Co-Production of Knowledge and Dialogue: A Reflective Analysis of the Space Between Academic and Lay Co-Researchers in the Early Stages of the Research Process

Abstract

Co-production of knowledge, where academic and lay researchers work as partners, is a central characteristic of participatory action research. It requires the participants to engage in a transformative dialogue. But how can co-production of knowledge function in the care home setting? We addressed this question in a specific interaction between academic and lay researchers in an action research project sited in a nursing home in Germany. Drawing on Paulo FREIRE and Mikhail BAKHTIN, we developed seven dialogue criteria and applied them as sensitizing concepts. In order to further a critical analysis, in our data analysis we combined three methodical approaches: 1. analytical autoethnography, 2. sequential analysis in the tradition of objective hermeneutics, and 3. reflection with critical friends. This innovative triangulation allowed for rich and complex interpretations. We found that all seven dialogue criteria are important to co-production of knowledge and should direct the process between academic and lay researchers.