Arts and medical humanity studies
Léa Andréoléty, Univ. Grenoble Alpes, CNRS, Litt&Arts, 38000 Grenoble, France
My doctoral research falls within the interdisciplinary field of medical humanities: performing arts with a focus on theatrical improvisation, dance and somatic practices, within the curriculum of nursing sciences. This applied research, which extends beyond the realm of aesthetics, consists in a partnership with the Institute of Nursing Sciences of the University Hospital of Grenoble. I use the concept of action-research as a methodological approach to guide the action carried out in the research field provided by this pedagogical framework. The use of action-research in this specific context is driven by a noted lack of methodological criticality when applying artistic practices to health training and the need of transcribing these artistic practices into body training for nursing.
The concept of action research combines three aspects: participation, action and research. The nature of this research process is participative and its objective is to facilitate changes in a situation and/or its structure. The use of this approach in this context is also justified by the principles of co-construction with the people involved (as I myself am not a nursing specialist, it appears essential to place their expertise and experience at the center of the action and analysis).
This approach, to which I was introduced on a theoretical level primarily through the works of René Barbier developed in the second half of the 20th century, has a number of practical applications. Within my research, the concept of action-research has evolved from a theoretical point of view to its practical implementation through the proposals for theatrical and somatic practice workshops with a group of student volunteers over their three years of studies. It is this transition from theory to practice that allowed me to identify issues and questions the notion of professional positionality as a researcher and fieldworker.
Questioning the professional positionality - which is determined by the way of embodying one’s function, the approach and the way of doing things within this research process - seems to be a primordial issue: how can we take into account and recognize the participants theoretical knowledge and experience? And more concretely, what positionality should we acquire with the participants within this pedagogical proposition? The "research" element of the action-research concept leads to the production of knowledge within the study. The approach implies a transformative field logic, beginning with an initial assessment established with the institution on one hand, and the participants on the other. Moreover, the approach is based within the field experiences of these participants, and their theoretical contributions. It seems therefore necessary to consider a number of issues brought into question by this approach: my involvement with the institution, decision makers, and participants, my degree – not inconsequential – of neutrality and objectivity in relating and constructing this research, the reciprocal influence between participants, the institution, and myself. Concretely, the construction of this pedagogical practice is achieved together with the students, who suggest real-life situations that they find problematic or questionable. These situations are then dissected, explored, tested, and worked on through various dimensions – relational, ethical, or technical, for example – and using various tools – improvisational theater, Contact Improvisation, or other somatic practices. Choosing to position myself as a participant-observer allows me to, at the same time, collaborate, intervene, create, and develop a link between practice and theory, as well as between the institution and the participants. The workshop content evolves according to feedback from students and what springs to their mind in relation to these reflections and experiences. The implementation of an action-research initiative makes it possible for participants to appropriate a scientific approach towards their training and, furthermore, for them to take a more active role in the construction of this training.
Cite this item: Léa Andréoléty, “Action research”, translated by Kieran Puillandre, Performascope: Interdisciplinary Lexicon of Performance and Research-Creation, Grenoble: Université Grenoble Alpes, 2022, [online]: http://performascope.univ-grenoble-alpes.fr/en/detail/177881
