Community-based participatory research
Encyclopedia
Community-based participatory research (CBPR) is research
that is conducted as an equal partnership between traditionally trained "experts" and members of a community
. In CBPR projects, the community
participates fully in all aspects of the research process.
CBPR projects start with the community
. Community
is often self-defined, but general categories of community include geographic community, community of individuals with a common problem or issue, or a community of individuals with a common interest or goal.
CBPR encourages collaboration of “formally trained research” partners from any area of expertise, provided that the researcher provide expertise that is seen as useful to the investigation by the community, and be fully committed to a partnership of equals and producing outcomes usable to the community.
Equitable partnerships require sharing power, resources
, credit, results, and knowledge
, as well as a reciprocal appreciation of each partner's knowledge and skills at each stage of the project, including problem definition/issue selection, research design, conducting research, interpreting the results, and determining how the results should be used for action.
CBPR differs from traditional research
in many ways. One of the principal ways in which it is different is that instead of creating knowledge for the advancement of a field or for knowledge's sake, CBPR is an iterative process, incorporating research, reflection, and action in a cyclical process.
by Kurt Lewin
and Orlando Fals Borda
, and the popular education
movement in Latin America associated with Paulo Freire
.
Editorial Board
Access PCHP at Project MUSE
Research
Research can be defined as the scientific search for knowledge, or as any systematic investigation, to establish novel facts, solve new or existing problems, prove new ideas, or develop new theories, usually using a scientific method...
that is conducted as an equal partnership between traditionally trained "experts" and members of a community
Community
The term community has two distinct meanings:*a group of interacting people, possibly living in close proximity, and often refers to a group that shares some common values, and is attributed with social cohesion within a shared geographical location, generally in social units larger than a household...
. In CBPR projects, the community
Community
The term community has two distinct meanings:*a group of interacting people, possibly living in close proximity, and often refers to a group that shares some common values, and is attributed with social cohesion within a shared geographical location, generally in social units larger than a household...
participates fully in all aspects of the research process.
CBPR projects start with the community
Community
The term community has two distinct meanings:*a group of interacting people, possibly living in close proximity, and often refers to a group that shares some common values, and is attributed with social cohesion within a shared geographical location, generally in social units larger than a household...
. Community
Community
The term community has two distinct meanings:*a group of interacting people, possibly living in close proximity, and often refers to a group that shares some common values, and is attributed with social cohesion within a shared geographical location, generally in social units larger than a household...
is often self-defined, but general categories of community include geographic community, community of individuals with a common problem or issue, or a community of individuals with a common interest or goal.
CBPR encourages collaboration of “formally trained research” partners from any area of expertise, provided that the researcher provide expertise that is seen as useful to the investigation by the community, and be fully committed to a partnership of equals and producing outcomes usable to the community.
Equitable partnerships require sharing power, resources
Natural resource
Natural resources occur naturally within environments that exist relatively undisturbed by mankind, in a natural form. A natural resource is often characterized by amounts of biodiversity and geodiversity existent in various ecosystems....
, credit, results, and knowledge
Knowledge
Knowledge is a familiarity with someone or something unknown, which can include information, facts, descriptions, or skills acquired through experience or education. It can refer to the theoretical or practical understanding of a subject...
, as well as a reciprocal appreciation of each partner's knowledge and skills at each stage of the project, including problem definition/issue selection, research design, conducting research, interpreting the results, and determining how the results should be used for action.
CBPR differs from traditional research
Research
Research can be defined as the scientific search for knowledge, or as any systematic investigation, to establish novel facts, solve new or existing problems, prove new ideas, or develop new theories, usually using a scientific method...
in many ways. One of the principal ways in which it is different is that instead of creating knowledge for the advancement of a field or for knowledge's sake, CBPR is an iterative process, incorporating research, reflection, and action in a cyclical process.
History
The historical roots of CBPR generally trace back to the development of participatory action researchParticipatory action research
Participatory action research – or action research – is a recognized form of experimental research that focuses on the effects of the researcher's direct actions of practice within a participatory community with the goal of improving the performance quality of the community or an area of...
by Kurt Lewin
Kurt Lewin
Kurt Zadek Lewin was a German-American psychologist, known as one of the modern pioneers of social, organizational, and applied psychology....
and Orlando Fals Borda
Orlando Fals Borda
Orlando Fals Borda was a Colombian researcher and sociologist, one of the most important Latin American thinkers, and one of the founders of participatory action research. Together with Father Camilo Torres Restrepo, in 1959 he set up the first sociology faculty in Latin America at the National...
