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Beyond the paradox of action research: building the bridge, not being the bridge
This essay discusses the paradox of action research. There is an increasing demand for action research and other participative (research) methods, partly fueled by growing discontent about the mismatch between life worlds and system worlds and the inability of governments and social institutions to address inequality. Although action research has the potential to empower and transform, it can also lead to – unintended – manipulation and consolidation or even worsening of the status quo. Due to the way the roles of creating and facilitating communicative spaces are shaped and to a lack of attention to contextual forces, action researchers may find themselves standing in the way of empowerment and transformation instead of fostering this. To break this paradox, action researchers need to address the awareness and empowerment of professional participants more thoroughly as they tend to hold the key to transformation.