Welfare Reform on the Web (September 2008): Community regeneration and development - overseas

Participatory approaches in community development: transitions and transformations

P. Taylor and M. Mayo (editors)

Community Development Journal, vol.43, 2008, p.263-394

Participation has become a buzzword in community development theory and practice. However it covers many different practices and carries a range of different meanings from the instrumental to the transformative. This special issue on participatory approaches in community development draws on different theoretical perspectives and practical experience from a range of contexts. It is divided into four main sections covering: 1) key theoretical debates; 2) ways in which theory informs practice in societies undergoing major transitions, such as from dictatorship to democracy; 3) how participatory approaches are taught; and 4) participatory approaches to the evaluation of community development initiatives.