Transformative research: personal and societal
Transformative researchers have the potential to contribute to both personal and societal transformation. In this article, I argue that the two are intertwined and that personal transformation is a necessary component of research that is designed to support change at the societal level in the form o...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Sciendo
2017-12-01
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| Series: | International Journal for Transformative Research |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1515/ijtr-2017-0001 |
| _version_ | 1797349296813637632 |
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| author | Mertens Donna M. |
| author_facet | Mertens Donna M. |
| author_sort | Mertens Donna M. |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Transformative researchers have the potential to contribute to both personal and societal transformation. In this article, I argue that the two are intertwined and that personal transformation is a necessary component of research that is designed to support change at the societal level in the form of furthering human rights and social justice. I describe a transformative framework that examines assumptions related to ethics, the nature of reality, epistemology, and methodology that can guide researchers who choose to address both the personal and societal levels of transformation. Ethically, researchers need to examine who they are and who they are in relation to the community in which they are working. This process goes beyond self-examination to a critical analysis of the cultural blinders that might obscure our ability to contribute to positive impacts. I put forth the hypothesis that if we design our research so that it explicitly addresses issues of discrimination and oppression that the probability of personal and social transformation increases. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-08T12:28:15Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-51ada8aa235b418491d0a92b9e612f41 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2353-5415 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-08T12:28:15Z |
| publishDate | 2017-12-01 |
| publisher | Sciendo |
| record_format | Article |
| series | International Journal for Transformative Research |
| spelling | doaj.art-51ada8aa235b418491d0a92b9e612f412024-01-22T07:04:34ZengSciendoInternational Journal for Transformative Research2353-54152017-12-0141182410.1515/ijtr-2017-0001ijtr-2017-0001Transformative research: personal and societalMertens Donna M.0Gallaudet University, USATransformative researchers have the potential to contribute to both personal and societal transformation. In this article, I argue that the two are intertwined and that personal transformation is a necessary component of research that is designed to support change at the societal level in the form of furthering human rights and social justice. I describe a transformative framework that examines assumptions related to ethics, the nature of reality, epistemology, and methodology that can guide researchers who choose to address both the personal and societal levels of transformation. Ethically, researchers need to examine who they are and who they are in relation to the community in which they are working. This process goes beyond self-examination to a critical analysis of the cultural blinders that might obscure our ability to contribute to positive impacts. I put forth the hypothesis that if we design our research so that it explicitly addresses issues of discrimination and oppression that the probability of personal and social transformation increases.https://doi.org/10.1515/ijtr-2017-0001transformationethicsindigenousdeafnessdiscrimination |
| spellingShingle | Mertens Donna M. Transformative research: personal and societal International Journal for Transformative Research transformation ethics indigenous deafness discrimination |
| title | Transformative research: personal and societal |
| title_full | Transformative research: personal and societal |
| title_fullStr | Transformative research: personal and societal |
| title_full_unstemmed | Transformative research: personal and societal |
| title_short | Transformative research: personal and societal |
| title_sort | transformative research personal and societal |
| topic | transformation ethics indigenous deafness discrimination |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1515/ijtr-2017-0001 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT mertensdonnam transformativeresearchpersonalandsocietal |