The Dialogical Self in Participatory Action Research

This paper examines new theoretical insights gained from drawing together participation action research (PAR), dialogical theorising of self-other relationships and the concept of care. We argue that dialogue is treated as an intrinsic element in PAR research but that the nature of the dialogue has been undertheorized and as such, dialogical self-other analysis had much to offer in providing new insights. To illustrate our argument we draw on data from an EU-funded participatory project (NEW ABC) in a secondary school in England with child language brokers. For one academic year, the team ran an arts-based after-school club, known as the ‘Young Translators Club’ which explored the social and emotional aspects of language brokering as a caring practice. Drawing on fieldnotes, and arts-based outputs with students, we examine the complex dialogical relationships that unfolded over time and the mechanisms by which PAR acted as a catalyst to close down and open-up dialogical relationships. In particular, we critically examine how disruptive dialogues from one group member influenced how the PAR activities unfolded and how other dialogues were stifled, resisted or made into new affordances.