Participatory Methods, Reflexivity and the Co-Production of Knowledge In Migration Research

Migration studies have undergone significant epistemological and methodological transformations in recent years. Beyond analysing migration processes, increasing attention has been devoted to examining how knowledge about migration is produced, whose voices are represented, and how power relations shape research practices. The reflexive turn in the social sciences, together with decolonial and postcolonial critiques, has challenged researchers to interrogate the categories, assumptions, and positionalities through which migration is constructed as an object of study, highlighting that categories are not neutral. Calls to de-migranticize migration studies and to develop more reflexive and inclusive research practices have become increasingly influential, while also raising critical questions about who benefits from these trends and how they reshape knowledge production.

Against this backdrop, participatory approaches have gained prominence as both methodological and epistemological responses. Participatory Action Research (PAR), community-based research, collaborative ethnography, Photovoice, and other co-creative methods seek to challenge traditional researcher–researched hierarchies by involving migrants and community actors throughout the research process. The growing incorporation of peer researchers, together with migrant-led initiatives, has opened new possibilities for the co-production of knowledge.

At the same time, participatory approaches raise important questions regarding representation, power sharing, ethics, authorship, institutional constraints, and the limits of participation itself.

This session invites empirical and methodological contributions exploring the intersections between participatory methodologies, reflexivity, decolonial perspectives, and knowledge co-production in migration research. We particularly welcome papers examining the role of peer researchers, migrant-led research, participatory visual methods, power relations in research, knowledge justice, and critical perspectives on reflexivity and de-migranticization.