry forms the theoretical framework for the investigation. It draws on experience from three (participatory) research projects in different settings, involving academics and people living in the settings…

There is a lack of instructional literature on how to conduct a feminist evaluation to highlight and transform systemic issues in gendered and intersecting power relations. Feminist Participatory Action Research (FPAR) enables a process for conducting community-driven, -led and -owned feminist evaluations that drive social justice actions. By…

This paper investigates the potential of Ubuntu philosophy for decolonising Participatory Research (PR) in the Global South, addressing power imbalances and research process challenges. Despite PR's focus on community involvement, it can perpetuate practices contradicting its principles, hence the rise of 'decolonising research' for fair,…

This paper, delivered as a provocative keynote address to the Collaborative Action Research Network (CARN) conference in Manchester on 28th October 2023, explores the question if action research might have a sweet spot. A sweet spot is defined as an ideal location, area or combination of factors for a particular activity or purpose. It draws on…

Purpose: This article examines the power relationships between researcher and participants, children and adults, drawing on the theories of transgressions and resistance in power, during a research project concerning children's experiences of the visual arts. Design/methodology/approach: Data were gathered conducted in two Scottish primary schools…

Participatory Action Research (PAR) is often applauded for creating a more egalitarian relationship between researchers and research participants. Nonetheless, PAR studies, particularly those involving young people, have been critiqued for their claims about its benefits, particularly the assertion that PAR is 'more' empowering and/or morally and…

The purpose of this study is to re-examine and reimagine the role of power in participatory visual methodologies (PVM) research. From our four unique standpoints as higher education faculty (two of us identify as queer white women and two of us identify as Black women; all of us as ciswomen), we engage a collective autoethnographic approach to…

This paper reflects on the dynamic of co-developing knowledge within a Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) project in the UK that set out to direct teenage and young adult Ambulatory Care. This is a service that offers cancer treatment that would have once required inpatient hospital stays. Working within a Community-of-Inquiry (CoI),…

Youth participatory action research (YPAR) provides a model for youth leadership in research aimed at tangible improvements to their lives. We employed YPAR with queer and trans young adults in a qualitative study about trans high school youth. In this paper, we highlight the importance of relationships, dialog and reflexivity to ensuring ongoing…

Critical Participatory Action Research is a form of research where community members and researchers collaborate to plan and carry out a research project on an issue they identify together (Cammarota & Fine, 2008; Mirra, Garcia & Morrell, 2016). While most CPAR projects engage adolescents, an emerging body of research focuses on CPAR with…

Research that uses innovative approaches to elicit the views of young children has grown hugely over the last 20 years. Against a backdrop of a greater acceptance of children's rights and sociological approaches to understanding children and childhood, with their combined emphasis on the competences and capacities of children, it is now accepted…