Keeping Blobs Blobby: Inclusive Research with People with Learning Disabilities. A Comic

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Authors: Gary Bourlet, Melissa L. Kirby, Stephen D. Kroeger, Jessica Mannion, Amy M. Russell
Cited by: 0

Abstract

This comic was created during the planning of a symposium which brought together three papers, each highlighting inclusive research projects with people with learning disabilities. The comic discusses the ways research can be adapted to make it inclusive, the barriers teams have faced when trying to work together and the ways they have responded to those challenges; including the use of creative methods, questioning the underlying conceptualisation of research and challenging constructions of research leadership. The comic, by Stephen Kroeger, tells the stories of: • Melissa Kirby and the Purple Research Group “I am a researcher”: experiences of co-researching in an arts-based PhD” • Amy Russell and Gary Bourlet from No research about us, without us. “Sharing leadership and power in a research project or resisting blobs becoming squares” • Jess Mannion & The Relationships and Sexuality Research Team, ‘Beyond co-researching – presenters, authors, teachers, and international collaborators.’

Fields of Study & Subjects

Disability Rights and Representation Participatory Visual Research Methods Qualitative Research Methods and Ethics

Publication details

Journal / source
White Rose Research Online (University of Leeds, The University of Sheffield, University of York)
Publication date
6 February 2026
Language
EN