Community-Based Research: From Practice to Theory and Back Again

Community-based research (CBR) is a recently popular model of community-higher education collaboration that combines various forms of action-oriented research with service-learning to support social action for social justice. This paper explores the theoretical strands being combined in CBR--charity service- learning, social justice service-learning, action research, and participatory research. Charity service- learning and action research combine to produce the dominant mainstream CBR model. Social justice service-learning and participatory research combine to produce the radical CBR model. The paper shows how these different models of CBR, based in different theories of society and different approaches to community work, may combine or conflict. [author]