ABSTRACT
Most textbooks on research methods in the social sciences focus on steps to gather and analyze data using observation (participant or not), questionnaires, focus groups, interviews and storytelling. The assumption is that research methods are essentially instrumental, i.e. neutral with respect to topical questions and ongoing debates in theory. Being rigorous and objective is what matters above all. The approach presented in Chapter 6 points to a broader set of skills needed to create, select and combine novel tools that ground research in the middle of ongoing action and meaningful dialogue between the parties involved. The authors describe core skills that practitioners must learn to practise the art of PAR, together with many tips and reminders to help implement each skill. Given the emphasis placed on collaborative engagement, the chapter moves on to compare the PAR ethos of ‘sharing without boundaries’ against two competing ethics: mainstream notions of informed consent and confidentiality, and the psychodynamic rule of free expression coupled with restrictions placed on action and interpersonal relationships. To ground this discussion on sharing, the authors outline a PAR methodology to assess the meaning and limits of transparency in the field of international aid.
