Participant pseudonyms in qualitative family research: a sociological and temporal note

Abstract

This article explores the pseudonyms that UK-based family sociologists have used to refer to and discuss participants in writing up their studies from the post-war to the present day. It takes a sociological and temporal perspective on the conventions for naming research participants in qualitative studies of family life. Drawing on major monographs reporting on studies of family lives across the period, I show that, over time, since the 1950s and 1960s, (pseudo)naming practice has reflected a firm trajectory towards an intimate rather than neutral research relationship, with the use of personal names able to convey a sense of closeness to the particular participant by researchers to the readers. I argue that temporal disciplinary investigatory zeitgeists underpin pseudonym conventions, and that personal names have become the normalised, unspoken standard.