Participatory Research

Any added value? Co-constructing life stories of and with people with intellectual disabilities

by oliver koenig

British Journal of Learning Disabilities, 39: no. doi: 10.1111/j.1468-3156.2011.00695.x

Despite considerable achievement in inclusive research, people with intellectual disabilities have been largely... more Despite considerable achievement in inclusive research, people with intellectual disabilities have been largely excluded from the critical area of data analysis and theory development. Next to the undoubted complexity of these tasks, this can partly be attributed to higher demands of representativeness that are used to judge the validity of disability research as well as missing training opportunities for people with intellectual disabilities. The paper presents data from the first core research project in German-speaking countries that was carried out within an inclusive framework. Within the FWF (Austrian Science Fund) financed project ‘Experiences of participation in the (vocational) biography of people with intellectual disability’ at the Department of Education at the University of Vienna, the research team aimed at involving people with intellectual disability in an accompanying reference group in the process of co-construction of theory through the shared analysis of the collected qualitative data: life stories and narratives of people with intellectual disability. This paper seeks out to show the added value of this approach both methodologically and practically.

Participatory Geographies Training Day - Poster

by svenja meyerricks

Promotional Material for the Participatory Geographies Training Day on 2nd July 2012 in Edinburgh, Scotland.
more Promotional Material for the Participatory Geographies Training Day on 2nd July 2012 in Edinburgh, Scotland.

Hosted by the Participatory Geographies Research Group

The Youth Activist Forum: Forging a rare, disability-positive space that empowers youth

by Christine Kelly

Co-authored with Erica Carson. Forthcoming in the Journal of Youth Studies.

As with many movements operating in neoliberal regimes, Canadian disability movements struggle to maintain momentum... more As with many movements operating in neoliberal regimes, Canadian disability movements struggle to maintain momentum and engage youth leadership. Drawing on feminist disability studies, this article presents the findings of a participatory research project on the Youth Activist Forum, an event which brought together 38 youth with and without disabilities to meet new and established leaders with disabilities. We argue the process of planning, hosting, and attending the Youth Activist Forum forges a complex rare space that facilitates empowerment for youth. We frame the space as ‘rare’ because: the activities and leaders are overlooked by the scholars documenting Canadian disability movements; it is a new experience for many youth participants, planners and speakers that builds community; it reveals a lack of shared frameworks through uncomfortable moments; and in some ways, it diverges from priorities on the Ontario funding and non-profit landscape. We argue that while rare and difficult to create, this space is necessary as it facilitates empowerment, recognizes existing youth leadership and helps us imagine the future of disability movements. We conclude by discussing the value of our findings for youth studies researchers, particularly those drawing on disability studies literature and seeking to engage youth on disability issues.

Silence' as an analytical category for PD

by dagny stuedahl

Participatory modelling to inform rural development: Case studies from Zimbabwe and Australia

by Jerome Vanclay

International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development 1(2):122-126 (2010)

Participatory modelling is one of several techniques that can help communities to share and test ideas, and to agree... more Participatory modelling is one of several techniques that can help communities to share and test ideas, and to agree on the ‘best bet’ for improving livelihoods of individuals and communities. A case study from Africa illustrates how participatory modelling can help change livelihoods, by informing communities, by providing an objective way to conduct ‘risk-free’ experiments and explore scenarios, and by helping people to gain the confidence needed to make changes. This case study highlights how participatory modelling can inform communal decisions about shared rights to avoid ‘the tragedy of the commons’. The example illustrates how a shared understanding of a resource, coupled with a rigorous framework to consider its dynamics, leads to better decisions and sustainable outcomes. The resulting model is not an endpoint, but a disposable ‘stepping stone’ in developing the confidence needed for communities to take action. Thus for many participatory models, success means being momentarily inspirational in the search for solutions, rather than being a permanent monument to a static concept.

Participatory geographic information systems for the co-production of science and policy in an emerging boundary organization

by Bethany Cutts

B.B. Cutts, D.D. White, A.P. Kinzig (2011) Participatory geographic information systems for the co-production of science and policy in an emerging boundary organization, 977–985. In Environmental Science & Policy 14 (8).

