Chapter 6: Process: What Are the Approaches, Tools, and Techniques Including Modification of Existing Practice Necessary to Work Ethically and Meaningfully With Individuals From Marginalized and Minoritized Groups?

The methods of practice of qualitative inquiry are informed by philosophical assumptions which are rarely considered outside the classroom and even more rarely reported in the literature. It is these assumptions which form the basis and criteria for determining relevance, relationships and the rules that govern in any given phenomenon. These assumptions related to epistemology, ontology, axiology, and so on, must be identified and examined in relation to the assumptions of the individuals and groups which are to be participants in any study in all cases but even more so in instances of research related to individuals and communities which are different from the researcher. This suggests, at a minimum, philosophical congruence is essential in consideration of and decision-making regarding the appropriate approaches, tools and techniques including modification of existing practice necessary to work ethically and meaningfully with individuals from marginalized and minoritized groups. This consideration cannot be conducted absent the input and information from those about whom these judgments are to be made and require authentic cultural identification as a starting point. Authentic cultural identification implies appreciation and respect rather than simply knowledge—it requires an understanding that is grounded in the cultural experience and identity of the research participant which is only possible from genuine mutual relationships. While the particular approaches to qualitative inquiry may not necessarily require modification, when working with minoritized or marginalized individuals or groups the nature of the prompts, questions, priorities, information, and so on, which are the contents of and the mechanisms for qualitative research are certainly subject to serious consideration beyond the goal of addressing the intent of the inquiry (i.e., the “research questions”). Researchers should constantly ask whether their own point of view, cultural identity, approaches, instrumentation, and methods of analysis, are appropriate (i.e., authentic) and ethical. This suggests that unlike other approaches to inquiry, qualitative research with these individuals and groups is more likely to result in authentic meaning when their design is emergent rather than a priori protocol driven, and qualitative research questions and methods are informed by the community of interest rather than solely determined by the researcher’s interest. For qualitative inquiry methods to be authentic, they must be fully understood in practice by the community as well as the researcher. Inquiry participants must know and understand how information gathered will be used to result in meaningful descriptions and explanations of the phenomena which is their experience and should at least indirectly (i.e., cultural competence-cultural humility-cultural responsiveness) inform those explanations to ensure accuracy and authenticity. Some examples of these types of approaches include community-based and participatory research and (participatory) action research. In any case, ultimately, the progression of research-based knowledge discovery or creation moves from observation to data, to evidence.