Participatory Action Research, Community-Based

Abstract

In researching complex problems such as armed conflict, social injustice, and seemingly intractable health problems, multiple perspectives, including the voices of those who are directly affected, are often marginalized or ignored. Instead, outsiders usually create research questions, develop methodologies, and conduct studies with little or no involvement from the people who are affected. Or the affected population may participate as informants for researcher-constructed surveys and interviews to gather data that the researcher then interprets without “insider” input. Consequently valuable cultural knowledge and insights are lost when analyzing data, discussing results, and formulating recommendations.