Participatory Rural Appraisal And Questionnaire Survey

This Book Seeks To Assess The State-Of-The-Art Of Participatory Rural Appraisal (Pra) Among The Ngos In Tamil Nadu, With Particular Focus On Efficacy Of Participatory Methods. It Finds Out The Problems And Challenges Encountered By The Ngos In Employing Pra Methods In Rural Development Work, And Analyses The Steps Taken By Them To Overcome Such Problems And Challenges. Also, It Ascertains The Innovations, If Any, Attempted By Ngos In The Arena Of Participatory Methods.

The book comprises twenty-two chapters. The first two chapters deal with the origin, concept and principles of PRA. Chapters 3 – 20 deal with the methods of PRA. Each method is described in detail, explaining the concept, the procedure to be adopted, the participants to be involved, its application, merits and limitations and the precautions to be taken. In order to quickly grasp the methods, plenty of field-based illustrations are given. These illustrations are drawn from a wide variety of fields in order to make the readers understand and grasp the varied fields of application of PRA. Chapter 21 describes the roles and responsibilities of the PRA team members. This is an important segment in the book, for the effective practice of PRA mostly depends on the attitude and behaviour of the PRA team members. The final chapter dwells upon the application of PRA methodology in select fields of development. The book should be of immense use to those who believe in the institutionalisation of participation. Students, teachers, researchers, NGO workers, donors and aid agencies in the development field will find this book comprehensive, meaningful and productive. However, the book does not aim to replace field experience, since the latter is always more rewarding. The author welcomes comments and suggestions from the readers.

Robert Chambers, 1802-1871, Scottish publisher and writer.