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Mothering and ‘insider’ dilemmas: feminist sociologists in the research process
Cooper, L. Rogers, Chrissie
Cooper, L.
Rogers, Chrissie
Publication Date
2015-05
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The final, definitive version of this paper has been published in
Sociological Research Online, vol 20/issue 2 by SAGE Publications Ltd, All rights reserved. ©
2015 The Authors.
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2015-01-12
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Abstract
This paper is about care, insider positions and mothering within feminist
research. We ask questions about how honest, ethical and caring can we really
be in placing the self into the research process as mothers ourselves. Should we
leave out aspects of the research that do not fit neatly and how ethical can we
claim to be if we do? Moreover, should difficult differences, secrets and silences
that emerge from the research process and research stories that might 'out' us
as failures be excluded from research outcomes so as to claim legitimate
research? We consider the use of a feminist methods as crucial in the reciprocal
and relational understanding of personal enquiry. Mothers invest significant
emotional capital in their families and we explore the blurring of the
interpersonal and intrapersonal when sharing mothering experiences common to
both participant and researcher. Indeed participants can identify themselves
within the process as 'friends' of the researcher. We both have familiarity within
our respective research that has led to mutual understanding of having insider
positions. Crucially individuals' realities are a vital component of the qualitative
paradigm and that 'insider' research remains a necessary, albeit messy vehicle in
social research. As it is we consider a growing body of literature which marks out
and endorses a feminist ethics of care. All of which critique established ways of
thinking about ethics, morality, security, citizenship and care. It provides
alternatives in mapping private and public aspects of social life as it operates at
a theoretical level, but importantly for this paper also at the level of practical
application.
Version
Accepted Manuscript
Citation
Cooper L and Rogers C (2015) Mothering and ‘insider’ dilemmas: feminist sociologists
in the research process. Sociological Research Online. 20(2): 1-13.
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Article