Boundary organizations are designed to stabilize the relationship between science and policy communities. The... more Boundary organizations are designed to stabilize the relationship between science and policy communities. The literature emphasizes that products (i.e., boundary objects) should be salient, legitimate, and credible to both communities. The related field of participatory geographic information systems (PGIS) focuses on creating useful products (i.e., maps and geographic information systems) in an explicitly political environment. PGIS focuses more directly on the ways in which people may engage with information and power dynamics between actors. We argue that the epistemological parallels between PGIS and boundary organization research create an opportunity to fuse approaches to the advantage of both fields. Combining approaches facilitates communication and provides opportunities to negotiate conflict between science and policy. We apply the frames to a public information project conducted in a water resource decision-making boundary organization in Phoenix, Arizona. Through participatory action research, we evaluate the extent to which relation- ships between saliency, legitimacy, and credibility across change through time and interact with one another. We find that the boundary organization framework provides a unique role for science in framing questions and evaluating the feasibility of environmental manage- ment solutions. However, it neither guides the process of generating boundary objects nor adequately conceptualizes heterogeneity within the policy community. PGIS highlights processes internal to the policy community driving low levels of political support for initial maps of public information programs. Credibility improved after participants discussed why they felt maps lacked legitimacy, and credibility. Discussion among policy makers at a meeting convened by scientists improved legitimacy and credibility. Despite policy involve- ment in the process of generating research questions, the saliency of the map remained low. Policy stakeholders viewed the map as a necessary precursor to more usable science in the future rather than a as boundary object per se. The framework developed and applied in this paper is relevant to research centers and projects that intend to link policy and science that have stronger formal ties of accountability to science through funding.

“Even If I Have Land, Can I Eat It?” Perceptions of Poverty in Karamoja

by Karol Czuba

Karamoja - Uganda's poorest region - has become a major target of development and relief interventions, but little... more Karamoja - Uganda's poorest region - has become a major target of development and relief interventions, but little research has thus far focused on its inhabitants’ perceptions of their circumstances. This paper contains the voices and opinions of Karamojans from six communities in four districts of Karamoja. They share their concerns about the conditions in which they live and express their particular understanding of poverty. The paper finds that, following the loss of much of their livestock, Karamojans have devised new ways of coping with deprivation. Their strategies have not, however, been entirely successful and many continue to suffer from hunger. Karamojans are acutely aware of their desperate situation and have definite ideas about the actions which should be undertaken to alleviate poverty.

Building the HIVe: Disrupting Biomedical HIV and AIDS Research with Gay Men, other men who have sex with men (MSM) and Transgenders

by Gurmit Singh

Co-authored with Christoper S. Walsh

O problema da participação política no modelo deliberativo de democracia / The question of the political participation within the deliberativa model of democracy

by Francisco Paulo Jamil Marques

Reference: MARQUES, F. P. J. A. O problema da participação política no modelo deliberativo de democracia. In: Revista de Sociologia e Política (UFPR. Impresso), v.20, n. 41, pp. 21-35. 2012

Title in English: The question of the political participation within the deliberativa model of democracy. Text in... more Title in English: The question of the political participation within the deliberativa model of democracy. Text in Portuguese. Abstract in English: This paper discusses the premises of the deliberative model of democracy as they address the issue of political participation. We attempt to clarify what political participation means for those who use this model, while at the same time looking at some of the major critiques that have been directed toward it. Through a review of an important part of the literature, and without losing sight of earlier systematizations of democratic theory, three fundamental conditions for engendering participation according to this discursive model are pointed to: political institutions should create and offer citizens opportunities to participate in public input; improvement in people's socio-economic condition must be made; attention should be given to particular principles that have consistent regulatory influence on the interactions and arguments in question. This is followed by attention to the criticisms raised and flaws detected by deliberationism's detractors. At the end of the text, a summary of the strengths and weaknesses of the model is presented, along with a discussion of the problem of participation in contemporary democracies.

Keywords: Participation; Deliberation; Democracy; Representation.

Recasting Social Media Users as Brand Ambassadors: Opening the Doors to the First ‘Social Suite’

by Avery Holton

Co-authored with Mark Coddington, University of Texas at Austin. Published in Case Studies in Strategic Communication, 2012.

Professional sports teams have struggled to incorporate social network sites into their existing branding and media... more Professional sports teams have struggled to incorporate social network sites into their existing branding and media strategies, wrestling with issues of access and trust. This case study examines an innovative effort by one organization, Major League Baseball’s Cleveland Indians, to create a physical space for online discussion about their team. In that space, called the “Social Suite,” local social media users were given exclusive access to watch the team’s games from a suite, along with access to team staff and information. Through in‐depth interviews and participant observation this study found suite users saw themselves not as members of the media, but as active participants in the team’s own online marketing efforts. This self‐perception corresponded with team executives’ goal to use the suite as a way to reverse negative online discussion about the team by creating a network of influential “brand ambassadors” who spread positive perceptions about the organization. This novel approach—one that illustrates the changing landscape of media and communication
practice and theory—may serve as a model for other sports teams and businesses as they work to integrate the public into their digital and online efforts.

