ABSTRACT
Practice-based research is a principled approach to research by means of practice, in which the research and the practice operate as interdependent and complementary processes leading to new and original forms of knowledge. This chapter outlines the defining features of practice-based research as: the centrality of practice, the role of artefacts in research and the forms of knowledge that arise from it. We then consider some of the origins of practice-based research and how it has emerged in some practice-oriented disciplines and in inter-disciplinary research initiatives that have fostered the growth of community. Communities of practice-based research are dedicated to enabling and advancing community building and innovation, research training and cultural change. Throughout, we highlight areas of significance that are explored in contributor chapters that follow in the first section of the handbook.
