Traversing the Challenges of Community Engagement in South Africa: Emerging Researchers’ Perspectives
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.25159/2957-3645/13877Keywords:
challenges, emerging researchers, experiences, community engagement, reflexivityAbstract
With the growing emphasis being placed on community engagement, many emerging scholars have found themselves in the field with much to learn beyond the research that they are conducting. Community engagement is guided by principles such as the mutual exchange of knowledge, collaboratively identifying community priorities and an ongoing focus on strengthening and sustaining communities. In practice, community engagement is fraught with various challenges that need to be navigated. These challenges present themselves in different ways to different researchers. In this article, we draw on our experiences as three emerging researchers navigating community-engaged research across two geographic spaces in South Africa, namely, the Western Cape and Gauteng, two of the country’s nine national provinces. The objectives of this article are to explore our experiences of relationship building, to determine the role our positionalities have played in our engaged scholarship, and to explore feelings of disconnectedness as young academics. Following a qualitative reflexive approach, we identified three themes that speak to these objectives, namely, navigating newcomer status and building relationships in community-engaged spaces, reflections on researcher positionality in the field, and the dilemma of (dis)connectedness in engaged scholarship. Our findings highlight the need for support such as mentorship from experienced community-engaged scholars, resources for establishing community connections, guidance in navigating cultural nuances, and training for effective communication and relationship building in communities.
References
Andress, L., Hall, T., Davis, S., Levine, J., Cripps, K., & Guinn, D. (2020). Addressing power dynamics in community-engaged research partnerships. Journal of Patient-Reported Outcomes, 4(1), 1–8. https://doi.org/10.1186/s41687-020-00191-z
Atem, A., Bajraktarevic, J., Nguyen, D. A., Kalmashi, R., Hanna, B., Higgins, M., Lenette, C., Milne, E. J., Nunn, C., & Gardner, J. (2021). Ethics and community-based participatory research with people from refugee backgrounds. UNSW Sydney, Coventry University, Manchester Metropolitan University.
Bender, G. (2008). Exploring conceptual models for community engagement at higher-education institutions in South Africa. Perspectives in Education, 26(1), 81–95.
Bhagwan, R. (2017). Towards a conceptual understanding of community engagement in higher education in South Africa. Perspectives in Education, 35(1), 171–185. http://dx.doi.org/10.18820/2519593X/pie.v35i1.13
Bidandi, F., Ambe, A. N., & Mukong, C. H. (2021). Insights and current debates on community engagement in higher education institutions: Perspectives on the University of the Western Cape. Sage Open, 11(2). https://doi.org/10.1177/21582440211011467
Boyer, E. L. (1996). The scholarship of engagement. Bulletin of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, 49(7), 18–33. https://doi.org/10.2307/3824459
Brewer, M. B. (2001). The many faces of social identity: Implications for political psychology. Political Psychology, 22(1), 115–125. https://doi.org/10.1111/0162-895X.00229
Brown-Luthango, M. (2013). Community-university engagement: The Philippi city-lab in Cape Town and the challenge of collaboration across boundaries. Higher Education, 65(3), 309–324. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-012-9546-z
Bulbulia, S., Taliep, N., Lekoba, R., Hornsby, N., & Lazarus, S. (2018). Introduction. In N. Taliep, S. Lazarus, S. Bulbulia, G. Ismail & N. Hornsby (Eds.), Ukuphepha: Manual on community engaged violence prevention, safety and peace promotion (pp. 8–51). SAMRC-UNISA Violence, Injury and Peace Research Unit.
Chak, C. M. (2018). Literature review on relationship building for community–academic collaboration in health research and innovation. MATEC Web of Conferences, 215. https://doi.org/10.1051/matecconf/201821502002
Chang, H. (2013). Individual and collaborative autoethnography as method: A social scientist’s perspective. In S. H. Jones, T. E. Adams & C. Ellis (Eds.), Handbook of autoethnography (pp. 107–122). Routledge.
Chang, H. (2016). Autoethnography as method. Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315433370
Christopher, S., Watts, V., McCormick, A. K. H. G., & Young, S. (2008). Building and maintaining trust in a community-based participatory research partnership. American Journal of Public Health, 98(8), 1398–1406. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2007.125757
Cole, E. R. (2009). Intersectionality and research in psychology. American Psychologist, 64(3), 170–180. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0014564
Colman, M. A. (2009). Oxford: Dictionary of Psychology. Oxford University Press.
Council on Higher Education. (2020). Community engagement as one of the core functions of universities: revisiting the idea of university [Number 11]. Briefly speaking.
Crenshaw, K. (1989). Demarginalizing the intersection of race and sex: A Black feminist critique of anti-discrimination doctrine, feminist theory and antiracist politics. In K. T. Bartlett & R. Kennedy (Eds.), Feminist legal theory: Readings in law and gender (pp. 538–562). Routledge.
