Active and Accountable Social Inquiry: Implications and Examples
Abstract
This
article is based on my inaugural lecture that I delivered at the University of
South Africa on 6 November 2013. The topic of the inaugural lecture was “active
and accountable social inquiry” In the inaugural address I focused on what it
might mean to practice what I call active as well as accountable social
research. I explained the various research contexts in which I, with
colleagues, have used the term “active” to characterize research where
responsibility is taken for the possible impacts that research endeavours have
in the social world of which research is a part. I also indicated that active
research implies that one engages research participants in processes of
research/inquiry. This engagement implies that the research is not led solely
by the initiating researchers, but is a product of a variety of inputs and
decisions about the meaning of the research and its potential action
implications. The approach to active research that is detailed in this article
is pertinent to this journal on Participatory Educational Research, which is
aimed at publicizing various efforts on the parts of researchers to develop a
more participatory style of inquiry. Active research is one way of developing
such a style.
Keywords
active research,accountable research,research participants,co-inquiring,co-learning
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