What could happen when action research meets ideas of sociomateriality?

Abstract

Action research in its various forms highlights the interactional and relational ways in which research and knowledge become socially produced with people, with intentions of positively transforming realworld relations. In parallel, there is a growing interest in organisational research informed by the field of Science and Technology Studies, about the potential significance of matter to understanding how processes of researching interact with the world. By experimenting with connections to debates about sociomateriality, this paper explores what implications there might be for understanding and performing action research, especially given that action researchers are often values-oriented and attached, and acknowledge that they want to change material issues.