Research ethics = You + me + “All our relations”

Abstract

ABSTRACT Increasing awareness of racist and discriminatory structures, such as education and the penal system, is fueling a need for leisure scholars to reconsider their approaches to research. This article encourages readers to consider an alternative approach to doing research; one that is founded upon respect, trust, balance, and fairness. This alternative approach is described by authors as relational ethics. The manuscript discusses reciprocity, flexibility, and a readiness to respond as a part of the ethical protocols that were used throughout a research project that explored the healing experiences and needs of Indigenous women in a prison located in Quebec, Canada. The discussion includes the engagement of Indigenous and decolonizing research methodologies, the inclusion of medicine pouch workshops as an act of reciprocity, and a description of how the project was transformed; specifically, through changes in the delivery of workshop content, participation protocols, workshop length, interview guide, and additional resources.