Virtual Vines: Using Participatory Methods to Connect Virtual Work with Community-Based Practice

This chapter focuses on the somewhat unexpected relationship between participatory research methods, virtual work, and community-based practices. More specifically, the authors’ contribution outlines different conceptual foundations and methodological approaches related to participatory and community-based research. Embedded within this review, they address two key connections between participatory methods and virtual work. First, participatory and community-based methodologies provide a useful set of concepts and practices that can be applied in virtual contexts. Second, virtual work can facilitate participatory initiatives and achieve community-based goals. The chapter also offers two short case studies that illustrate how community-based groups often rely on virtual work to move their local initiatives forward.