Professor Gearoid Millar's latest co-authored article has been published in the journal, Qualitative Research.
The study, entitled, 'Participatory action research in neoliberal academia: An uphill struggle', is co-authored with Matías Volonterio (University of Cambridge), Dr Lídia Cabral (Institute for Development Studies), Dr Iva Peša (University of Groningen), and Dr Melanie Levick-Parkin (Sheffield-Hallam University).
In the paper, the authors share their experiences of using PAR in their research into existing food systems and ‘just food system transitions’.
Working alongside NGOs in Brazil, Sierra Leone, the UK and Zambia, their accounts reveal the limitations and friction while using PAR, which they link to the structures of contemporary neoliberal academia.
we as academic researchers were pushing against the mechanisms of managerialism already established to incentivize ‘normal’ science which, not by design but by default, function to disincentivize truly non-hierarchical participatory approachesWhile Covid-19 unfolded in the background, the challenges were found to be deeper rooted: short project timelines, pressure from institutions and funders, lack of support, and a surface commitment to the values of PAR, among others, shaped how effectively PAR was practiced.
To address this, the authors conclude that funders must allow more time for project development; universities must be more flexible in their support, and partners and participants must be valued equal to academics, both in terms of their existing knowledge and their capacity to generate new knowledge.
To read the full article, visit Qualitative Research, here.