Critical Participatory Action Research: A Feminist Project for Validity and Solidarity

Abstract

We present critical participatory action research as an enactment of feminist research praxis in psychology. We discuss the key elements of critical participatory action research through the story of a single, national participatory project. The project was designed by and for LGBTQIA+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, queer, intersex, asexual, plus) and gender-expansive youth; it was called What’s Your Issue? We provide details of the research project, the dreams, desires, experiences, and structural precarity of queer and trans youth. We write this article hoping readers will appreciate the complexities of identities, attend to the relentless commitment to recognition and solidarities, learn the ethical and epistemological principles of critical participatory action research as a feminist and intersectional praxis, and appreciate the provocative blend of research and action toward social justice. Online slides for instructors who want to use this article for teaching are available on PWQ's website at http://journals.sagepub.com/page/pwq/suppl/index