The participation of children in research: Nuances based on ethnography and participatory research

Abstract

In the last two decades the achievements on the possibility of considering children as active subjects of research have been very significant and, thus, there have been many publications announcing children's participation as the major contribution in its development. However, the concept of participation has been invoked to account for research practices in which, many times, even a basic level in taking children's voices into account is not assured. In this text we propose to argue for the critical mobilization of this concept based on two research methods: ethnography and participatory research. We will discuss similarities and differences between these methods, arguing and questioning the forms and meanings that the participation of children takes in each one, taking into account the epistemological and political aspects that are inherent to them and the implications that they have in how the concept of participation is mobilized in the research processes.