1. Introduction
Historical Beginnings:
The social change that resulted from World War II influenced Kurt Lewin to develop Participatory Action
Research. As a German Jew, Lewin fled Germany in 1933 due to persecution. He became deeply concerned with
questions of social action and the conditions that made prejudice possible. In 1946, Lewin officially coined the
term Participatory Action Research (PAR) (Lewin, 1945). In the last few decades, PAR has developed and evolved
due to globalization and is now, more than ever, accepted in the scientific world. Lewin (1946) envisioned that
PAR would develop within the decade after his first article. It did continue to develop, and in the 1950s and 1960s
in Latin America, Paulo Freire further developed PAR into social, religious and educational contexts. Educational
programs and action research are now linked to Freire (Thiollent, 2011). In the 1990s, action research took a
downturn and was not considered a valid form of research, especially in universities, but since then, PAR’s
momentum has increased and is now accepted, to the point of being a requirement for some major international
funding agencies (Thiollent, 2011). If Lewin continues to be coined with PAR, rather than Dewey, for example,
then it is safe to say that PAR is essentially a fairly new method of research having only been in existence since
1946. Due to the upturn in sustainability awareness, PAR is increasingly being used in marginalized areas where
sustainable development is an issue.
What is it?
PAR aims to collaborate members of marginalized groups in their natural environments with outside practitioners
to work together towards social action.
PAR aims to engage participants to the point the lines between the researcher and the researched is blurred
(Smith, Rosenzweig & Schmidt, 2010). In choosing participants and practitioners, it is essential that research is
taken from a positive approach and that trust is built within the collaborated groups. Stakeholders focus on their
values, their needs and how they are impacted by the consequences of decisions (Merskin, 2010).
Purpose

2. Distinguishing Features
Theoretical Underpinnings
Methods of Data Collection
Ethics
How is it set apart from other strategies
. Planning, executing, and reflecting are the three key elements of action research that create a circular momentum,
one following the next, as in the case of a corkscrew.