Daniels, P. S., & Adonis, T. (2020). Quality assurance of community engagement in South African higher education institutions: Problems and prospects. South African Review of Sociology, 51(1), 37–54. https://doi.org/10.1080/21528586.2020.1792971
Denzin, N. K. (2013). Interpretive autoethnography. In S. H. Jones, T. E. Adams & C. Ellis (Eds.), Handbook of autoethnography (pp. 123–142). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4135/9781506374697
Department of Basic Education. (1997). Education White Paper 3: A programme for the transformation of higher education. Department of Basic Education.
Dragomir, R. R., & Tadros, E. (2020). Exploring the impacts of racial disparity within the American juvenile justice system. Juvenile and Family Court Journal, 71(2), 61–73. https://doi.org/10.1111/jfcj.12165
Dube, N., & Hendricks, E. A. (2023). The praxis and paradoxes of community engagement as the third mission of universities. a case of a selected South African university. South African Journal of Higher Education, 37(1), 131–150. https://dx.doi.org/10.20853/37-1-5643
Eksteen, R., Bulbulia, A., Van Niekerk, A., Ismail, G., & Lekoba, R. (2012). Ukuphepha: A multi-level community engagement model for the promotion of safety, peace and health. Journal of Psychology in Africa, 22(4), 499–510. https://doi.org/10.1080/14330237.2012.10820561
Glasius, M., De Lange, M., Bartman, J., Dalmasso, E. L. A., Del Sordi, A., Michaelson, M., & Ruijgrok, K. (2018). Research, ethics and risk in the authoritarian field. Springer Nature. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-68966-1
Gyamera, G. O., & Debrah, I. (2021). Utilising university community engagement as a critical tool for global citizenship. Compare: A Journal of Comparative and International Education, 53(3), 435–453. https://doi.org/10.1080/03057925.2021.1929074
Hackbart-Dean, P., & Ray, W. (2021). Community engagement: Finding history where it lives. College & Research Libraries News, 82(8), 377. https://doi.org/10.5860/crln.82.8.377
Han, H. R., Xu, A., Mendez, K. J., Okoye, S., Cudjoe, J., Bahouth, M., Reese, M., Bone, L., & Dennison-Himmelfarb, C. (2021). Exploring community engaged research experiences and preferences: A multi-level qualitative investigation. Research Involvement and Engagement, 7(1), 1–9. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40900-021-00261-6
Hannes, K., Hendricks, L., & Dierckx, C. (2023). Doing fieldwork in challenging circumstances: Summoning participatory methods. Centrum voor Sociologisch Onderzoek.
Health Professions Council of South Africa. (2008). Guidelines for good practice in the healthcare professions: General ethical guidelines for the healthcare professionals—Booklet 1. Health Professions Council of South Africa.
Hickey, G., Porter, K., Tembo, D., Rennard, U., Tholanah, M., Beresford, P., Chandler, S., Chimbari, M., Coldham, T., Dikomitis, L., Dziro, B., Ekiikina, P., Khattak, M. I., Montenegro, C. R., Mumba, N., Mussengwa, R., Nelson, E., Nhunzvi, C., Ramirez, C., & Staniszewska, S. (2022). What does “good” community and public engagement look like? Developing relationships with community members in global health research. Frontiers in Public Health, 9, 2446–2453. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2021.776940
Hill-Collins, P. (1990). Black feminist thought: Knowledge, consciousness and the politics of empowerment. Routledge. https://www.routledge.com/Black-Feminist-Thought-Knowledge-Consciousness-and-the-Politics-of-Empowerment/HillCollins/p/book/9780415964722
Holmes, A. G. D. (2020). Researcher positionality—A consideration of its influence and place in qualitative research—A new researcher guide. Shanlax International Journal of Education, 8(4), 1–10. https://doi.org/10.34293/education.v8i4.3232
Johnson, B. J. (2020). Community engagement: Barriers and drivers in South African higher education. South African Journal of Higher Education, 34(6), 87–105. https://dx.doi.org/10.20853/34-6-4116
Keet, A. (2010). Very little . . . almost nothing: University engagement as hospitality. Keynote address, University of Fort Hare. https://www.academia.edu/1680260/University_Engagement_as_Hospitality
Koekkoek, A., Van Ham, M., & Kleinhans, R. (2021). Unraveling university–community engagement: A literature review. Journal of Higher Education Outreach and Engagement, 25(1), 1–22.
