Social inclusion in research: reflecting on a research project involving young mothers in care
Social inclusion in research: reflecting on a research project involving young mothers in care
This article considers social inclusion in research by reflecting upon a project involving young mothers in care, which used grounded theory methodology (GTM) to theorise their situations and emphasise their voice, a key issue in inclusion, and yielded mixed outcomes. GTM dealt poorly with inclusivity and was supplemented by a feminist orientation.
This also failed young mothers. They were included by sitting on an Advisory Com-mittee, being paid an honorarium and assisting in disseminating results. These efforts were unable to overturn power dynamics that privileged researchers’ ownership of the findings, and enabled them to benefit from doing research and their rela-tionship with funders. The attempt to change policies and practices that served clients badly was thwarted by an election that brought in a régime with different goals. The young women authored their own stories and spoke authoritatively of their experiences. However, inclusion was not fully secured in and by the research process. Their positioning as research subjects curtailed their potential in this regard.
social inclusion, social exclusion, agency, feminism, grounded theory, community, research, process, young mothers, empowerment, privileging expertise, power relations, voice
13-22
Dominelli, Lena
6cf8fcb9-21dd-4f09-b5a5-0776a10a2cdb
2005
Dominelli, Lena
6cf8fcb9-21dd-4f09-b5a5-0776a10a2cdb
Dominelli, Lena
(2005)
Social inclusion in research: reflecting on a research project involving young mothers in care.
International Journal of Social Welfare, 14 (1), .
(doi:10.1111/j.1468-2397.2005.00335.x).
Abstract
This article considers social inclusion in research by reflecting upon a project involving young mothers in care, which used grounded theory methodology (GTM) to theorise their situations and emphasise their voice, a key issue in inclusion, and yielded mixed outcomes. GTM dealt poorly with inclusivity and was supplemented by a feminist orientation.
This also failed young mothers. They were included by sitting on an Advisory Com-mittee, being paid an honorarium and assisting in disseminating results. These efforts were unable to overturn power dynamics that privileged researchers’ ownership of the findings, and enabled them to benefit from doing research and their rela-tionship with funders. The attempt to change policies and practices that served clients badly was thwarted by an election that brought in a régime with different goals. The young women authored their own stories and spoke authoritatively of their experiences. However, inclusion was not fully secured in and by the research process. Their positioning as research subjects curtailed their potential in this regard.
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Published date: 2005
Keywords:
social inclusion, social exclusion, agency, feminism, grounded theory, community, research, process, young mothers, empowerment, privileging expertise, power relations, voice
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Local EPrints ID: 40807
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/40807
ISSN: 1369-6866
PURE UUID: 64487b4e-4e33-4869-a409-32f79f2f0550
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Date deposited: 10 Jul 2006
Last modified: 15 Mar 2024 08:22
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Author:
Lena Dominelli
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