Date: 05/03/2026
Researcher Trauma in Qualitative Research
Researcher Trauma in Qualitative Research
When: Thursday 23 April 2026, 13.00-14.30 online
What:
The next event in the QUEST*/NCRM**/SCDTP seminar series will take place online on zoom with our usual format of three presentations on a linked theme and a discussion. Investigating topics that are emotionally demanding, because of the stress of the fieldwork context and/or the sensitivity of the theme, can be a traumatic experience for researchers. This may especially be the case where the project methodology involves close fieldwork relationships and participatory investment. In this seminar we will hear from three researchers at various stages of their careers who have experience of studying risky contexts and demanding topics, to discuss researcher trauma in qualitative research.
Resilience, Resistance and Structural Reform – Mainstreaming Support for Emotionally Demanding Research
Jo Edson Ferrie, University of Glasgow Jo Ferrie is a methodologist and works with all forms of data. She is Professor of Sociology and Associate Dean of Skill and Method in the College of Social Sciences at the University of Glasgow. Jo sits on the ESRC’s Expert Advisory Group for Data Infrastructure, Skill & Method, the Oversight Board of SMART Data UK and is a member of the Task & Finish Group examining Qualitative and Creative Methods Futures. Jo is also here representing Emotionally Demanding Research Network, an initiative to support researchers working on difficult topics, at difficult times.
There is an emotional quality to being a researcher, and acknowledging this, and understanding how this impacts our ‘standpoint’ can usefully inform our work. I will take a closer look at the impact of doing work in an emotional context. Whether we recognise this as leading to vicarious trauma or recognise ‘lower-level symptoms’ such as imposter syndrome, burnout, guilt and unproductive procrastination: this session will normalise emotional engagement with our research practice. In this event we will work with some strategies that help us a) consider what harm means (this requires some individual reflexivity); b) what might work for us as individuals if we feel we are harmed in the research process; and c) developing a plan of action.
Gendered Scholarship and Researcher Self-Care in Terrorism Studies
Gina Vale, University of Southampton Gina Vale is a Lecturer of Criminology at the University of Southampton. She is also an Associate Fellow of the International Centre for Counter-Terrorism (ICCT) and a Member of the Vox-Pol Network of Excellence. Her research takes a feminist, intersectional approach to studying terrorism and extremist violence, primarily focusing on the organisational roles and experiences of women and children. She is the author of The Unforgotten Women of the Islamic State (Oxford University Press 2024).
Terrorism studies emerged from the ‘malestream’ of security and international relations scholarship. Until recently, researcher self-care was rarely considered or even prompted questions of whether one could ‘cut it’ in the field. This presentation will centre on lived and gendered experience of contributing to this fast-paced, impact-oriented, and masculine field. It will focus on navigation of pressures to enter high-risk spaces, engage with violent and graphic content, and analyse the perspectives of individuals who espouse hate and discrimination, whilst also offering lessons learned in self-care and researcher safety.
How can we make trauma-intensive research a sustainable professional practice?
Stu Lucy, University of Portsmouth Stu Lucy is an ESRC Research Fellow with the SCDTP based in the School of Criminology and Criminal Justice at the University of Portsmouth. Stu’s PhD mapped the journey young and adolescent men take into the incel identity and he is now focusing on how masculinity is communicated more broadly in digital and educational environments and how we can mitigate the rise in men and boys performing misogynistic and antifeminist masculinities.
By drawing on experiences investigating the involuntary celibate or ‘incel’ community, this presentation explores the nature of vicarious trauma and how it may manifest when engaging empathetically with problematic content or participants. As social science research is increasingly investigating identities and ideologies that may lead to a process of change in researchers, recommendations to support practitioners and protect their safety and wellbeing – both at the individual and institutional level – are offered.
How to join
As this event is open and likely to have high demand we appreciate you signing up in advance through the NCRM Eventbrite page
* Qualitative Expertise at Southampton ** National Centre for Research Methods
