Overview: Participatory Research Approaches and their Importance for Digital Transformation Research
Participatory research has emerged as an important approach to scientific inquiry, enabling the active involvement of those directly affected by research outcomes. This approach ensures that research processes and outcomes are closely aligned with the actual needs and experiences of participants, leading to greater practical relevance and ethical research practices. Particularly in the field of digital transformation research, participatory methods are crucial to integrate user perspectives into digital developments and social practices around them, to foster innovation and to ensure the social responsibility of new technologies. This paper provides an overview of the main participatory research approaches relevant to digital transformation, offering guidance to researchers in selecting appropriate methods and highlighting their potential impact on research outcomes. The paper includes a brief definition of participatory research, an exploration of different methodological designs, and suggestions for future research directions.