<aside> 💡 This checklist is an excerpt from the webinar on "Research around sensitive topics with people in vulnerable situations" by Julie Sun and Amy Bracewell at cxpartners, presented on 2nd July, 2021. It summarises our learnings from research projects with people, who suffered abuse, trauma and or living with severe mental illnesses, to help fellow practitioners tackling similar challenges.

</aside>

Assign a care person who’s outside the project

This person will check in with individual team members who are engaged with vulnerable groups as part of the research throughout the project. They can refer to the self-assessment sheet when checking in. (Assigned carer can talk through NHS mood assessment quiz at different stages of the project)

Give others a heads up

Let your partner/family members know about the projects so they can check in and support you as and when needed.

Allocate more time—Scheduling of the sessions to allow time for debrief and break

• For projects where you know you may engage with difficult topics such as suicide, chronic illnesses, traumas etc, make sure you have another moderator with you in the session and allow max one observer (ideally someone from the client side to get their engagement) Too many people in one session may overwhelm the participant and create the necessary nervousness raising anxiety.
• If participants are using their phone, be clear on joining instructions (if using services like Zoom). Offer simple ways for participants to take part in the research such as phone car whenever possible

Consult with experts

When creating discussion guides, make sure to have them reviewed by subject matter experts who are familiar with the target audience. E.g. relevant healthcare providers for patients, support workers for those with trauma and or living with abuse. Find out what is safe and appropriate when conducting research with these audience groups.

Ease participants into the research environment

• If sessions are face to face, how can we make the environment more comfortable and familiar? Consider making your research space more like a living room than a lab
• If sessions are done remotely, consider arranging check-in calls ideally a day ahead to introduce yourself as the researcher so they can be familiarised with you and your voice and it’s also a chance to ease any concerns on their side especially if they’ve never participated in such research. We can use the opportunity to set the right expectations, ease them in and pre-empt any questions and concerns ahead of time

Have trial runs when possible

Arrange Pilot sessions with target participants to get a better sense from target audience what language and format feels natural and appropriate

Have follow up support available to participants

Lean on subject matter experts (E.g. health workers or support workers) to see if there are ways to support participants post sessions should they need. For example, we shared a debrief sheet for survivors we spoke with for Women’s Aid at the end of the research session and there included a dedicated support worker they can reach out to if they need support in any way, along with other contact information and emergency numbers in case they’re needed. This is about not dropping participants off after we’re done with the research and showing that there’s a continuation of support. Not leaving them hanging.

Set aside time to decompress

We found that a decompression chat after the sessions can help greatly to offload a lot of that mental load and personal stories gathered. Consider scheduling a long walk while talking through what’s in your head with your research colleague, team mate or assigned care person on the project. Having the space to decompress can help you better organise your thoughts and allow space to refocus

Seek more support as needed

See if there is counselling available through your employer health plan. Take advantage of it even if you feel okay it’s nice to talk through things with somebody.

Leverage the power of storytelling to share research insights

Hearing these hard-lived stories, it’s difficult to not feel attached or feel an extra sense of responsibility to spread these stories and turn insights into fuel to improve services for the better. Use the power of narrative and storytelling to engage your client and team members who build these services and can truly make a difference for the cohort of people represented by your participants. Explore empathy maps, visual journeys, illustrations comics, videos, whatever way to get your team to absorb the insights.

Research is also about storytelling

Check out how many other researchers are already exploring ways to playback research in more engaging ways. (e.g. Illustrating Anthropology, an online exhibition exploring human lives around the world through comics, drawings, and paintings of anthropological research: https://illustratinganthropology.com/ )