What is Participatory Research?

Participatory Research is a catch-all term encompassing a variety of research practices. Learn more about the various approaches it encompasses, and how we use the term.

Participatory Research encompasses all practices in which non-professional researchers are actively involved at any stage of the research process.

This encompasses a wide variety of methodologies and approaches that share this element as a common core. Examples of high quality participatory research may include low-level participation at just one stage of the research process. Alternatively, they may be entirely co-produced, with lived-experts actively involved in everything from the study design through to the production of the outputs.

Non-professional researchers: Dedicated "citizen scientists", people with lived expertise such as those living with health conditions, or the general public.

  • Representatives from a community centre, public library, or third sector organisations.
  • Individuals with lived expertise to share, such as living with a medical condition, or having a certain identity.
  • Interested members of the general public, who participate as volunteers or hobbyists.

Active Involvement: A participant is "actively involved" if they have some degree of control over the study. 

  • Collecting data, such
  • Sitting on an advisory panel
  • Co-designing the research methods
  • Co-authoring the research outputs of a project

Any Stage: A project may include participatory elements, or be participatory throughout.

  • Involvement only at certain parts of the project phases (such as data collection)
  • Continued involvement throughout the project, from start to end 

Participatory Research is a broad umbrella term. It encompasses "extreme" or "high-level" participation, but also project with low level and/or time limited involvement.

An infographic outlining Frankie Vale's participatory research into breast cancer, "empowered journeys".
"Empowered Journeys" brings together women with lived experience of breast cancer surgery, and uses art and curation to explore its representation in the history of art. It explores the ethics of care, visibility, and attitudes to femininity through the lens of arts based workshops and co-curated exhibitions. Participatory research is not just limited to the sciences!

Different Terms for the Same Thing

Under the banner of "participatory research" you will find a whole array of different terms. Some are discipline specific, others describe particular methodologies or philosophies. Our advice is not to fret too much about the label used, especially if you are new to the area. But it is valuable to be able to recognise some of the more common terms that you might come across  - especially when seeking collaborators, funding, or inspiration for new projects. Below we have included some of the more common terms used in the list below. Remember that these terms are fluid and flexible, they often intersect and overlap, and each can be used in a variety of different ways by different fields, cultures, or even by individual projects.

 

Citizen Science is a very common term, particularly within certain fields and geographical regions. In most of the EU, the term "citizen science" is understood as synonymous to "participatory research". Here in the UK it may often be understood in this way, but is also understood as referring to a narrower range of practices. These typically include work within the natural sciences (ecology, environment, and human geography feature prominently) along with crowdsourced scientific research. In recent years there has been a move away from the term even in these areas, and you may hear "Community Science" and "Participatory Science" used in its place.  

Examples:

The Audubon Christmas Bird Count 

Mapping for Change

Community Science at the Natural History Museum

A line drawing of an older man and a younger man in a lab using equipment.

 


In crowdsourcing and participant observation, large numbers of participants are brought together to directly facilitate research practices. Usually their involvement is minimal, for example:

  • Transcribing a sentence of a manuscript
  • Identifying celestial phenomena in photographs online
  • Solving biological puzzles on a phone app

But they may also be more involved, with participants:

  • Conducting oral history interviews
  • Experimenting in online virtual labs

Participant observation can be understood as a subcategory of crowdsourcing, in which the primary role of participants is data collection. 

Three people using their phones to collect data for a research project.

Often shorted to "PPI" or "PPIE", 

"Public involvement in research means research that is done ‘with’ or ‘by’ the public, not 'to', 'for' or 'about' them. It means that patients or other people with relevant experience contribute to how research is designed, conducted and disseminated."

Health Research Authority, "Public Involvement"

In contrast to more general forms of participatory research, PPIE is only found within Health Research fields. Due to the nature of the research, this type of research often has a different set of procedures and infrastructures to participatory research found in other fields, and may be subject to different, and more stringent ethical requirements.    

Our College of Medicine and Vetenary Medicine has a dedicated team supporting PPIE work. If you are looking for support or wish to learn more, visit them at:

College of Medicine and Vetenary Medicine PPI Pages

Further information can also be found on the Health Research Authority pages:

Health Research Authority, "Public Involvement"

A pair of hands make edits to a sheet of paper marked "Questionnaire" with other blank papers floating behind.

Co-production, co-creation, co-authorship co-design, co-curation, and co-commissioning; the 'co-' label is frequently employed to indicate the incorporation of participatory methods into the research process. Co-design, for example, may indicate that participants are included in the design stages of the project while co-authorship, co-creation, or co-curation might indicate a collaboratively produced research output. 

The terms are most often found in the arts, humanities, and social sciences. But they are also commonplace outside research, particularly in policymaking. There is an assumption that "co-production" is inherently high-participatory, but in reality, the term is often used (and mis-used) to describe a variety of participatory and non-participatory activities.

Three people take part in a variety of creative activities. In the foreground, a person stands in front of an easel, painting.

Collaborative Research can be understood as a direct parallel to participatory research, though it may also be undersood more narrowly, referring only to high-participatory methods. As with many other terms used in this area Collaborative research can be understood as research “with” rather than research “on.” 

The term is most often found in the social sciences and policymaking, but can also be seen in other areas, such as health science.

A group of people sit in a circle discussing research directions.

Additional Resources

Further Reading on Participatory Research

Participatory Research Methods – Choice Points in the Research Process

Author(s): Lisa M. Vaughn, PhD, Farrah Jacquez, PhD

DOI: 10.35844/001c.13244

An excellent introduction from a social sciences perspective. The paper surveys a variety of the terms that may be used and common definitions attributed to them, along with clarifying the various "levels" of participation available at every stage of the research cycle.

View the Open Access paper

 

The Science of Citizen Science

Editor(s): Katrin Vohland, Anne Land-Zandstra, Luigi Ceccaroni, Rob Lemmens, Josep Perelló, Marisa Ponti, Roeland Samson, Katherin Wagenknecht

An edited volume with contributions that introduce a variety of different "citizen science" themes. This includes introductions to the core processes and discussions of the challenges facing research today.

Download an Open Access version of the book

Creating Living Knowledge 

Author(s): Keri Facer & Bryony Enright

An introduction to the "Connecting Communities Programme", with a discussion of various terms including collaborative research and co-production, and many of the complexities surrounding their use.

Download an Open Access version of the report

Participatory Research Resource Library

The Participatory Research Resource Library contains materials recommended by the University of Edinburgh's Participatory Research Network. Materials range from introductory guides through to guidance about how to navigate internal institutional policies and procedures. 

We are keen to expand the resources available. If you have links to content you feel could be valuable, please do not hesitate to submit via the resource library's form.

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