Riding the waves of centring lived experience and co-production in CJS knowledge production

• In Event: The start of a sea change: advancing qualitative methodologies with lived experience expertise

Abstract

Increased opportunities to centre lived experience of justice-involved individuals into CJS knowledge production is a hugely positive step towards redressing the systematic power imbalances and historical exclusions of such expertise. This paper considers two such opportunities in the British context, i) a co-produced ‘knowledge equity toolkit’ and, ii) a co-authored book chapter based upon the co-produced knowledge equity toolkit process as part of an edited volume focusing on lived experience in social sciences. Despite the co-researchers advancing the two linked projects in ways as approved in the respective application for funding and as agreed with the publisher, once under way, both projects received resistance and rejections from the same mechanisms that had previously approved the enacted co-production approaches. This raises important questions, invites interrogation and is suggestive of wider learning for the those committed to working to centring lived experience in academic knowledge production. Whilst there is a growing literature reasoning the positives of embedding lived experience into knowledge production relating to justice-involvement and the criminal legal system, this tends to document the process as a small part of the final write up, and very little is spoken about in terms of challenges. Furthermore, even less spoken about are the challenges encountered with the established power structures in endeavours to advance knowledge equity. This paper invites critical engagement in response, to deepen understanding and learning from the arguably inherent challenges working in these spaces.

Author

• Donna Arrondelle, University of Southampton