Outtake: Grappling with the Exit from a Community of Research Participants

In the research community, everyone talks about access and entry when working with target research populations. I have posed this question to assistant and associate professors: “Well, what about exit?” I have never had a satisfying response. I usually hear “That’s a good question, never thought about that!” or “That’s such a good question, let’s write about it.” While I feel validated in my question, I am still waiting to receive a satisfactory response. Admittedly, my positive experience of immersing myself in Spanish-speaking immigrant communities is counterbalanced by my failed “exit” from the families and youth I befriended. So, in the hopes of initiating a thought-provoking conversation—even asynchronously—I pose to you, reader: how do we ethically, personally, and professionally “exit” from a person or group of people who participated in our research?