Paradoxes of participation: questioning participatory approaches to development

Frances Cleaver
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Frances Cleaver: Development and Project Planning Centre, University of Bradford, UK, Postal: Development and Project Planning Centre, University of Bradford, UK

Journal of International Development, 1999, vol. 11, issue 4, 597-612

Abstract: This article suggests that the concepts underlying participatory approaches to development should be subject to greater critical analysis. Drawing on research on water resource management in sub-Saharan Africa, and on social theory concerning the recursive relationship between agency and structure, it illustrates the need for a more complex understanding of issues of efficiency and empowerment in participatory approaches. Particularly, two key concepts are examined: ideas about the nature and role of institutions ; and models of individual action . The article concludes by identifying the questions such an analysis raises about the relationships between community, social capital and the state. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Date: 1999
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:wly:jintdv:v:11:y:1999:i:4:p:597-612

DOI: 10.1002/(SICI)1099-1328(199906)11:4<597::AID-JID610>3.0.CO;2-Q

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