Bringing an Equity Lens to Participant Observation in Critical Ethnographic Health Research

Abstract

Critically-oriented health research often engages participants whose lives are shaped by structural inequities and structural violence. As scholars who engage in critical theoretical, praxis-oriented research, including research with social justice and decolonizing aims, we are cognizant of the histories of exploitation and structural violence often perpetuated through research. To engage in research that effectively promotes health equity, we are increasingly aware of the necessity of critical research approaches that include processes for engaging in data collection that are respectful, affirming, and minimize harm, and that illuminuate unequal relations of power, challenge the status quo, and contribute to social change. The aim of this paper is to explore participant observation as a method of data collection in critical ethnographic health research with people impacted by structural violence and inequity. Our premise is that it is not possible to conduct research that exposes structural violence, marginalization and social injustices without also critically examining our research processes. To illustrate, we weave together our experiences of conducting critical ethnographic work in diverse contexts to examine the complexities of conducting participant observation with people impacted by structural violence, surfacing the tensions between the potential for harm in research, and strategies for promoting equity. Specifically, we present our collective analysis of how observational practices can reproduce stigma, exacerbate harms associated with methodological and academic colonialism, thereby contributing to epistemic violence, and how participant observation can be deployed in ways that prevent and mitigate such harms. Despite the inherent challenges and complexities, we see immense value in critical ethnographic research that includes participant observation, and we join others in advocating for trauma-, violence-, and justice-informed approaches to critical ethnographic research.