'Under-Participation' and Ethnocentrism in Environmental Education Research: Developing 'Culturally Sensitive Research Approaches'

Racial and cultural diversity issues have been a source of some interest amongst outdoor and environmental educators. Early research was framed in terms of the "under-participation" of people of colour, which led to the development of ethnocentric and methodologically problematical "marginality" and "ethnicity" theories. There is, however, a growing body of research, educational and otherwise, which focuses on people of colour, and which privileges culture as being central to the research process. I argue that there are currently (at least) three interrelated "culturally sensitive research approaches" in use to differing extents in environmental education in its widest sense: "ethnic modeling in qualitative research;" "culturing" environmental education; and community based participatory research. I conclude by making a plea for "culturally sensitive research approaches" to become inherent in all environmental education research. (Contains 7 notes.)