A workshop on participatory research was held at the University of Calgary on May 3, 1988, as the first step in a two-step process, of which the second step will be a national conference to be held in July, 1989. The overall purpose of the workshop was to draw researchers (80 participants) together to share in the planning of the major conference and to provide direction to that planning. A summary is provided of the presentations at the workshop's three panel discussions, which addressed the topics "imperatives for participation,""implications for classical research," and "principles of participation and Canadian international development work and development research." Questions resulting from the small-group discussions are also summarized. Recommendations that emerged included a strong consensus that documenting and reporting on case studies of the practice of participatory research should be central in the conference. Other recommendations concerned the conference format and participants. (KM)