Criticisms of PAR

Many of the writers using PAR explain how their research challenges and reveals the limitations of science that is based on a positivistic premise. James Frideres*, provides a highly critical response. He argues that participatory research is not research at all and states that it can not only mislead participants but is also non-beneficial to their communities.

PAR: A theory of possibility in Belfast and Connecticut

Probably one of the best books I have read so far on PAR is this latest book by Alice McIntyre*. In the hour it takes to read it is possible to gain theoretical and practical insights into PAR as McIntyre draws on her experience of two PAR projects – one with women in the Monument Road community of Belfast and the other with students in an inner-city school in the US.

PAR in Organizations: A Small Business study

I am fascinated in exploring how PAR might be applied within organizations and outside its traditional domains of development, education and health. What does PAR look like within, for example, a business? One example is seen in the work of Chris Street and Darren Meister* who used PAR in helping a small business manage change.