Effective Participatory Practice

This unique, holistic and radical perspective on participatory practice has been updated to reflect on advances made in the past decade and the impact of austerity. The innovative text bridges the divide between community development ideas and practice and considers how to bring about transformative social change.

These Good Participatory Practice guidelines aim to provide systematic guidance on the roles and responsibilities of entities funding and conducting biomedical HIV prevention trials towards participants and their communities. Such entities include investigators, research staff, pharmaceutical industry sponsors, foundations, government-supported research networks, non-governmental research sponsors, and all others involved in designing, financing, and executing clinical trials research.

In 1989, New Zealand formalized the social work trend toward involving the family in child protection decision-making processes. Central to this legislation is the Family Group Conference, based on indigenous Maori decision-making practices. Connolly (social work, U. of Canterbury, New Zealand) and McKenzie (community and family studies, U. of Otago, New Zealand) discuss the social construction of family decision-making, the country's experience with this empowering model, international adaptations, and the necessity of a sound theoretical basis--which they provide in their Effective Participatory Practice model exemplified in two case studies. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

Participatory Design is a field of research and design that actively engages stakeholders in the processes of design in order to better conceptualize and create tools, environments, and systems that serve those stakeholders. In Participatory Design for Learning: Perspectives from Practice and Research, contributors from across the fields of the learning sciences and design articulate an inclusive practice and begin the process of shaping guidelines for such collaborative involvement. Drawing from a wide range of examples and perspectives, this book explores how participatory design can contribute to the development, implementation, and sustainability of learning innovations. Written for scholars and students, Participatory Design for Learning: Perspectives from Practice and Research develops and draws attention to practices that are relevant to the facilitation of effective educational environments and learning technologies.

The voices in this collection are primarily those of researchers and developers concerned with bringing knowledge of technological possibilities to bear on informed and effective system design. Their efforts are distinguished from many previous writings on system development by their central and abiding reliance on direct and continuous interaction with those who are the ultimate arbiters of system adequacy; namely, those who will use the technology in their everyday lives and work. A key issue throughout is the question of who does what to whom: whose interests are at stake, who initiates action and for what reason, who defines the problem and who decides that there is one. The papers presented follow in the footsteps of a small but growing international community of scholars and practitioners of participatory systems design. Many of the original European perspectives are represented here as well as some new and distinctively American approaches. The collection is characterized by a rich and diverse set of perspectives and experiences that, despite their differences, share a distinctive spirit and direction -- a more humane, creative, and effective relationship between those involved in technology's design and use, and between technology and the human activities that motivate the technology.

Public participation has become highly relevant in the practice of urban and regional planning, as well as within a number of planning-related disciplines. A broad body of research has been developed on how to more effectively involve the public in a participatory planning process, and recent decades have seen the rapid development of a wide range of methods for doing so. This proliferation of various participation methods presents a number of organizational challenges that may hinder the practitioner's ability to select participatory methods effectively. In order to better understand these challenges, this dissertation explores the history of how planning literature has addressed participatory practice, highlighting publication of participation-focused articles as exemplified by two major planning journals from their inception. We then analyze categorization schemes for participatory methods, highlighting five different ways that categorization for methods has been approached: level-, objective-, method-, stage-, and participant-based schemes. Finally, we explore the development of an integrated, comprehensive and hierarchical scheme for organizing participatory practices that can serve as decision-making support for planners and other professionals. By examining the past, present and potential future evolution of participatory planning methods, as well as the articulation between participatory theory and practice, this research aims to lay the initial groundwork for strengthening the relationship between participatory research and practical application, and more broadly, to understand how participatory programs can be planned more effectively to create more effective and representative plans and policies.

This book examines the conceptual foundations of the participatory approach to local development, assesses the evidence of its efficacy, and draws key lessons for policy.

Participatory Action Research (PAR) approaches and methods have seen an explosion of recent interest in the social and environmental sciences. PAR involves collaborative research, education and action which is oriented towards social change, representing a major epistemological challenge to mainstream research traditions. It has recently been the subject of heated critique and debate and rapid theoretical and methodological development. This book captures these developments, exploring the justification, theorisation, practice and implications of PAR. It offers a critical introduction to understanding and working with PAR in different social, spatial and institutional contexts. The authors engage with PAR’s radical potential, while maintaining a critical awareness of its challenges and dangers. The book is divided into three parts. The first part explores the intellectual, ethical and pragmatic contexts of PAR; the development and diversity of approaches to PAR; recent poststructuralist perspectives on PAR as a form of power; the ethic of participation; and issues of safety and well-being. Part two is a critical exploration of the politics, places and practices of PAR. Contributors draw on diverse research experiences with differently situated groups and issues including environmentally sustainable practices, family livelihoods, sexual health, gendered experiences of employment, and specific communities such as people with disabilities, migrant groups, and young people. The principles, dilemmas and strategies associated with participatory approaches and methods including diagramming, cartographies, art, theatre, photovoice, video and geographical information systems are also discussed. Part three reflects on how effective PAR is, including the analysis of its products and processes, participatory learning, representation and dissemination, institutional benefits and challenges, and working between research, action, activism and change. The authors find that a spatial perspective and an attention to scale offer helpful means of negotiating the potentials and paradoxes of PAR. This approach responds to critiques of PAR by highlighting how the spatial politics of practising participation can be mobilised to create more effective and just research processes and outcomes. The book adds significant weight to the recent critical reappraisal of PAR, suggesting why, when, where and how we might take forward PAR’s commitment to enabling collaborative social transformation. It will be particularly useful to researchers and students of Human Geography, Development Studies and Sociology.

Seminar paper from the year 2008 in the subject Politics - International Politics - Topic: Development Politics, grade: distinction, University of Manchester (Institute for Development Policy and Management), course: Development Research, language: English, abstract: Development research serves different purposes - from informing policy-making on a macro level, to conducting large scale poverty assessments of countries and regions, and planning, managing, evaluating and impact assessment of development projects and programs. Since the 1970s, participatory research methods have become increasingly important in this field. Whereas initially they were used to inform project practice on the micro-level, they are now also used to inform policy making and enhance governance. "They moved from the margins of development practice to the very heart of development mainstream" (Mikkelsen 2005: 58). Participatory research can be seen as the methodological basis of participatory development. However, there is ongoing debate on whom those methods inform - the instrumental practice of aid/ governmental agencies ('participation as means') or the local communities themselves, providing them with the means to conduct their development ('participation as end'). This ambiguity is the main reason why a coherent definition of participatory development and research does not exist. The notion 'participatory' is blurred and definitions differ widely. Common to most definitions is the view that an active involvement of stakeholders will enhance development research and projects. An important advantage of participatory research is seen in the deeper insight into local life and needs. Chapter 2 of this paper will outline the different aspects of the concept and will discuss good and bad practices in participatory research, paying particular attention to the conflict between participation as means and as end. The wider scope of current participatory research led to the need for valid and r