Full Description
Examine alternative strategies to resolving important Latino social issues!
Latino Social Policy: A Participatory Research Model examines the failure of traditional research methods to address major social needs in Latino communities, promoting instead a participatory/action approach to research that is sociallyand scientificallymeaningful. Experts from a variety of disciplines focus on nontraditional strategies that engage community residents in community-research projects, shortening the distance between the researcher and the subject. This unique book recounts lessons learned on conducting Participatory Action Research (PAR) in Latino communities using techniques based on anthropology, education, community health and evaluation, and urban planning.
Latino Social Policy: A Participatory Research Model addresses non-traditional methods of reducing the tension between the reality of interaction with the subject community and the academic training structures used by researchers. The book promotes a new vision and practice of research design in which the subject is central to the process, advocating a participatory approach to produce qualitatively different research based on community identified problems and needs. Contributors examine the value of integrating local knowledge, language, and culture into the methodological design, the ethics of conducting research in Latino communities, and the internal conflicts Chicana/o researchers face within their profession and in the field.
Topics addressed in Latino Social Policy: A Participatory Research Model include:
community health and Central Americans in Los Angeles
ethnography and substance abuse among transnational Mexican farmworkers
identity and field research in Mexico
the Latino Coalition for a New Los Angeles (LCNLA)
researcher/community partnerships
and much more!
Latino Social Policy: A Participatory Research Model includes case studies, ethnographies, and vignettes that illustrate participatory approaches and outcomes in Latino research. The book is equally valuable as a textbook for academics and students working in the social sciences, public policy, and urban planning, and as a professional guide for community leaders and organizations interested in developing research partnerships.
Contents
About the Editors
Contributors
Introduction. Participatory Action Research: A New Vision and Practice in Latino Communities
Introduction
A Critique of traditional Research Strategies: Objectivity, Subjectivity, and Power
Participatory Action Research: Philosophy and Principles
Structure of the Book
SECTION I: CREATING A NEW VISION AND ROLE FOR RESEARCH IN LATINO COMMUNITIES
Chapter 1. Plugging the Brain Drain: Bringing Our Education Back Home
Connecting University and Community Through Problem-Solving Research
Dynamics of Dichotomous Divisions: The Debate over What Constitutes Legitimate Research
Epistemological and Methodological Limitations
Reframing Our Research Questions
Interactive Research
Closing the Dichotomous Division
SECTION II: LATINO COMMUNITY AND RESEARCH PARTNERSHIPS IN PRACTICE
Chapter 2. A Participatory Perspective on Parent Involvement
Parent-School Interaction in Contemporary Society
Creating a New Cultural Activity in Participation
In the Act of Transformation
A New Definition of Parent Involvement
Appendix A
Appendix B
Chapter 3. Building Community, Research, and Policy: A Case of Community Health and Central Americans in Los Angeles
Introduction
Organizational and Community Context
Community Partnership Methodology
Learning from the Initiative: Challenges and Benefits
Appendix: Selected Findings from the Needs Assessment
Chapter 4. Critical Ethnography and Substance Abuse Research Among Transnational Mexican Farmworkers
Introduction
Transnational Mexican Farmworkers and Substance Abuse
Studying Substance Abuse Among Transnational Mexican Farmworkers
Using the Ethnographic Method to Overcome Research Obstacles
Conclusion
Chapter 5. Community Contexts and Chicano/a Methods of Inquiry: Grounded Research and Informed Praxis
Introduction
The Researcher
Qualitative versus Quantitative Design: An Obsolete Separation
Conceptualizing and Implementing the Research
Problems Encountered During Research
Conclusion
Chapter 6. Identity and Field Research in Mexico: Lessons for Research and Social Policy for US Latinos
Introduction
The Identity of a Mexican/Latina Researcher in Mexico
The Research Design
Arranging Field Research Within the Ejido
The Interviewing Process: The Interviewed Researcher
Field Research and Perceived Identity in the Three Ejidos
Changing Boundaries of My Identity According to Region
Lessons for Latino/a Research and Policy
Conclusions
Chapter 7. Social Scientists, Public Housing Residents, and Action Research in a Chicano Barrio in East Los Angeles
Introduction
Normative Role of Researchers Who Study Communities
Constructing Research Roles for Public Housing Residents
Crises in the Field and Implementing Project Alternatives
Addressing Conflicts, Contradictions, and Issues in the Field
Maintaining Continuity Between Residents and Researchers
Technical Considerations
Reporting the Results of the Survey
Conclusion
SECTION III: RESEARCH TO POLICY AND PRACTICEINFLUENCING LATINO POLICY AND PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT
Chapter 8. Community Action Research with Census Data: The Latino Coalition for a New Los Angeles, 1992-93
Introduction
The 1992 Los Angeles Civil Disturbances
Rebuilding LA
The Latino Coalition for a New Los Angeles (LCNLA)
No Longer a Minority
Starting the Action Agenda: Press Conference
Creating the Data Map
Action Research Methodology
The Agenda Emerges
The Aftermath
Chapter 9. Expanding Latino Community Capacity for Sustainable Programs Through Researcher/Community Partnerships
Introduction
Barriers to Latino Community Funding in the Age of Accountability
Building Organizational Capacity: Definiti
