Skip to main content Accessibility help

We use cookies to distinguish you from other users and to provide you with a better experience on our websites. Close this message to accept cookies or find out how to manage your cookie settings.

Close cookie message
×
Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-lnqnp Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-27T14:33:44.187Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

3 - Community-Based Research

from Part I - Methods

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 November 2020

By
Randy Stoecker
Edited by
Katharine Legun ,
Julie C. Keller ,
Michael Carolan  and
Michael M. Bell
Katharine Legun
Affiliation:
Wageningen University and Research, The Netherlands
Julie C. Keller
Affiliation:
University of Rhode Island
Michael Carolan
Affiliation:
Colorado State University
Michael M. Bell
Affiliation:
University of Wisconsin, Madison
Get access

Summary

This chapter explores the role of community-based research (CBR) in environmental sociology. CBR has both an academic origin, from Kurt Lewin, and an activist origin, from Rajesh Tandon, and it has developed independently from environmental sociology. This chapter will define CBR, following Strand et al., as a collaborative enterprise between academic researchers and community members that seeks to democratizes knowledge to achieve social justice. It will then go on to look at the challenges facing CBR, such as establishing itself as a legitimate knowledge practice, and managing the tension between process and product. Next, the chapter covers various ways that CBR has been used in environmental sociology, including climate change, food systems, natural resource management, sustainable behavior change, and environmental justice. The chapter concludes by proposing a future direction for CBR in environmental sociology to expand its impact.

Keywords

community-based researchenvironmental justiceclimate changefood systemssustainable behavior change
Type
Chapter
Information
The Cambridge Handbook of Environmental Sociology , pp. 47 - 60
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2020

