“I’m Going to Tell You Something I Never Told Anyone”: Ethics- and Trauma-Informed Challenges of Implementing a Research Protocol with Syrian Refugees

Lisa Matos (), Monica J. Indart, Crystal L. Park and Isabel Leal
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Lisa Matos: William James Center for Research, ISPA—Instituto Universitário, 1149-041 Lisbon, Portugal
Monica J. Indart: Graduate School of Applied and Professional Psychology, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ 08901, USA
Crystal L. Park: Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269, USA
Isabel Leal: William James Center for Research, ISPA—Instituto Universitário, 1149-041 Lisbon, Portugal

IJERPH, 2023, vol. 20, issue 2, 1-12

Abstract: As research subjects, refugees have numerous potential vulnerabilities. This study aimed to examine the ethics- and trauma-informed challenges of implementing a mental health research protocol with Syrian refugees living in Portugal. Guided by the integrated meaning-making model, the research project “Journeys in Meaning” employed a mixed-methods cross-sectional design to explore posttraumatic cognitive processing in refugees using two phases of data collection: two focus groups (Phase 1) to test the protocol and 39 in-depth individual interviews (Phase 2) to implement the protocol. Results examine the strategies used to address the following: methodological challenges related to protocol design, participant recruitment, and language; ethics- and trauma-informed challenges aimed at minimizing harm and maximizing benefit to participants that followed social justice principles; and perceived compassion fatigue on the part of the researcher following repeated empathetic exposure to traumatic content. Findings suggest the need for adaptive approaches to research with refugee populations that challenge strict compliance with the traditional principles of “do no harm” and researcher neutrality, and that accommodate individual and community complexities.

Keywords: ethics-in-practice; vicarious trauma; vicarious growth; compassion satisfaction; Syrian refugees; cross-cultural research; transcultural practice; complex trauma (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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