As user researchers and designers, we interact with, collect data from, and design for a vast range of people and social groups. Usually, these sessions are without issue, and the rich data collected informs new customer experience, product, or service innovations. However, when researchers conduct research with vulnerable populations there can be a high risk of causing harm or retraumatizing participants when engaging on complex topics.
Under these circumstances, it is essential to address potential harm in the planning and execution of a research project to ensure the protection of research participants.
How can this ethical approach be accomplished?
User researchers can effectively borrow from the fields of psychology and social work to adopt what’s called a trauma-informed research approach.
What is a trauma-informed approach?
A trauma-informed approach to research originated in social work research but is also applicable to psychology, user research, and any area of research involving people.
In essence, it is the modification or reconstruction of research tactics and methods, and the procedures around research, to deliberately avoid or intentionally mitigate circumstances that may traumatize or retraumatize vulnerable groups.
In the paper, Using a Trauma-Informed, Socially Just Research Framework with Marginalized Populations: Practices and Barriers to Implementation by Voith, Laura, A; et al., they note that a trauma-informed approach follows guidelines to minimize retraumatization, including
- modified consent processes;
- continued assessment of participant reactions throughout the research; and,
- a potential rework of processes like eligibility screening to reduce the potential for harm
These different considerations and the methods used in the research itself can be shifted or modified to become more equity-centred, inclusive, and trauma-informed for participants.
The potential harms of user research with marginalized populations
For vulnerable populations, participating in recruiting, research, analysis, and reporting can cause harm or be retraumatizing.
The legacy of discrimination and exclusion due to unequal power balance creates trauma for marginalized people compounded by research that excludes or diminishes their experiences. For instance, a report on racism that neglects to acknowledge its impact on affected communities and resulting trauma is harmful to marginalized communities.
Selecting methods and using language that follows an equity-centred approach is critical to avoiding harm. By being considerate of the lived experience of participants and their potentially traumatic relationship to the research topic, you can prevent the potential harm of something as simple as a less-thoughtful consent process while carrying this intention and approach through the research process.
Let’s explore how you can get started.
How to get started with a trauma-informed approach
The field of social work has several well-worn strategies and methods of consideration when researching vulnerable groups. The following framework can provide a foundation for trauma-informed approaches at each stage of the research process, including
- Pre-study
- Study design
- Recruitment
- Informed consent
- Data collection
- Post-data collection
Trauma-Informed, Socially Just Research Framework Application Inventory
Excerpted from Using a Trauma-Informed, Socially Just Research Framework with Marginalized Populations: Practices and Barriers to Implementation by Voith, Laura, A; et al., Table
Pre-study research
Prioritize: Sociopolitical, cultural, and historical context; peer support, and transparency.
Guiding questions include:
Study design research
Prioritize: Safety, transparency, empowerment, voice, choice, and centralization of participants’ identities
Guiding questions include:
- Does the study design consider the goals of the study while still promoting safety, transparency, and choice among participants?
- Does the study design consider the research study’s goals while centralizing the participants’ lived experiences and identities?
Recruitment research
Prioritize: Safety, transparency, shared power, collaboration
Guiding questions include:
- Is the recruitment process transparent?
- Do protocols and procedures reduce power differentials and promote collaboration between participants and those involved directly or indirectly with the study?
- Is the study team prepared to discuss their social location in the context of the sociopolitical and historical context relative to the social location of participants?
Informed consent research
Prioritize: Empowerment, voice, choice and transparency
Guiding questions include:
- How can we promote agency, choice, and control during the informed consent process?
- Do documents and procedures protect against potential challenges for trauma-exposed populations (for example, cognition overload)?
- What elements of this process might threaten participants’ safety (psychological, physical)?
- What changes can be made to make the process more transparent?
Data collection research
Prioritize: Safety, building and maintaining trust
Guiding questions include:
- What threats to safety can we anticipate for participants and study staff?
- How can safety and security be addressed while collecting quality data?
- Is the study team equipped to maintain and promote emotional and behavioural regulation with participants?
Post-data collection research
Prioritize: Safety; empowerment, voice, and choice
Guiding questions include:
- How will participants who have given their time to share deeply personal information be acknowledged?
- Which tools to assess participants’ stress levels are most appropriate for the study context?
- What resources are available to empower participants post-study?
Overall, it’s critical to keep in mind that every stage of the research process has the potential for harm, and we should always question traditional approaches to participant preparation and management.
Keep a particularly close eye on consent processes, recruitment, and how the research team will manage the data from participants following the research.
Looking for additional insights on inclusive research practices?
Over the past decade, we have honed our user research and inclusive design practices to help organizations across the public and private sectors deliver products and services that engage the full spectrum of their market.
Let’s talk if you’re looking to mature your digital product and educational practices to meet your users’ needs.
References
Voith, L.A., Hamler, .T., Francis, M.W., Lee, .H., & Korsch-Williams, .A. (2020). Using a Trauma-Informed, Socially Just Research Framework with Marginalized Populations: Practices and Barriers to Implementation. Social Work Research, 44(3), 169-181.
Winfield, T. (2021). Vulnerable Research: Competencies for Trauma and Justice-Informed Ethnography. Journal of Contemporary Ethnography, OnlineFirst, 1