Drawing upon ongoing research exploring lived experiences of sensory overload, meltdown, and shutdown in autism as a framework, this article reflects on the challenges and benefits of employing participatory methods in doctoral research. In particular, the process of establishing and working with a Research Advisory Group to co-create a…

Action research methodologies are dynamic, as they often evolve with a group and are shaped by multiple contributions that can change over time. As researchers are embedded within this process, reflexivity is paramount to remain attuned to how they move with and shape the research. In search of a dynamic way of engaging with reflexivity in action…

When reflecting on my years as a doctoral student, I recall several questions that often came to mind throughout my journey: what is participatory health research? Is such an approach to research truly feasible in the pursuit of a doctoral degree? Is it worth it, or have I inadvertently made things more challenging for myself? My response to these…

A key aspect of engaging in a large participatory action research (PAR) project is ensuring that novice participant-researchers have a general understanding of the PAR methodology. Lead researchers experienced in action research cannot expect novice participant-researchers to engage fully with the literature on PAR, but rather need a simple way to…

This paper reflects on the dynamic of co-developing knowledge within a Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) project in the UK that set out to direct teenage and young adult Ambulatory Care. This is a service that offers cancer treatment that would have once required inpatient hospital stays. Working within a Community-of-Inquiry (CoI),…

This paper explores the experience of three mentors working with a group of 12 practitioner action researchers; practitioners who were recipients of an Action Research Grant (ARG) in a programme initiated and managed by the Educational Institute of Scotland (EIS). The EIS is a trade union, which represents over 80% of Scotland's teaching…

Participatory research (PR) involves people with lived experiences of the research topic as co-creators of knowledge. I have the dual role of being both a doctoral researcher and the co-ordinator of a research group -- the Converge Evaluation and Research Team (CERT) -- which consists of researchers with lived experience of mental health…

Within social science research the complex nature of relationship-making and 'friendship as method' has gained enthusiasm. However, there is still a significant lack of research on 'friendship as method' with children and young people in participatory studies. Drawing on empirical case studies, we ask: how does 'friendship as method' work in…

This paper describes and reflects upon the first author's journey from teacher to researcher, working with deafblind children and young people, and the research teams' development of person-centred research methods. Historically deafblind people, particularly children and young people, have rarely been included in participation action research, in…

Prior research suggests that critical participatory action research (CPAR) -- a research approach that centers democratic participation, agency, and collective capacity-building -- may be one way to improve teachers' professional development and increase their feelings of agency and well-being. Engaging in CPAR has the potential to foster…

This paper/visual art/puppet show is about the more-than-human entities who help me include my whole self in my teaching and other research. It is about how generative it is to be our whole, sacred, profane, glorious selves. This art reminds us of the importance of dreaming beyond what we have been told is possible. It demonstrates how irreverent,…

Using a survey, interviews, and reflections by the teaching-research team, we explored the effects of almost a decade of experimentation, inspired by Freire's pedagogy for liberation, which applied participatory action research in engineering courses and in cities to develop professionals who are more committed to sustainability and more able to…

Please join us on this learning romp, which includes anarchists, discomfort, flying projectiles, Ministries of Truth, anger, and naked emperors. This paper is an example of, and a reflection on, the praxis of Participatory Action Research as a way of life. It is the result of a reflective conversation between two researchers. We got together in…

Addressing the bridge between theory and practice in the field of inclusive education in Spain involves searching for strategies of knowledge mobilisation, and action research (AR) is one of them. This study explores how its practical development questions the roles that researchers adopt throughout the process. A content analysis of several focus…

In participatory action research (PAR), university-based researchers often take foundational concepts such as transformation, empowerment, critical consciousness, and mutual understanding for granted as desirable or necessary outcomes or achievements. We discuss the danger of this and suggest that researchers recognize these as processes that…