Synopses & Reviews
Cults, child abuse, AIDS, governmental policies, marital rape--increasingly social scientists are called upon to research topics that are sensitive in the sense that they deal with behavior that is intimate, discreditable, or incriminating. Such topics pose not only difficult technical problems, but also include wider issues regarding the ethics and politics of research which are most clearly seen on sensitive topics. Yet, to date, no resource has existed which effectively guides researchers in conducting sensitive research--until now. Researching Sensitive Topics acquaints researchers with the tools and experiences of colleagues on how to conduct such research. A team of distinguished researchers from a variety of disciplines (psychology, sociology, public health, nursing, anthropology, and public policy) explores such issues as cross-cultural research, disclosure and the dissemination of research findings, feminist methodologies, and self-censorship. USE FOR NEXT AD (9/26/94): The book offers excellent advice for any researcher investigating any topic involving humans, using any method, quantitative or qualitative. . . . The essays are both easy to read and easy to relate to, and the learning that results is invaluable. It is suggested for use by practitioners, by scholars, and in the classroom. --Journal of Marketing Research While the contributions to the knowledge of specific topical areas makes this book fascinating, it is the overall methodological implications which make this book so valuable. --Qualitative Health Research
Synopsis
Social scientists are increasingly called upon to carry out research on topics that are sensitive' in the sense that they deal with behaviour that is intimate, discreditable or incriminating. Such topics not only pose difficult technical problems, but also raise questions regarding the ethics and politics of research.
Aiming to acquaint researchers with the tools and experiences of colleagues in various fields on methods of researching these topics, distinguished researchers from across the social sciences explore such issues as cross-cultural research, disclosure and the dissemination of research findings, feminist methodologies and self-censorship.
Table of Contents
The problems of researching sensitive topics : an overview and introduction / Raymond M. Lee and Claire M. Renzetti -- The ethics and politics of sensitive research / Joan E. Sieber -- The cyclical pattern of child abuse : a study of research methodology / Sharon D. Herzberger -- Measuring the underground economy : a suitable case for interdisciplinary treatment? / J.J. Thomas -- Doing research in post-Tiananmen China / Daniel J. Curran and Sandra Cook -- Developing a community sample of gay men for an epidemiological study of AIDS / John L. Martin and Laura Dean -- "They must be crazy" : some of the difficulties in researching "cults" / Marybeth Ayella -- Sensitivity as a problem in field research : a study of routine policing in Northern Ireland / John D. Brewer -- Mediating the message : affinity and hostility in research on sensitive topics / Nigel G. Fielding.