Research among Racial and Cultural Minorities: An Overview

Abstract

This paper has three objectives: (a) to provide a brief review of the status of research among racial and cultural minorities, @) to present a n overview of the volume's contributed papers, and (c) to discuss certain recur,ri?g themes in the articles of this issue. Several themes have important implications for conducting research-techniques of gaining entrie to the minority community, theoretical concerns, the useof field methods, theuse of the survey method, and ethical, political, and ideological concerns. This paper suggests ways in which social scientists, while being sensitive to and meeting the needs of the community under study, can contribute to o u r fund of knowledge regarding racial and cultural minorities.I would like to thank

Attitudes of African Americans Toward Participation in Medical Research

“…Several researchers have recognized the difficulties that are often encountered when attempting to conduct scientific research of various types in communities and have pointed to potential solutions that can be initiated by researchers, such as acknowledgment of the mutual impact of ethnic and socioeconomic factors (Giachello, 1992); establishment of meaningful partnerships with community leaders and groups (Weiss, 1977); willingness among researchers to use research findings proactively to influence social change (Moore, 1977); provision of services, particularly to disadvantaged groups (Montero, 1977); understanding of community history in interpreting the data (McGraw, McKinlay, Crawford, Costa, & Cohen, 1992); awareness of the advantages and disadvantages of conducting research as an "insider" (group member) of a community (Zinn, 1979); sensitivity to the community's concerns when studying pathology or deviant behavior (Josephson, 1970); and use of novel methodologies for more accurate assessments (Mays & Jackson, 1991 ;Tsukashima, 1977).…”

Why Seek Asylum? The Roles of Integration and Financial Support

“…In addition to the more usual problems of interviewing (reluctance, recall, and inferential confusion, among others), the stigma and suspicions connected with this topic further complicate matters. Prior to interviewing, it was necessary to attend to issues of access and trust, hence working with and gaining the support of legitimate community representatives, gatekeepers who were selected to assist access to this hard to reach group (Adler and Adler, 2002: 526; Burgess, 1984: 48; Lee, 1993: 131; Moore, 1973; Montero, 1977). Furthermore, this approach was ethically sound given the participants’ disadvantaged natures and helped to facilitate trust and legitimacy (towards the reliability and validity of these findings) in the community members’ perceptions.…”

Measurement Issues in Quality-of-Life Assessments

“…The issues around translations and adaptations of existing measures to be used in non-English-speaking groups or languages other than the original have been addressed in numerous publications (Berry, 1980;Montero, 1977;Varricchio, 2004). Guidelines offer recommendations for the translation of existing measures and discussions of conceptual versus linguistic equivalence in the literature (Brislin, 1970(Brislin, , 1986Marin & Marin, 1991).…”