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Emergent Issues When Researching Trauma

A Confessional Tale

Concordia University, Montreal, Canada, kate.connolly{at}sympatico.ca

Rosemary C. Reilly

Concordia University, Montreal, Canada

This article examines the impact of conducting narrative research focusing on trauma and healing. It is told through three voices: the study participants who experienced the trauma, the researcher who shared her personal experiences conducting this research, and an academic colleague who acted as a reflective echo making sense of and normalizing the researcher's experience. Issues explored in the article include: harmonic resonance between the story of the participant and the life experiences of the researcher, emotional reflexivity, complex researcher roles and identities, acts of reciprocity that redress the balance of power in the research relationship, the need for compassion for the participants, and self-care for the researcher when researching trauma. The authors conclude that when researching trauma, the researcher is a member of a scholarly community and a human community, and that maintaining the stance as a member of the human community is an essential element of conducting trauma research.

Key Words: researcher reflective alliance • researching trauma • stresses of qualitative research

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