Lazarus, S. (2018). Power and identity in the struggle for social justice. Reflections on community psychology practice. Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-99939-5
Lazarus, S., Bulbulia, S., Taliep, N., & Naidoo, A. V. (2015). Community‐based participatory research as a critical enactment of community psychology. Journal of Community Psychology, 43(1), 87–98. https://doi.org/10.1002/jcop.21689
Lazarus, S., Seedat, M., & Naidoo, T. (2017). Community building: Challenges of constructing a community. In M. A. Bond, I. Serrano-García, C. B. Keys & M. Shinn (Eds.), APA handbook of community psychology: Methods for community research and action for diverse groups and issues (pp. 215–234). American Psychological Association. https://doi.org/10.1037/14954-013
Lazarus, S., Taliep, N., Bulbulia, A., Phillips, S., & Seedat, M. (2012). Community-based participatory research a low-income setting: An illustrative case of study. Journal of Psychology in Africa, 22(4), 509–516. https://doi.org/10.1080/14330237.2012.10820562
Le Dantec, C. A., & Fox, S. (2015). Strangers at the gate: Gaining access, building rapport, and co-constructing community-based research. Proceedings of the 18th ACM Conference on Computer Supported Cooperative Work & Social Computing, 1348–1358. https://doi.org/10.1145/2675133.2675147
Lombard, L. (2022). The interpretation of relationships: Fieldwork as boundary-negotiation. Ethnography, 1–21. https://doi.org/10.1177/14661381211069670
Louw, S., Taliep, N., Ismail, G., & Bulbulia, S. (2020). Navigating and reimagining community engagement amidst COVID-19. Social and Health Sciences, 18(2), 48–69.
Lucero, J. E., Boursaw, B., Eder, M. M., Greene-Moton, E., Wallerstein, N., & Oetzel, J. G. (2020). Engage for equity: the role of trust and synergy in community-based participatory research. Health Education & Behavior, 47(3), 372–379. https://doi.org/10.1177/109019812091883
Mayan, M. J., & Daum, C. H. (2016). Worth the risk? Muddled relationships in community-based participatory research. Qualitative Health Research, 26(1), 69–76. https://doi.org/10.1177/1049732315618660
Milne, E., & Hamilton, L. K. (2022). Navigating personal, professional, institutional, and relational dimensions of community-engaged research. Journal of Community Engagement and Scholarship, 14(1), 1–17. https://doi.org/10.54656/JGKP9815
Miyahara, M., & Fukao, A. (2022). Exploring the use of collaborative autoethnography as a tool for facilitating the development of researcher reflexivity. System, 105, 1–9. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2022.102751
Mthembu, Z., Mogaka, J. J., & Chimbari, M. J. (2023). Community engagement processes in low- and middle-income countries health research settings: A systematic review of the literature. BMC Health Services Research, 23(457), 1–15. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-023-09466-9
Muhammad, M., Wallerstein, N., Sussman, A. L., Avila, M., Belone, L., & Duran, B. (2015). Reflections on researcher identity and power: The impact of positionality on community based participatory research (CBPR) processes and outcomes. Critical Sociology, 41(7–8), 1045–1063. https://doi.org/10.1177/0896920513516025
Naidoo, A., Duncan, N., Roos, V., Pillay, J., & Bowman, B. (2013). Analysis, context, action: An introduction to community psychology. In N. Duncan, B. Bowman, A. Naidoo, J. Pillay & V. Roos (Eds.), Community psychology: Analysis, context and action (pp. 9–23). UCT Press.
Ohmer, M. L., Mendenhall, A. N., Mohr Carney, M., & Adams, D. (2022). Community engagement: evolution, challenges and opportunities for change. Journal of Community Practice, 30(4), 351–358. https://doi.org/10.1080/10705422.2022.2144061
Olmos-Vega, F. M., Stalmeijer, R. E., Varpio, L., & Kahlke, R. (2023). A practical guide to reflexivity in qualitative research: AMEE Guide No. 149. Medical Teacher, 45(3), 241–251. https://doi.org/10.1080/0142159X.2022.2057287
Posel, D. (2001). Race as common sense: Racial classification in twentieth-century South Africa. African Studies Review, 44(2), 81–113. https://doi.org/10.2307/525576
Preece, J. (2013). Community engagement and service learning in a South African university: The challenges of adaptive leadership. South African Journal of Higher Education, 27(4), 986–1004. https://doi.org/10.20853/27-4-278
Raham, A., & Saha, S. (2020). Negative emotions in fieldwork: A narrative inquiry of three EFL researchers’ lived experiences. Qualitative Report, 25(12), 4182–4206. https://nsuworks.nova.edu/tqr/vol25/iss12/1
Resnik, D. B., & Kennedy, C. E. (2010). Balancing scientific and community interests in community-based participatory research. Accountability in Research, 17(4), 198–210. https://doi.org/10.1080/08989621.2010.493095
Reynolds, L., & Sariola, S. (2018). The ethics and politics of community engagement in global health research. Critical Public Health, 28(3), 257–268. https://doi.org/10.1080/09581596.2018.1449598
Sathorar, H., & Geduld, D. (2021). A critical approach to university-community partnerships: Reflecting on the diverse realities. Educational Research for Social Change, 10(2), 88–104. http://dx.doi.org/10.17159/2221-4070/2021/v10i2a6
Schoonen, A., Wood, L., & Kruger, C. (2021). Learning to facilitate community-based research: Guidelines from a novice researcher. Educational Research for Social Change, 10(1), 16–32. http://dx.doi.org/10.17159/2221-4070/2021/v10i1a2
Secules, S., McCall, C., Mejia, J. A., Beebe, C., Masters, A. S. L. Sánchez‐Peña, M., & Svyantek, M. (2021). Positionality practices and dimensions of impact on equity research: A collaborative inquiry and call to the community. Journal of Engineering Education, 110(1), 19–43. https://doi.org/10.1002/jee.20377
Seedat, M., Suffla, S., & Ward, C. L. (2015). Community-engaged violence prevention: Approaches and principles. In P. D. Donnelly & C. L. Ward (Eds.), The Oxford textbook of violence prevention: Epidemiology, evidence and policy (pp. 245–252). Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/med/9780199678723.003.0034
Simmel, G. (1950). The stranger. The sociology of George Simmel. Free Press.
