‘Now that I know what you’re about’: black feminist reflections on power in the research relationship

Abstract

Feminists have identified reflexivity as a particularly incisive tool for navigating shifting power dynamics, using it to draw attention to how a researcher’s positionality informs every aspect of the research process, from development of the research question to interactions with research participants. In this article, I describe my reflections as a black feminist researcher conducting research with black women. I examine the unexpected ways in which power can manifest during the research process, complicating the theoretical advice offered by institutional ethics board and feminist methodology textbooks. Intersectionality serves as a useful tool to tease out these dilemmas and though it cannot preempt or solve all challenges, it provides reflexive space for exploring such dilemmas and a tool for navigating power in the research process.