<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">

<p>In this article, I argue for the value of participatory methodologies, in research with children, which aims to privilege their epistemologies and living experiences in relation to the nature of self. Researching self with children raises questions about the mainstream materialist paradigm which holds hegemony over most academic disciplines – and, importantly, over the life worlds of everyday people. Children’s experiences of self, others and the world challenge the dominant materialist paradigm, requiring investigation into other metaphysical models of reality, that may have more explanatory power than materialism. I address this by appealing to a body of scholarship referred to as ‘postmaterialist’. Reauthoring our nature as human beings carries an increasing importance and urgency in the face of current ecological, economical and health crises. I argue that any research, which seeks to facilitate social transformation through everyday people, needs to begin by asking ontological questions about the nature of the self - the subject of experience who holds and reports epistemological authority over their subjective experiences.</p>
</abstract>

In this article, I argue for the value of participatory methodologies, in research with children, which aims to privilege their epistemologies and living experiences in relation to the nature of self. Researching self with children raises questions about the mainstream materialist paradigm which holds hegemony over most academic disciplines – and, importantly, over the life worlds of everyday people. Children’s experiences of self, others and the world challenge the dominant materialist paradigm, requiring investigation into other metaphysical models of reality, that may have more explanatory power than materialism. I address this by appealing to a body of scholarship referred to as ‘postmaterialist’. Reauthoring our nature as human beings carries an increasing importance and urgency in the face of current ecological, economical and health crises. I argue that any research, which seeks to facilitate social transformation through everyday people, needs to begin by asking ontological questions about the nature of the self - the subject of experience who holds and reports epistemological authority over their subjective experiences.

Postmaterial Participatory Research: Exploring the nature of self with children

Eden House, University of Central Lancashire

International Journal for Transformative Research

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

{"article-title":"Postmaterial Participatory Research: Exploring the nature of self with children"}

In this article, I argue for the value of participatory methodologies, in research with children, which aims to privilege their epistemologies and living...

Postmaterial Participatory Research: Exploring the nature of self with children

Published Online: Dec 12, 2022

Page range: 6 - 17

Received: Jan 30, 2022

Accepted: Aug 09, 2022

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/ijtr-2022-0002

Keywords
Children, Self, Subjectivity, Consciousness, Participatory Research, Postmaterialist, Transformation

© 2022 Donna Thomas, published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

Postmaterial Participatory Research: Exploring the nature of self with children

Published Online: Dec 12, 2022

Page range: 6 - 17

Received: Jan 30, 2022

Accepted: Aug 09, 2022

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/ijtr-2022-0002

KeywordsChildren, Self, Subjectivity, Consciousness, Participatory Research, Postmaterialist, Transformation

© 2022 Donna Thomas, published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

Keywords
Children, Self, Subjectivity, Consciousness, Participatory Research, Postmaterialist, Transformation