Participatory research and empowerment of women in health care

The potential of participatory research in empowering women in the context of health care is discussed and illustrated with case studies from India and Zimbabwe in this article. The participatory method of body mapping employed in a reproductive health context in rural Zimbabwe demonstrates how participatory research methods help initiate dialogue between health professionals and local women and provide a means of mutual learning and empowerment for those participating in the research. The case study from India illustrates how women came together with development workers to identify local women's priority health needs and to organise collectively to meet these in ways that were culturally appropriate. This involved the raising of critical awareness, followed by social action against relationships and structures of oppression at personal, collective and structural levels. The article concludes with a discussion of obstacles to participatory research and outlines tentative suggestions as to how these might be tackled.