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Activating Change Together for Community Food Security. (2015). Making Food Matter: Strategies for activating change together. A participatory research report on community food security in Nova Scotia. https://foodarc.ca/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/Making-Food-Matter-Report_March2015rev.pdfGoogle Scholar
Bacon, C., deVuono-Powell, S., Frampton, M. L., LoPresti, T., & Pannu, C. (2013). Introduction to empowered partnerships: Community-based participatory action research for environmental justice. Environmental Justice 6(1), 1–8. https://doi.org/10.1089/env.2012.0019Google Scholar
Balazs, C. L., & Morello-Frosch, R. (2013). The Three Rs: How community-based participatory research strengthens the rigor, relevance, and reach of science. Environmental Justice 6(1), 9–16.Google Scholar
Ballard, H. L., & Belsky, J. M. (2010). Participatory action research and environmental learning: implications for resilient forests and communities. Environmental Education Research 16(5–6), 611–627.Google Scholar
Boal, A. 1985. Theatre of the Oppressed. London: Pluto.Google Scholar
Brown, L. D., & Tandon, R. (1983). Ideology and political economy in inquiry: Action research and participatory research. Journal of Applied Behavioral Science 19, 277–294.Google Scholar
Bruce, H. E. (2003). Hoop dancing: Literature circles and Native American storytelling. The English Journal 93(1), 54–59.Google Scholar
Burawoy, M. (2004). Public sociology: Contradictions, dilemmas and possibilities. Social Forces 82(4), 1603–1618.Google Scholar
Bywater, K. (2014) Investigating the benefits of participatory action research for environmental education. Policy Futures in Education 12(7). http://dx.doi.org/10.2304/pfie.2014.12.7.920Google Scholar
Cachelin, A., Rose, J., & Rumore, D. L. (2016). Leveraging place for critical sustainability education: The promise of participatory action research. Journal of Sustainability Education 11. www.jsedimensions.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/Cachelin-Rose-Rumore-JSE-February-2016-Place-Issue-PDF-Ready.pdfGoogle Scholar
Calderón, J. Z., & Cadena, G. R. (2007). Linking critical democratic pedagogy, multiculturalism, and service learning to a project-based approach. In Calderón, J. Z. (ed.), Race, poverty, and social justice: Multidisciplinary perspectives through service learning. Sterling, VA: Stylus, pp. 63–80.Google Scholar
Castellanet, C., & Jordan, C. F. (2002). Participatory Action Research in Natural Resource Management: A Critique of the Method Based on Five Years’ Experience in the Transamozonica Region of Brazil. New York: Taylor and Francis.Google Scholar
Catton, W. R. (1980). Overshoot: The Ecological Basis of Revolutionary Change. Urbana, IL: University of Illinois Press.Google Scholar
Chandler, D, & Torbert, B. (2003). Transforming inquiry and action: interweaving 27 flavors of action research. Action Research 1, 33–52.Google Scholar
Community Learning Partnership. (n.d.). http://communitylearningpartnership.org/Google Scholar
Dunlap, R. E., & CattonJr., W. R. (1979). Environmental Sociology. Annual Review of Sociology 5, 243–273.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Eilam, E., & Trop, T. (2012). Environmental attitudes and environmental behavior – which is the horse and which is the cart? Sustainability 4, 2210–2246.Google Scholar
Food First. (n.d.) Institute for Food & Development Policy. https://foodfirst.org/about-us/our-work/.Google Scholar
Ford, J. D., Stephenson, E., Cunsolo Willox, A., Edge, V., Farahbakhsh, K., et al. (2016), Community-based adaptation research in the Canadian Arctic. WIREs Climate Change 7, 175–191.Google Scholar
Freire, P. (2000). Pedagogy of the Oppressed. 30th anniversary ed. Translated by M. B. Ramos. New York: Continuum.Google Scholar
Galvin, M., Wilson, J., Stuart-Hill, S., Pereira, T., Warburton, M. et al. (2015). Planning for adaptation: Applying scientific climate change projections to local social realities. South African Water Research Commission. WRC Report No. 2152/1/15. http://wrc.org.za/Knowledge%20Hub%20Documents/Research%20Reports/2152–1-15.pdfGoogle Scholar
Garcia, A. P., Wallerstein, N., Hricko, A., Marquez, J. N., Logan, , et al. (2013). THE (Trade, Health, Environment) Impact Project: A community-based participatory research environmental justice case study. Environmental Justice 6(1), 17–26.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Garzón, C., Cooley, H., Heberger, M., Moore, E., Allen, L. […] and The Oakland Climate Action Coalition. (Pacific Institute). (2012). Community based climate adaptation planning: case study of Oakland, California. California Energy Commission. Publication number: CEC-500–2012-038. www.energy.ca.gov/2012publications/CEC-500–2012-038/CEC-500–2012-038.pdf.Google Scholar
Guzmán, G. I., López, D. Román, L., & Alonso, A. M. (2013). Participatory action research in agroecology: Building local organic food networks in Spain. Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems 37(1), 127–146.Google Scholar
Government of Canada. (2018). Tri-Council Policy Statement: Ethical Conduct for Research Involving Humans. https://ethics.gc.ca/eng/policy-politique_tcps2-eptc2_2018.htmlGoogle Scholar
Gruber, J. S. (2010). Key principles of community-based natural resource management: A synthesis and interpretation of identified effective approaches for managing the commons. Environmental Management 45(1), 52–66.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Harrison, J. L. (2011). Parsing “participation” in action research: Navigating the challenges of lay involvement in technically complex participatory science projects. Society & Natural Resources 24(7), 702–716,Google Scholar
Hayhurst, R. D., Dietrich-O’Connor, F., Hazen, S., & Landman, K. (2013). Community-based research for food system policy development in the City of Guelph, Ontario. Local Environment: The International Journal of Justice and Sustainability 18(5), 606–619.Google Scholar