Statistics South Africa. (2011). Census 2011. https://census2011.adrianfrith.com/place/798028012
Szanto, D., & Strutt, C. (2022). Positionality. In P. Ballamingie & D. Szanto (Eds.), Showing theory to know theory: Understanding social science concepts through illustrative vignettes. Showing Theory Press. https://ecampusontario.pressbooks.pub/showingtheory/chapter/positionality/
Taliep, N. (2016). Process evaluation of the development of a community-based participatory intervention promoting positive masculinity and peace and safety: Addressing interpersonal violence in a Western Cape community [Doctoral thesis, University of South Africa]. http://uir.unisa.ac.za/handle/10500/20226
Taliep, N. (2022). A community engagement model for an inclusive just energy transition in the South. Social and Health Sciences Journal, 20(1 and 2), 1–23. https://doi.org/10.25159/2957-3645/11411
Taliep, N., & Bulbulia, S. (2018). Phase 1: Community entry. In N. Taliep, S. Lazarus, S. Bulbulia, G. Ismail & N. Hornsby (Eds.), Ukuphepha: Manual on community engaged violence prevention, safety and peace promotion (pp. 52–68). SAMRC-UNISA Violence, Injury and Peace Research Unit.
Taliep, N., Bulbulia, S., Lazarus, S., Seedat, M., & Building Bridges Team. (2022). Community-based participatory research (CBPR) as an emancipatory modality promoting social transformation, empowerment, agency, and activism. In C. Walker, S. Zlotowitz & A. Zoli (Eds.), The Palgrave handbook of innovative community and clinical psychologies (pp. 497–519). Palgrave Macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-71190-0_24
Taliep, N., Lazarus, S., Bulbulia, S., Ismail, G., & Hornsby, N. (2018). Ukuphepha: Manual on community engaged violence prevention, safety and peace promotion. SAMRC-UNISA Violence, Injury and Peace Research Unit.
Tembo, D., Hickey, G., Montenegro, C., Chandler, D., Nelson, E., Porter, K., Dikomitis, L., Chambers, M., Chimbari, M., Mumba, N., Beresford, P., Ekiikina, P., Musesengwa, R., Staniszewska, S., Coldham, T., & Rennard, U. (2021). Effective engagement and involvement with community stakeholders in the co-production of global health research. BMJ, 372(178), 1–6. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.n178
Thulien, M., Anderson, H., Douglas, S., Dykeman, R., Horne, A., Howard, B., Sedgemore, K., Charlesworth, R., & Fast, D. (2022). The generative potential of mess in community-based participatory research with young people who use drugs in Vancouver. Harm Reduction Journal, 19(1), 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12954-022-00615-7
University Grants Commission. (2019). Fostering social responsibility & community engagement in higher education institutions in India—National curriculum framework & guidelines. University Grants Commission.
Visagie, J., & Posel, D. (2013). A reconsideration of what and who is middle class in South Africa. Development Southern Africa, 30(2), 149–167. https://doi.org/10.1080/0376835X.2013.797224
Walker, C., Zlotowitz, S., & Zoli, A. (2022). Conclusion. In C. Walker, S. Zlotowitz & A. Zoli (Eds.), The Palgrave handbook of innovative community and clinical psychologies (pp. 653–663). Palgrave Macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-71190-0_32
Xhakollari, L. (2016). Academic stress and coping strategies. Social Studies, 10(1), 79–87. https://www.academia.edu/25987737/ACADEMIC_STRESS_AND_COPING_STRATEGIES
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2024 Unisa Press
