Reference no: EM133744416
Tanya, you bring up sensitive topics in action research. Sensitive topics can make the work of research complex. Sensitive topics are not a measure of social or theoretical importance; they can address a few of society's pressing social issues and policy questions (Sieber & Stanley, 1988, p. 55) (Lee, 1993). When researching sensitive topics, there are more contingencies to deal with. Sensitive topics also raise "complex methodological and technical problems (Lee & Renzetti, 1990) (Lee, 1993). An issue with sensitive topics is that they can create a relationship of mistrust, concealment and dissimulation between the researcher and the researched. This can hurt the reliability of the study (Lee, 1993).
Sensitive topics also unearth more issues of ethics, politics, and legal aspects of research (Lee, 1993). Researchers must be more aware of the responsibility of ethics in their study. Sieber and Stanely define sensitive research as "studies in which there are potential consequences or implications, either directly for the participants in the research or for the class of individuals represented by the research (Lee, 1993)." An example of this would be the quality of daycare by stay-at-home Mothers or daycare services. With this example, it seems to this writer that we may not want to know the truth about some sensitive topics-the dilemma with sensitive research, many more considerations to make, and issues to deal with.
Therefore, the question that looms large is whether one should plunge into the depths of researching a sensitive topic, braving the pitfalls and challenges, or opt to abstain from such research and, in a sense, "evade responsibility." This decision carries significant weight and can have far-reaching implications.
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