Using Mixed Methods From a Communicative Orientation: Researching With Grassroots Roma
Journal of Mixed Methods Research
Published online on March 25, 2014
Abstract
Over a decade ago, researchers in Roma studies shifted their approach, from an exclusionary stance to a more communicative one. Despite major positive changes since then, researchers still do not adequately reflect the voices of the majority of the world’s Roma. In this article, we draw on a communicative mixed methods case study, conducted within the INCLUD-ED project in one of Spain’s most underprivileged neighborhoods, to show how it was possible to engage in intersubjective dialogue with grassroots Roma throughout the entire research process. Through such engagement, it is possible to develop new knowledge that can transform local conditions, as they shift from diagnosing social exclusion to identifying the approaches that work best to reduce it.