Resisting Ableism in Research Design

Authors

Gipsy Hosking, University of South AustraliaFollow

Abstract

This paper explores how ableist assumptions can unintentionally create barriers to participation in research by those of non-normative bodies or minds. In traditional epistemology, bodies are considered “universal” rather than “specific,” and the universal body is coded as fully able-bodied and independent with brain and body adhering to normative standards of the White heterosexual English-speaking male. In this article, I present a story of “enabling participation” for those of diverse body capacity in my work with young women living with chronic illness.^[1]Specifically, I explore the accommodations and adaptions I made to my research design to account for the non-normative form and function of my participants’ bodies and my own. Using the method of participant action research, the research participants became research co-collaborators as we collectively developed resources based on insider knowledge. Through sharing the story of my research, I invite other researchers to consider ways of enabling participation for a diverse array of bodies and minds in their own research.

[1] Throughout this article, “women” refers to cisgender women, trans women, and all the gender-expansive folk who are comfortable with this label.

Keywords

participant action research, narrative therapy and community work, feminist methodologies, lived experience, insider knowledge, ableism, chronic illness, ME/CFS, fibromyalgia

Author Bio(s)

Gipsy Hosking (she/her) is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of South Australia, which resides on the lands of the Kaurna people in what is now known as Australia. Her lived experience research centers on gender and chronic illness. She is passionate about utilizing research as an opportunity to enact social change rather than simply identify issues. She lives with ME/CFS (myalgic encephalomyelitis/ chronic fatigue syndrome) and seeks to highlight issues around ableism, representation, and visibility in scholarly work. She can be contacted at gipsy.hosking@mymail.unisa.edu.au.

Publication Date

12-23-2024

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 4.0 International License.

DOI

10.46743/2160-3715/2024.7808

Recommended APA Citation

Hosking, G. (2024). Resisting ableism in research design. The Qualitative Report, 29(12), 151-168. https://doi.org/10.46743/2160-3715/2024.7808