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R esearching nonviolent action : past themes and future possibilities
Author(s) -
Martin Brian
Publication year - 2005
Publication title -
peace and change
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 1468-0130
pISSN - 0149-0508
DOI - 10.1111/j.0149-0508.2005.00319.x
Subject(s) - thriving , action (physics) , participatory action research , nothing , relevance (law) , principal (computer security) , citizen journalism , cyberspace , action research , sociology , political science , public relations , environmental ethics , social science , epistemology , law , the internet , philosophy , pedagogy , world wide web , anthropology , computer science , operating system , physics , quantum mechanics
Research into nonviolent action has developed in the past century from nothing to a small but thriving enterprise. Past nonviolence research can be usefully assessed in terms of its relevance to three principal audiences: nonviolence researchers, activists, and policy makers. Nonviolence research has often served to inspire and inform researchers and activists but rarely has had an impact on policy. Future nonviolence research can do more of what has gone before, especially case studies and theory. Also, there is a potential to open up new areas of investigation including the role of technology, the absence as well as the presence of action, and new action arenas including cyberspace and organisational struggles, as well as to pioneer participatory methods of research. The future development of nonviolence research is likely to be symbiotic with the growing use of nonviolent action.