Research and Inequality

Book excerpt: It has been noted by researchers from a variety of backgrounds that the dominant social research paradigms have frequently failed to represent the viewpoints of many marginalized groups. The authors of this collection confront this imbalance by looking at how issues such as ethnicity, sexual orientation and identity, disability, gender and ethnicity, and health and old age can be addressed in research conducted among groups who may often be the objects of research, but who seldom have control over what is said about them. Containing sections written by contributors from a variety of backgrounds, cultures and nationalities, the chapters explore ways in which issues of social diversity and division within the research process might be addressed. While considering whether this might be done through an emancipatory research paradigm, the book also examines the philosophical tenets and methodological implications of such an approach.