Safeguarding against the tokenistic involvement of older people in the participatory research process

The ethical and practical importance of actively involving older people in the research process is increasingly articulated in gerontology literature.  One noticeable gap in this literature is the lack of exploration of researchers’ and older people’s perceptions of the process of participatory research. This paper makes a contribution to the discussion by outlining a community-based participatory research project which centred around the design and administration of a questionnaire exploring older people’s usage and perceptions of community services. It discusses both older adults’ and the researchers’ views of the participatory process. The key lessons and challenges that emerged from the research are analysed using the nine principles of community-based participatory research as outlined by Israel et al (1998, 2003). It poses the question whether older people in all instances seek extensive involvement in all aspects of participatory projects and raises a number of questions which require further analysis before a robust and viable understanding of participatory research that safeguards against the tokenistic involvement of older people can be developed. 

 

Names of Presenters:

Martha Doyle

Presenters’ Institutions:

Social Policy and Ageing Research Centre, Trinity College Dublin

 

Presenters biography:

Martha Doyle is a Research Fellow and PhD student in the Social Policy and Ageing Research Centre (SPARC). Her PhD thesis explores the evolution and influence of older people’s interest groups in Ireland. Since joining SPARC in 2005 she has conducted research on the provision of domiciliary care in Ireland, Germany, the US and Denmark, the application of community-based participatory research with older people, the experience of migrant care workers employed in the long-term care sector and the role of grandparents in divorced and separated families. Prior to commencing work in Trinity College Dublin, Martha had worked in the area of social research both in Ireland and abroad including the National Advisory Committee on Drugs, the Equality Authority, Dublin, the Australian Guidance and Counselling Association.

 
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