This week’s discussion opened my eyes to the responsibilities a researcher must uphold when conducting an investigation. A prominent issue that caught my attention was the careful negotiation necessary when establishing a relationship between the researcher and the participant. The power dynamic that occurs within this setting is complex, particularly when research is focussed on a sensitive and personal area.
The researcher-participant relationship can become quite intimate. A researcher often has to ask personal, probing questions, as well as reciprocating by opening-up themselves to help create a secure and equitable relationship. A safe space is especially necessary when questions can bring up feelings of vulnerability and powerlessness for the participant. Research is collaborative – participants aren’t objects of study and they shouldn’t feel they are being treated as such.
However, as Dr Carisa Showden pointed out, this raises further questions: when does a researcher overstep, losing their stance as an abstract person in their research? The participant should still be aware of why you are here.
As a researcher, it is naturally unavoidable to have both a completely controlled and power balanced interaction with participants. Even factors such as a participants’ response to visible aspects of a researcher’s identity have critical impacts. For this reason, researchers must be aware of the influence of their presence in their report and analysis. Most of all, it is their responsibility to consider this when navigating the researcher-participant relationship to ensure it is as equitable as possible.
Berger, Michele Tracy, and Kathleen Guidroz. “Researching Sexuality: The Politics-of-Location Approach for Studying Sex Work.” In Negotiating sex work: unintended consequences of policy and activism, edited by Carrissa Showden and Samantha Majic, 3-30. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 2014. www.jstor.org/stable/10.5749/j.ctt6wr77g.6
