The Challenges and Successes of Partnering With a Community Organization in a Participatory Action Research Project

• In Event: 70.065 - Roundtable Session 27
  In Roundtable Session: 70.065-8 - Action Research in and With the Community

Abstract

As an action researcher, community engagement is a key focus of my research, emanating from a desire to assist people to act to create a more just world for themselves. However, how do we engage with communities who might not want our “help”? How do we forge and sustain partnerships with people who have negative experiences of researchers gather data but do little to help people to improve their quality of life? One way of beginning to form working relationships with prospective community participants is to partner with an organisation that is already established in the community. In this paper, I share my experiences of the challenges and successes of forming and sustaining such a partnership.

Author

• Lesley Wood, North-West University