Exploring Power Dynamics in Participatory Action Research

In recent years, both the international development sector, and the participatory action research (PAR) community have explored challenging questions around power dynamics. As a privileged White male working in both spaces, reflections on power and positionality have played a major role in both my individual practice and my research with others. Between 2021 and 2023, I co-convened two virtual PAR groups engaging 34 colleagues from 15 countries. With each group, we adapted and used the Gender at Work Analytical Framework as a tool for eliciting reflections and catalyzing discussions around power dynamics. This participatory approach to power analysis helped render dynamics of power and privilege more visible, even as some aspects remained hidden. My paper shows how engaging with power dynamics early in a PAR cycle can help to open up difficult discussions and stimulate conditions for change.