USING PARTICIPATORY ACTION RESEARCH TO EVALUATE PROGRAMS SERVING PEOPLE WITH SEVERE DISABILITIES - REFLECTIONS FROM THE FIELD

Participatory action research (PAR) is gaining increasing attention as an appropriate evaluation methodology for programs serving people wit h disabilities. PAR's emphasis on empowering the ''subjects'' of the r esearch to design and implement the process and analyze the findings i s consistent with the field's stance on self-determination, human righ ts, and self-advocacy. Furthermore, PAR is considered by many professi onal researchers to be a positive response to the problem of evaluatio n reports that do not result in substantive change. Because the PAR co -researchers are so integrally involved in the process, it is assumed that they will also be invested in ensuring that recommended changes o ccur. The Western Massachusetts Training Consortium has conducted four evaluations using the PAR model over the past three years. These expe riences have raised questions regarding some of the potential difficul ties a researcher might face in conducting PAR evaluations, particular ly with people with disabilities. These questions are discussed and su ggestions for addressing them are offered.