Researching Sensitive Topics (SAGE Focus Editions)

About this book

Cults child abuse AIDS governmental policies marital rape--increasingly social scientists are called upon to research topics that are "sensitive" in the sense that they deal with behavior that is intimate discreditable or incriminating. Such topics pose not only difficult technical problems but also include wider issues regarding the ethics and politics of research which are most clearly seen on sensitive topics. Yet to date no resource has existed which effectively guides researchers in conducting sensitive research--until now. Researching Sensitive Topics acquaints researchers with the tools and experiences of colleagues on how to conduct such research. A team of distinguished researchers from a variety of disciplines (psychology sociology public health nursing anthropology and public policy) explores such issues as cross-cultural research disclosure and the dissemination of research findings feminist methodologies and self-censorship. USE FOR NEXT AD (9/26/94): "The book offers excellent advice for any researcher investigating any topic involving humans using any method quantitative or qualitative. . . . The essays are both easy to read and easy to relate to and the learning that results is invaluable. It is suggested for use by practitioners by scholars and in the classroom." --Journal of Marketing Research "While the contributions to the knowledge of specific topical areas makes this book fascinating it is the overall methodological implications which make this book so valuable." --Qualitative Health Research