Wallerstein N
Department of Family and Community Medicine, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque 87131, USA.
Soc Sci Med. 1999 Jul;49(1):39-53. doi: 10.1016/s0277-9536(99)00073-8.
The relationship between evaluators and communities has been changing in the last two decades to a model of research 'with' the community, instead of research 'on' the community. This shift has paralleled increasing community demands for accountability and authority as community participation rhetoric has given way to words such as partnership, collaboration and community empowerment. Despite the rhetoric, there has been little reflection on the problematic and contradictory relationships between communities and researchers, specifically as related to their differing positions of power. This article provides a reflective examination of the contested power dynamics of the research relationship within a participatory evaluation process of the Healthier Communities initiative in New Mexico. An in-depth literature review of the philosophical principles and the complex realities of evaluations based on participatory, community-driven and post-modern inquiry precedes the case study. Without ongoing consideration of power issues, the article argues that evaluation design, implementation and utilization of findings will be compromised.
在过去二十年中，评估者与社区之间的关系已转变为一种“与”社区合作开展研究的模式，而非“对”社区进行研究。随着社区参与的言辞被伙伴关系、协作和社区赋权等词汇所取代，这种转变与社区对问责制和权威性日益增长的需求并行。尽管有这些言辞，但对于社区与研究人员之间存在问题且相互矛盾的关系，特别是与他们不同权力地位相关的关系，却很少有反思。本文对新墨西哥州“更健康社区”倡议参与式评估过程中研究关系中存在争议的权力动态进行了反思性审视。在案例研究之前，对基于参与式、社区驱动和后现代探究的评估的哲学原则及复杂现实进行了深入的文献综述。文章认为，如果不持续关注权力问题，评估设计、实施及结果利用都将受到损害。
