ABSTRACT
Increased interest in participatory approaches reflects an ever-growing trend to democratise science and ambition to bring research as close to lived lives as possible. There is certainly a growing recognition that approaches that are based on principles of participation (such as inclusive research, user-led research, community research, participatory action research, collaborative research, or citizen science) with non-academics (citizens) positively impact on research quality, and its relevance, outcomes, and integrity. Yet participatory approaches with older adults face specific challenges that might lead to participation inequality: situation when certain group(s) of older adults remain excluded from co-creation and representation of knowledge on a wider level. In this chapter, I present those challenges and highlight the role of reflexivity in unpacking the issue of participation inequality. Drawing from lessons learned in the project SEVEN: socially Excluded Older Adults: Voices and Experiences I develop a dynamic reflexivity model to help harness the full potential for inclusivity that participatory research practice with older adults offers.