, and the popular education
Popular education
Popular education is a concept grounded in notions of class, political struggle, and social transformation. The term is a translation from the Spanish educación popular or the Portuguese educação popular and rather than the English usage as when describing a 'popular television program,' popular...
movement in Latin America associated with Paulo Freire
Paulo Freire
Paulo Reglus Neves Freire was a Brazilian educator and influential theorist of critical pedagogy.-Biography:...
.
See also
Centre for Community Based Research (www.communitybasedresearch.ca)- Participatory Action ResearchParticipatory action researchParticipatory action research – or action research – is a recognized form of experimental research that focuses on the effects of the researcher's direct actions of practice within a participatory community with the goal of improving the performance quality of the community or an area of...
(PAR) - Asset Based Community Development (ABCD)
- Community organizingCommunity organizingCommunity organizing is a process where people who live in proximity to each other come together into an organization that acts in their shared self-interest. A core goal of community organizing is to generate durable power for an organization representing the community, allowing it to influence...
- Participatory rural appraisalParticipatory rural appraisalParticipatory rural appraisal is an approach used by non-governmental organizations and other agencies involved in international development...
(PRA) - Progress in Community Health Partnerships: Research, Education, and Action (PCHP)Progress in Community Health PartnershipsProgress in Community Health Partnerships: Research, Education, and Action is a peer-reviewed medical journal published quarterly by the Johns Hopkins University Press. In each issue, one article is selected for a “Beyond the Manuscript” podcast....
- Environmental JusticeEnvironmental justiceEnvironmental justice is "the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color, sex, national origin, or income with respect to the development, implementation and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and policies." In the words of Bunyan Bryant,...
- PCHP Website
- Author Guidelines
- A Vision for Progress in Community Health Partnerships
- Inagural Issue Sample Reader
- Guidelines for Writing Manuscripts About Community-based Participatory Research in Peer- Reviewed Journals
- Beyond the Manuscript Podcasts
- Community Policy Briefs
Editorial Board
Access PCHP at Project MUSE
Project MUSE
Project MUSE is an online database of current and back issues of peer-reviewed humanities and social sciences journals. It was founded in 1993 by Todd Kelley and Susan Lewis and is a project of the Johns Hopkins University Press and the Milton S. Eisenhower Library. It had support from the Mellon...
External links
- Cofundos aims at establishing a prediction market for funding of participatory research.
- Community-Campus Partnerships for Health
- Progress in Community Health Partnerships: Research, Education, and Action- The mission of the Journal is to facilitate dissemination of programs that use community partnerships to improve public health, to promote progress in the methods of research and education involving community health partnerships, and to stimulate action that will improve the health of people in communities. Communities, as defined by the Journal, may be based on geography, shared interests, or social networks. The Journal is dedicated to supporting the work of community health partnerships that involve ongoing collaboration between community representatives and academic or governmental partners. This area of research and evaluation may be referred to as community-based participatory research (CBPR). The W. K. Kellogg FoundationW. K. Kellogg FoundationThe W.K. Kellogg Foundation was founded in June 1930 as the W.K. Kellogg Child Welfare Foundation by breakfast cereal pioneer Will Keith Kellogg. In 1934, Kellogg donated more than $66 million in Kellogg Company stock and other investments to the W.K. Kellogg Trust...
defines CBPR as a collaborative approach to research that equitably involves all partners in the research process and recognizes the unique strengths that each brings. CBPR begins with a research topic of importance to the community and has the aim of combining knowledge with action and achieving social change to improve health outcomes and eliminate health disparities. - Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved The Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved (JHCPU) is an academic journal founded in 1990 by David Satcher, MD, PhD then President of Meharry Medical College (later, U.S. Surgeon General). JHCPU is published by Johns Hopkins University Press for Meharry, and is affiliated with the Association of Clinicians for the Underserved. It is the premier journal covering the health and health care of medically underserved populations in North and Central America and the Caribbean.
- Participatory Research, Community Development and Drug Misuse (1)(2)
- Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR): A Partnership Approach for Public Health is a free training resource available from the Michigan Public Health Training Center and the Detroit Community-Academic Urban Research Center. This training resource is intended as an introduction to CBPR for people who are in the early stages of using or considering using CBPR. It is designed for academic researchers from multiple fields, including public health, education, nursing, medicine, social work, urban planning, and for health and human service practitioners, and members of community-based organizations.