Heinrichs, H., & Gross, M. (2010). Introduction: New trends and interdisciplinary challenges in environmental sociology. In Gross, M and Heinrichs, H, eds., Environmental Sociology: European Perspectives and Interdisciplinary Challenges. New York: Springer, pp. 1–16.Google Scholar
Hidayat, D., Stoecker, R., & Gates, H. (2013). Promoting community environmental sustainability using a project-based approach. In Korgen, K. O. and White, J, eds., Sociologists in Action: Sociology, Social Change and Social Justice. Thousand Oaks, CA: Pine Forge Press, pp. 263–268.Google Scholar
Hoare, T., Levy, C., & Robinson, M. P. (1993). Participatory action research in Native communities: Cultural opportunities and legal implications. The Canadian Journal of Native Studies 13(1), 43–68.Google Scholar
Horton, M. (1997). The Long Haul: An Autobiography. New York: Teachers College Press.Google Scholar
Jordan, C., Lee, P, & Shapiro, E. (2000). Measuring developmental outcomes of lead exposure in an urban neighborhood: The challenges of community-based research. Journal of Exposure Analysis and Environmental Epidemiology, 10(6 Pt 2), 732–742.Google Scholar
Jordan, S., & Kapoor, D. (2016). Re-politicizing participatory action research: Unmasking neoliberalism and the illusions of participation. Educational Action Research, 24(1), 134–149. https://doi.org/10.1080/09650792.2015.1105145Google Scholar
John, A. J. I., & Phalla, C. (2006). Community-based natural resource management and decentralized governance in Ratanakiri, Cambodia. In Tyler, S, ed., Communities, Livelihoods, and Natural Resources Action Research and Policy Change in Asia. Warwickshire, UK: Intermediate Technology Publications; and Ottawa, CA: International Development Research Centre, pp. 33–56.Google Scholar
Kinzig, A. P., Ehrlich, P. R., Alston, L. J., Arrow, K., Barrett, S., et al. (2013). Social norms and global environmental challenges: The complex interaction of behaviors, values, and policy. Bioscience 63(3), 164–175.Google Scholar
Lewin, K. (1948). Resolving Social Conflicts: Selected Papers on Group Dynamics. Lewin, G. W, ed. New York: Harper & Row.Google Scholar
Loo, C. (2014). The role of community participation in climate change assessment and research. Journal of Agricultural and Environmental Ethics 27(1), 65–85.Google Scholar
Lutzenhiser, L. (1994). Sociology, energy and interdisciplinary environmental science. The American Sociologist 25(1), 58–79.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mapfumo, P., Adjei-Nsiah, S., Tambanengwe, F. M., Chikowo, R., & Gillerd, K. E. (2013). Participatory action research (PAR) as an entry point for supporting climate change adaptation by smallholder farmers in Africa. Environmental Development 5, 6–22. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envdev.2012.11.001Google Scholar
Minkler, M., and Wallerstein, N., eds. (2008). Community-Based Participatory Research for Health: From Process to Outcomes, 2nd Edition. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.Google Scholar
McOliver, C. A., Camper, A. K., Doyle, J. T., Eggers, M. J., Ford, T. E., et al. (2015). Community-based research as a mechanism to reduce environmental health disparities in American Indian and Alaska Native communities. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 12(4), 4076–4100.Google Scholar
Méndez, V.E., Caswell, M., Gliessman, S. R., & Cohen, R. (2017). Integrating agroecology and participatory action research (par): lessons from Central America. Sustainability 9(5), 705. www.mdpi.com/2071–1050/9/5/705Google Scholar
Moragues-Faus, A., Omar, A., & Wang, J. (2015), Participatory Action Research with local communities: Transforming our food system. November 18. Food Research Collaboration Policy Brief. DOI:10.13140/RG.2.1.4304.7766.Google Scholar
Nong, K., & Marschke, M. (2006). Building networks of support for community-based coastal resource management in Cambodia. In Tyler, S, ed., Communities, Livelihoods, and Natural Resources Action Research and Policy Change in Asia. Warwickshire, UK: Intermediate Technology Publications; and Ottawa, CA: International Development Research Centre, pp. 151–168.Google Scholar
Nyden, P., & Wiewal, W. (1992). Collaborative research: Harnessing the tensions between researcher and practitioner. American Sociologist 23(4), 43–55.Google Scholar
Pacific Institute. 2018. Participatory Action Research. https://pacinst.org/issues/empowering-people-and-communities/participatory-action-research/Google Scholar
Peace, D. M., & Myers, E. (2012). Community-based participatory process – climate change and health adaptation program for Northern First Nations and Inuit in Canada. International Journal of Circumpolar Health, 71. www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3417663/Google Scholar
Perez, A. C., Grafton, B., Mohai, P. et al. (2015). Evolution of the environmental justice movement: Activism, formalization and differentiation. Environmental Research Letters, 10(10). http://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1748–9326/10/10/105002.Google Scholar
Petersen, D. M., Minkler, M., Vásquez, V. B. et al. (2007). Using community-based participatory research to shape policy and prevent lead exposure among Native American children. Progress in Community Health Partnerships 1(3), 249–256.Google Scholar
RECOFTC. 2011. Participatory Action Research for Community-Based Natural Resource Management. www.recoftc.org/basic-page/participatory-action-research-community-based-natural-resource-management.Google Scholar
Ross, J. A., & Stoecker, R. (2016). The emotional context of Higher Education Community Engagement. Journal of Community Engagement and Scholarship. 9, 7–18.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Shepard, P. M., Northridge, M. E., Prakash, S., & Stover, G. (2002) Preface: Advancing environmental justice through community-based participatory research. Environmental Health Perspectives, 110(supplement 2), 139–140. www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1241155/pdf/ehp110s-000139.pdf.Google Scholar
