No abstract

Culturally responsive, Ethics, IRB, Relational, Reflexive,

This qualitative case study was an examination of a team-based faculty/mentorled International Doctoral Student Support Group (IDSSG) designed specifically around issues in preparing and mentoring international doctoral students for careers in academia. Twelve participants were selected to participate in a support/focus group that met twice a month for an academic year to attend workshops and discuss their lives as doctoral students. The data set was comprised of two pre-and post-surveys and two in-depth pre-and post-interviews. Findings in the themes of international doctoral students' graduate school experiences and the impact of the faculty-led support group are presented and discussed.Keywords International student Á Doctoral student Á Mentoring Á Case study Á Focus group Matriculation into a doctoral program of study can be a difficult transition for many people. Students transitioning into graduate school have been shown to experience increased feelings of insecurity, decreased self-esteem, and high levels of stress and anxiety (GrantVallone and Ensher 2000). Another gauge of the graduate school experience is persistence, or its negative counterpart, attrition. Although attrition rates vary by institution and

In this article, the authors examined the current use of poetry in qualitative research. The literature yielded the following purposes of poetry: poetic allusions, cultural poetry research, participants’ poetry as data, data poems, research experience poems or poems from the field, and autoethnographic poetry.The authors drew on the experiences from a research poetry group, a reflexive circular e-mail, and research poems they authored. The authors deconstructed the reflexive circular e-mail for future possibilities as a data collection method and explored the following tensions: representation of research, research poets’ training and experience, explanation or interpretation, and trustworthiness. The authors composed Poetic Interludes throughout the article as a way of poking around at, with, and through poetry.

Focus groups are a frequently employed and valued method of data collection in the Social Sciences. This article specifically addresses maximizing the benefits of focus groups through the framework of culturally responsive research practice. Discussion of authors' research projects which utilized focus groups are presented in order to illuminate the advantages of using culturally responsive focus groups (CRFGs) in data collection. Three types of focus groups are discussed: traditional focus groups, CRFGs, and naturally occurring CRFGs. Focus groups are a powerful qualitative research method which, especially when designed to be culturally responsive, facilitate collection of rich and authentic data. Culturally responsive research practice will enhance work with a wide range of populations but is particularly important when facilitating groups with persons who have been traditionally marginalized. Methodological and ethical concerns of CRFGs are discussed.

Pseudonyms, an integral part of the social science research, are ubiquitous, thereby garnering minimal published reflection. In practice, researchers may apply pseudonyms with little thought or deep reflection. The purpose of this methodological article is to increase the scholarly discussion to provide transparency in the participant naming process. The authors review the literature, detail their reflexive engagement with pseudonyms, and advance issues of consideration in the areas of power in participant naming and confidentiality. Throughout the article, the authors interrupt the text with apercus or narrative interludes to share personal experiences, pausing the traditional scholarship, thus allowing room for reflexivity.

President Obama characterized Arizona’s recent immigration law as undermining “basic notions of fairness that we cherish as Americans.” The authors’ extend the national discussion regarding immigration to ethics and research. Therefore, the purpose of this methodological article is to advance areas for ethical consideration when researching undocumented participants. Undocumented participants have been described as vulnerable and in need of protection when researched. The authors contend that undocumented participants are capable, competent, yet vulnerable simultaneously. Characterizing these participants as wholly vulnerable is a form of Otherization. The authors present a literature review of Other, vulnerable participants, illegal participants, and undocumented persons/participants. Authors have been ethics reviewers and/or researchers of undocumented participants. Drawing on these experiences throughout the article, they provide reflexively composed narrative interludes. Methodological and ethical considerations and strategies in the areas of Culturally Responsive Relational Reflexive Ethics (CRRRE) oriented research, anonymity/confidentiality, and consent are advanced.

This paper presents a methodological study with children where two different interview methods were utilized: the walk-around (a form of mobile interview) and the shoulder-to-shoulder. The paper reviews the methodological aspects of the study then provides a brief review of the history of methods employed in research with children. Finally the paper considers issues around conducting research with children in the areas of data generation, interview environment, power, and participant engagement. Throughout the article, narrative interludes, and the author’s personal reflections as parents and researchers are provided space for thought and narrative glimpses into the research experience.