Feeling Like Feminist Frauds: Theorizing Feminist Accountability in Feminist Family Studies Research in a Neoliberal, Postfeminist Context

Abstract

In this article we name "feelings of fraudulence," the experience of self-awareness and

An account from the inside: Examining the emotional impact of qualitative research through the lens of “insider” research.

“…Critical writing on participatory research has similarly questioned some of the expected benefits and identified challenges for “peers” associated with their involvement as insider researchers on the basis of inherently unequal power relations (Voronka, in press). As Sharp & Weaver (2015) note, “what we perceive as benefits/harm might greatly differ from those of others, including members of sampled populations” (p. 312). However, despite this ample theoretical and methodological critique, I could identify no writing that examines the emotion-related benefits and harms of insider qualitative research from the participant perspective.…”

Feminist Theory in Family Studies: History, Reflection, and Critique

“…A second indicator is the reflexive project undertaken by feminist family scholars to chart and assess the impact of feminism on the study of families (e.g., Allen, Lloyd, & Few, ; Few, ; Osmond & Thorne, 1983; Sharp & Weaver, ; Thompson & Walker, ; Walker & Thompson, ; Wills & Risman, ). These reflexive, stocktaking efforts reveal the commitment of feminist scholars to documenting the results of feminist thinking on family studies, even though the infusion of feminist theory into studies of families is perceived as slower and more marginal by some scholars more than by others (Ferree, ; Walker, ).…”

“…A fourth indicator is the renewed embracing of feminist theory and activism in the 21st century. A new generation of feminist scholars are unapologetically engaging their own experience in claiming a feminist perspective in theory, research, and activism (e.g., Allen & Henderson, ; Bermudez et al, ; Christiensen, ; Hesford & Diedrich, ; Magalhaes & Cerqueira, ; Sharp & Weaver, ). Although current generations of feminist scholars have inherited a wealth of radical and intersectional knowledge from earlier generations, the technological, economic, social‐historical, political, and international contexts in which they scrutinize patriarchy are very different (Patil, ).…”

“…But old problems have not been eradicated and are of particular concern to younger feminists. One major issue is the persistence of sexual assault, as the growing movement to address sexual assault on college campuses attests (Sharp, Weaver, & Zvonkovic, ). Further, there is increasing concern about global problems affecting women, such as the poverty of women and children, threats to reproductive freedom, and the entrenchment of patriarchy in diverse geographic locations (Song, ).…”

In Pursuit of Feminist Accountability: Disempowering “Feelings of Fraudulence” Through Praxis and Resistance

“…A promising methodological response to such dilemmas is the concept of Weis and Fine's () “critical bifocals,” which serve as “a double lens of analyzing both structures and the lives of individuals through circuits of privilege as a corrective to researchers' glossing over of situated, structural conditions” (Sharp & Weaver, , p. 310). They recommend their use for investigating neoliberalism among participants and for informing the framing of research.…”