Skelton, R., & Miller, V. (2016). The Environmental Justice Movement. National Resources Defense Council. www.nrdc.org/stories/environmental-justice-movement.Google Scholar
Schnaiberg, A. (1980). The Environment: From Surplus to Scarcity. New York: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Smith, L. T. (2012). Decolonizing Methodologies: Research and Indigenous Peoples. London: Zed Books.Google Scholar
Soils, Food and Healthy Communities. (2018). Participatory Climate Change Adaptation Research. Farmer-led Research to Improve Food Security and Nutrition in Malawi. http://soilandfood.org/research-results/participatory-climate-change-adaptation-research/.Google Scholar
Steele, S. F., & Price, J. (2007). Applied Sociology: Terms, Topics, Tools and Tasks, 2nd ed. Belmont, CA: Thomson Higher Education.Google Scholar
Stoecker, R. (2016). Liberating Service Learning and the Rest of Higher Education Civic Engagement. Philadelphia, PA: Temple University Press.Google Scholar
Stoecker, R. (2013). Research Methods for Community Change: A Project Based Approach. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.Google Scholar
Stoecker, R. (2003). Community-based research: from theory to practice and back again. Michigan Journal of Community Service Learning 9, 35–46.Google Scholar
Stoecker, R. (2009). Are we talking the walk of community-based research? Action Research 7, 385–404.Google Scholar
Stoecker, R. (2012). CBR and the two forms of social change. Journal of Rural Social Sciences 27, 83–98.Google Scholar
Stoecker, R., & Brydon-Miller, M. (2013). Action research. In Trainor, A. A. and Graue, E, eds., Reviewing Qualitative Research in the Social Sciences, New York: Routledge, pp. 21–37.Google Scholar
Stoecker, R., Reece, K., & Konkle, T. R. (2018). From relationships to impact in community-university partnerships. In Seal, M, ed., Participatory Pedagogic Impact Research: Co-Production With Community Partners in Action. London: Routledge, pp. 214–237.Google Scholar
Strand, K., Marullo, S., Cutforth, N., Stoecker, R., & Donohue, P. (2003a). Principles of best practice for community-based research. Michigan Journal of Community Service Learning 9, 5–15.Google Scholar
Strand, K., Marullo, S., Cutforth, N., Stoecker, R., & Donohue, P. (2003b). Community-Based Research and Higher Education: Principles and Practices. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.Google Scholar
Stringer, E. T. (2013). Action Research. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.Google Scholar
Tremblay, M., Furgal, C., Larrivée, C., Annanack, T., Tookalook, P., et al. (2008). Climate Change in Northern Quebec: adaptation strategies from community-based research. Arctic, 61(supplement 1), 27–34.Google Scholar
Tuyen, T. V., Chat, T. T., Hanh, C. T. T., Tinh, D. V., Thanh, N. T., et al. (2006). Participatory local planning for resource governance in the Tam Giang lagoon, Vietnam. Tyler, In S., ed., Communities, Livelihoods, and Natural Resources Action Research and Policy Change in Asia. Warwickshire, UK: Intermediate Technology Publications; and Ottawa, CA: International Development Research Centre, pp. 57–84.Google Scholar
Tyler, S. (2006). Community-based natural resource management: a research approach to rural poverty and environmental degradation. In Tyler, S, ed., Communities, Livelihoods, and Natural Resources Action Research and Policy Change in Asia. Warwickshire, UK: Intermediate Technology Publications; and Ottawa, CA: International Development Research Centre, pp. 13–30.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Whyte, W. F. (1990). Participatory Action Research. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.Google Scholar
Wing, S, Cole, D, & Grant, G. 2000. Environmental injustice in North Carolina’s hog industry. Environmental Health Perspectives 108(3), 225–231.Google Scholar
Wing, S., Horton, R. A., Muhammad, N. et al. (2008). Integrating epidemiology, education, and organizing for environmental justice: community health effects of industrial hog operations. American Journal of Public Health 98(8), 1390–1397.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Yamanoshita, M. (2013). Participatory Action Research for Community Based Natural Resource Management Workshop in Vietnam Forestry University: Workshop Report. Institute for Global Environmental Strategies. https://pub.iges.or.jp/pub/participatory-action-research-community-basedGoogle Scholar
Ykhanbai, H., & Bulgan, E. (2006). Co-management of Pastureland in Mongolia. In Tyler, S, ed., Communities, Livelihoods, and Natural Resources Action Research and Policy Change in Asia. Warwickshire, UK: Intermediate Technology Publications; and Ottawa, CA: International Development Research Centre, pp. 107–128.Google Scholar
Zevallos, Z. (2009). What Is Applied Sociology? A brief introduction on applied sociology. Sociology at Work. www.sociologyatwork.org/about/what-is-applied-sociology/.Google Scholar

Save book to Kindle

To save this book to your Kindle, first ensure [email protected] is added to your Approved Personal Document E-mail List under your Personal Document Settings on the Manage Your Content and Devices page of your Amazon account. Then enter the ‘name’ part of your Kindle email address below. Find out more about saving to your Kindle.

Note you can select to save to either the @free.kindle.com or @kindle.com variations. ‘@free.kindle.com’ emails are free but can only be saved to your device when it is connected to wi-fi. ‘@kindle.com’ emails can be delivered even when you are not connected to wi-fi, but note that service fees apply.

Find out more about the Kindle Personal Document Service.

Available formats
×

Save book to Dropbox

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox.

Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

Available formats
×