TY - JOUR
T1 - Towards a critical occupational approach to research
AU - Njelesani, Janet
AU - Gibson, Barbara E.
AU - Nixon, Stephanie
AU - Cameron, Debra
AU - Polatajko, Helene J.
PY - 2013/2
Y1 - 2013/2
N2 - Critical approaches to research are becoming increasingly more prevalent but occupational science and critical approaches have not been explicitly combined into one approach despite the potential to enrich the understanding of the assumptions and ideologies underlying human activity. In this article we outline an approach to research that is mutually informed by occupational and critical social science perspectives. The critical occupational approach we describe can be used to explore the ways in which knowledge is produced through engagement in occupation, who controls knowledge production, the mechanisms of how occupations are taken up, and who stands to gain or lose. We discuss the implications and considerations for generating research purposes and methods and conducting analyses. We then illustrate the use of the approach through a case study. We conclude this article with consideration of the wider uses and implications of a critical occupational approach within health and social research.
AB - Critical approaches to research are becoming increasingly more prevalent but occupational science and critical approaches have not been explicitly combined into one approach despite the potential to enrich the understanding of the assumptions and ideologies underlying human activity. In this article we outline an approach to research that is mutually informed by occupational and critical social science perspectives. The critical occupational approach we describe can be used to explore the ways in which knowledge is produced through engagement in occupation, who controls knowledge production, the mechanisms of how occupations are taken up, and who stands to gain or lose. We discuss the implications and considerations for generating research purposes and methods and conducting analyses. We then illustrate the use of the approach through a case study. We conclude this article with consideration of the wider uses and implications of a critical occupational approach within health and social research.
KW - Critical social science
KW - Occupational approach
KW - Qualitative methodology
KW - occupational therapy
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84877713153&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=84877713153&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1177/160940691301200109
DO - 10.1177/160940691301200109
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:84877713153
SN - 1609-4069
VL - 12
SP - 207
EP - 220
JO - International Journal of Qualitative Methods
JF - International Journal of Qualitative Methods
IS - 1
ER -