Learning from the Research Process: Discussing Sensitive Topics as a Cultural Outsider

Abstract

This paper explores the sensitivities and cultural complexities of engaging in research about substance use with a Sikh Punjabi community in England, from the perspective of cultural outsiders. The objective of the research was to explore the feasibility of developing a Community Alcohol Support Package (CASP) within the community, where existing alcohol service provision was felt to be limited, using ethnographic research methods. Tensions between a strict religious prohibition against drinking and a cultural acceptance of a heavy drinking culture created the conditions for the research and its particular challenges. This paper reports on the process of conducting the research and the transferable lessons for social work teaching and practice. Two key methodological challenges are highlighted together with reflections on how they were addressed: first, the problem of engagement and negotiating access to the community in focus; second, the challenge for outsiders of tuning into the socio-political context of the community and the power dynamics within it. Overcoming these challenges required high levels of sensitivity to the concerns of the community, while maintaining research integrity, and demonstrable openness and honesty in the course of developing research relationships. The lessons for social work education and practice are discussed.

Keywords::

• Punjabi
• Sikh
• Alcohol
• Cultural Competence
• Engagement
• Service Provision

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank Aquarius Action Projects for funding the research and Shaheen Chaudhry and Iqbal Sandhu for their assistance in conducting various aspects of the project. They would also like to thank the Project Advisory Group and the wider group of individuals who helped us at various stages of the research process. In particular, our gratitude is extended to the participants and respondents to the research for their time and willingness to discuss this sensitive subject area.

Notes

^[1] Not all Punjabi's are of Indian origin. The Punjab area of ‘British India’ was split between India and Pakistan in the aftermath of British rule in 1947. While some sources claim that Punjabi Sikhs favoured a move to the Hindu State of India in preference to Muslim Pakistan, some Punjabis will be of Pakistani origin.