Power and reflexivity: Positions and positioning in involving research with young people

In this chapter, we argue that the involvement of young people in the research process is never innocent nor straightforward, but always interwoven with processes of power and in/exclusion. We advocate acknowledgement and reflexivity regarding these processes, as opposed to avoiding them, as the most promising route towards responsible and ethical involving research. Thus, based on the literature, including theoretical sources, we offer a model that can stimulate systematic reflexivity throughout the research process. The chapter frames the reflections on power issues that run through the book’s chapters, and sheds new light on well-known methods that are often employed to involve young people in research.