CONTEXT

In the context of contemporary crises, whether political, ecological, health, social or economic, the world is undergoing radical transformation. Qualitative research is capable of both describing and understanding these upheavals; however, it also, to a greater or lesser extent, participates in the transformation of the world.  The current crises, and the profound transformations they are bringing about, therefore invite psychology to fully embrace qualitative research “of and for world-making” (Power et al., 2023). In other words, it is vital to fully develop the potential for change offered by qualitative research to help us live in a more just and equitable world. Qualitative research in psychology of and for world-making raises a number of challenges and questions that this 3rd Equip symposium aims to address, including: 
- Contributing to transforming the world raises ethical questions, and invites us to develop reflexivity in our qualitative research, in order to question the social changes we are deploying in the service of. The theoretical and methodological frameworks that can be employed to cultivate this reflexivity, as well as the epistemological approaches that can be drawn upon, are of particular interest. Furthermore, the limits of our approaches and tools must be identified, as well as the nature of resistance to change encountered in our work, the fields we investigate, and the stakeholders we interact with. It is also crucial to examine the limitations imposed by our research practices and academic environments, which often enforce frameworks of thought that hinder progress. Finally, the strategies that can be employed to overcome these limitations must be explored.
- The development of a psychology of and for world-making invites to question anew the role of researchers and participants in qualitative research. Beyond the scope of community or critical approaches, which certainly provide frameworks for interrogating the roles of various actors and incorporating minority voices, it necessitates to address the issue of the circulation of knowledge (from the domain of everyday life to the scientific sphere and vice-versa), the consequences engendered by this circulation of knowledge, and how this in turn can feed into our research.
- In order to comprehend the world in a state of flux, it is necessary to direct our attention not solely towards the content of the phenomena under investigation, but also, and at the same time, to the processes by which these phenomena are shaped and transformed, a task which also constitutes a methodological challenge.
- Finally, in this context, the question of the criteria or strategies deployed in qualitative research appears essential to legitimize our research findings and the voice of those the researcher gives a voice to. Beyond the question of legitimacy, the issue of quality in qualitative research provides a genuine space in which to conceptualise, interrogate and develop qualitative research that is more likely to contribute to a psychology of and for world-making, without imposing ready-made solutions.