Action and knowledge: breaking the monopoly with participatory action-research. [Excerpts].

TLDR: Participatory action research (PAR) as discussed by the authors is based on the existential concept of experience proposed by the Spanish philosopher Jose Ortega y Gasset, and it is not exclusively research-oriented and it does not pertain solely to adult education or sociopolitical action.

Abstract: Participatory action research (PAR) is based on the existential concept of experience proposed by the Spanish philosopher Jose Ortega y Gasset. PAR is not exclusively research-oriented and it does not pertain solely to adult education or sociopolitical action. It encompasses all these aspects together as three stages or emphases which are not necessarily consecutive. They may be combined into a process of personal and collective behavior occurring within a satisfying and productive cycle of life and labor called experiential methodology. This book discusses some of the basic components of PAR. Chapter 1 provides basic information about PAR and discusses two processes: 1) empowering the oppressed; and 2) sociopolitical thought processes. Chapter 2 discusses the theoretical standpoint of PAR and includes four themes: 1) the generation of knowledge; 2) peoples empowerment and research; 3) PAR as a cultural movement; and 4) leadership and consciousness. Chapter 3 provides a self-review of PAR and reviews two opposite trends: one toward empowerment of grassroots people and the other largely unanticipated by the originators reaching out to the elite and dominant groups with an electrifying effect.