Doyle, P., Kelly, C., Cummins, G., Sixsmith, J., O’Higgins, S., Molcho, M. & Nic Gabhainn, S. (2010). Health Behaviour in School-aged Children: What do children want to know? Dublin: Department of Health and Children.

by Saoirse Nic Gabhainn

The participatory technique of “Technology Probes”: a case study in Burkina Faso

by Giovanni Innella

co-authored with Franco Papaeschi and Valentina Nisi

This paper describes a project introducing a group of young adults from Ouahigouya, Burkina Faso, to the potential... more This paper describes a project introducing a group of young adults from Ouahigouya, Burkina Faso, to the potential uses of Internet services, discovering how these services would impact and possibly change different aspects of their daily lives. Resisting a top-down or technology driven approach, the team adopted a participatory design approach in order to create a more meaningful training course. Technology Probes were introduced in order to understand to what extent freely available Internet service would fit into the local context and what new services and technologies could be generated in accordance to that.

Hanafin, S., Brooks, A-M., Carroll, E., Fitzgerald, E., Nic Gabhainn, S. & Sixsmith, J. (2007). Achieving consensus in developing a national set of child well-being indicators. Social Indicators Research, 80(1), 79-104.

by Saoirse Nic Gabhainn

Sixsmith, J. & Nic Gabhainn, S. (2009). Applicazione dei processi di ricerca partecipativa con I bambini [Exploring the application of Participatory Research Processes (PRP) with children]. Health and Territory, 172, 15-19.

by Saoirse Nic Gabhainn

Council of Disabled People as an Application of Participatory Democracy [The Case of Bursa, Turkey]

by Serhat Ozgokceler

The aim of this study is to emphasize that the Council of Disabled People that become meaningful
under the... more The aim of this study is to emphasize that the Council of Disabled People that become meaningful
under the perspective of the conception of participatory democracy is a tool of social inclusion and
equality policies for the disabled people. The method of in-depth interview was utilized in the study.
The findings obtained from the interview with active members from the Administrative Board of
Council of Disabled People designate that the disabled people have a say in the fields such as business,
politics, culture, education, health etc., that they help the disabled people to improve their sense of
participation into urban life and their feeling of belongingness to the city, that whatever required is
done to make sure that the rights and benefits of the disabled are protected, that a public opinion is
forged through the means of communication for the solution of the problems of the disabled people, and
that based on the needs and problems of the disabled people, demands are determined and it is ensured
that they play an active role in the production of solutions and projects. The interviews have been
made face to face with the disabled people who are the members of the Council of Disabled People of the
Bursa City Council within the body of the Metropolitan Municipality of Bursa and the names of the
interviewees are to stay anonymous.

Keywords: Participatory democracy, Council of Disabled People, social inclusion, social exclusion,
local governments

Pristine wilderness, participatory archaeology, and the custodianship of heritage in Mursiland

by Marcus Brittain

2012 (co-authored with T. Clack)

In Mol, L. & T. Sternberg (eds.), Changing Deserts: Integrating People and Their Environment, 192-212. Strond: The White Horse Press

This chapter explores the the notion of a pristine wilderness in conservation policy making and the value of... more This chapter explores the the notion of a pristine wilderness in conservation policy making and the value of archaeology for an understanding of cultural heritage in these processes.

Methodological Debate in Poverty Studies: Towards 'Participatory Qual-quant'?

by Bejoy K Thomas

Bejoy K. Thomas (2010) "Methodological Debate in Poverty Studies: Towards 'Participatory Qual-quant'?", Development in Practice 18(2): 280-288.

Design from the Everyday: Continuously evolving, embedded exploratory prototypes

by Margot Brereton

Published and Presented at the Designing Interavtive Systems Conference in Aarhus, Denmark 2010

ACM conference. 22% acceptance rate in the long paper track.

One of the major challenges in the design of social
technologies is the evaluation of their qualities of use... more One of the major challenges in the design of social
technologies is the evaluation of their qualities of use and
how they are appropriated over time. While the field of
HCI abounds in short-term exploratory design and studies
of use, relatively little attention has focused on the
continuous development of prototypes longitudinally and
studies of their emergent use. We ground the exploration
and analysis of use in the everyday world, embracing
contingency and open-ended use, through the use of a
continuously-available exploratory prototype. Through
examining use longitudinally, clearer insight can be gained
of realistic, non-novelty usage and appropriation into
everyday use.

This paper sketches out a framework for design that puts a
premium on immediate use and evolving the design in
response to use and user feedback. While such design
practices with continuously developing systems are common
in the design of social technologies, they are little
documented. We describe our approach and reflect upon its
key characteristics, based on our experiences from two case
studies. We also present five major patterns of long-term
usage which we found useful for design.

New challenges for design participation in the era of ubiquitous computing

by Margot Brereton

Community-based participatory research: a training manual for community-based researchers

by Sadaf Shallwani

Shallwani, S., & Mohammed, S. (2007). Community-based participatory research: a training manual for community-based researchers. Training manual developed for community-based research project in Sindh, Pakistan.

View here: View here: http://individual.utoronto.ca/sadaf/resources/cbpr2007.pdf