Community research for participation: from theory to method

This book bridges a major gap in knowledge by considering, through a range of reflexive chapters from different disciplinary backgrounds, both theoretical and practical issues relating to community research methodologies. The international contributors consider a number of key epistemological, ontological and methodological questions. They explore what community peer research means in a range of settings, for a range of people, for the quality of data and subsequent findings, and for the production of rigorous social research. The collection will also stimulate thinking about how methodological advancement can be made in the field. It is the first book of its kind to combine practical and methodological reflections with clearly presented recommendations about how the approach can be used. Presenting the latest thinking in the field and providing summaries, case studies and review questions, 'Community research for participation' will be invaluable to students, researchers, academics and practitioners who aim to place community members at the centre of their research."--Publisher's website

Community research: opportunities and challenges. A critical communicative perspective on community research: reflections on experiences of working with Roma in Spain. Authenticity and validity in community research: looking at age discrimination and urban social interactions in the UK. Community research with Gypsies and Travellers in the UK: highlighting and negotiating compromises to reliability and validity. Involving community researchers in refugee research in the UK. Universities as agents in the empowerment of local communities in Germany, Finland and Russia. Data analysis and community research: capturing reality on housing estates in Bradford, UK? Participation in community research: experiences of community researchers undertaking HIV research in South Africa. Power and participation in community research: community profiling in Italy. The pedagogy of community research: moving out of the ivory tower and into community organisations in Canada. Engaging community researchers in evaluation: looking at the experiences of community partners in school-based projects in the US. Are we recovery oriented? An Australian encounter of learning from people with lived experiences. Ethics in community research: reflections from ethnographic research with First Nations people in the US. Avoiding "best" being the enemy of "good": using peer interviewer methods for community research in place-based settings in Australia. Mental health service users and carers as researchers: reflections on a qualitative study of citizens' experiences of compulsory mental health laws in Northern Ireland. Community organisation and community research: women's struggle for food security in India. Community researchers in an adolescent risk reduction intervention in Botswana: challenges and opportunities. Recruitment and capacity-building challenges in participatory research involving young people in Northern Ireland. Translating lives: cross-language community research with Polish migrants in the UK. Mentoring refugee community researchers in the UK: an empowerment tool?

Theoretical and methodological issues -- Ethics, power and emotion -- Managing the research process.