Troubling Empowerment

Participatory research methodologies and interactive
communication technologies (ICTs) are increasingly
seen as offering ways of enhancing women s
empowerment and rural community development. However,
some researchers suggest the need for caution about
such claims. This book details findings from an
evaluation of a feminist action research project that
explored the impacts of ICTs for rural women in
Queensland, Australia, in terms of personal, business
and community development. Using praxis and
poststructuralist feminist theories and
methodologies, this innovative study presents a
rigorous analysis and critique of women's empowerment
and participation. This study demonstrates the value
of adopting a critical yet pragmatic approach that
takes diversity and difference, power-knowledge
relations, and the contradictory effects of
participation into account. This is argued to enable
the development of more effective strategies for
women s empowerment, participation and inclusion.
This book should be of particular interest to
researchers, postgraduate students, and others
working in the fields of communication, gender, and
rural development, and feminist evaluation and
ethnography.

Autorentext

Dr June Lennie is a Senior Research Associate at QueenslandUniversity of Technology, Brisbane, Australia. She hassignificant expertise in conducting action research andevaluation projects and evaluation capacity building, and haspublished widely in her field. She is the co-author of ActionResearch and New Media (Hampton Press, 2009).

Klappentext

Participatory research methodologies and interactivecommunication technologies (ICTs) are increasinglyseen as offering ways of enhancing women'sempowerment and rural community development. However,some researchers suggest the need for caution aboutsuch claims. This book details findings from anevaluation of a feminist action research project thatexplored the impacts of ICTs for rural women inQueensland, Australia, in terms of personal, businessand community development. Using praxis andpoststructuralist feminist theories andmethodologies, this innovative study presents arigorous analysis and critique of women's empowermentand participation. This study demonstrates the valueof adopting a critical yet pragmatic approach thattakes diversity and difference, power-knowledgerelations, and the contradictory effects ofparticipation into account. This is argued to enablethe development of more effective strategies forwomen's empowerment, participation and inclusion.This book should be of particular interest toresearchers, postgraduate students, and othersworking in the fields of communication, gender, andrural development, and feminist evaluation andethnography.