Partnership or collaborative research: Is it possible to theorize and take action at the same time?
Our article examines the surge of partnership or collaborative research (PCR) alongside “classical” academic research. We ask to what extent the practice of partnership research contributes to the emergence of processes of collaboration, mediation, knowledge sharing and even the “co-construction” of knowledge. The purpose of partnership research is to foster the ongoing and committed collaboration of members from diverse backgrounds, from both research and fieldwork or practice. We show that the differences in roles, working contexts, temporalities and identities can explain the difficulties of setting up exchanges between the various settings (academic, community, union or other, as the case may be).