Emotion becomes a significant issue to qualitative research, given that personal contact between the researcher and participants can lead to researchers becoming deeply involved in their subjects‟ lives (see Bellas, 1999). For example studies have reported that researchers become emotionally disturbed in data collection when witnessing psychologically distressed respondents and thereby experience insomnia, anxiety and depression (see Dickson-Swift et al., 2009). However despite the significance of emotions in the qualitative research process, emotional labour experienced by researchers has received only limited attention in the extant literature. In this section, I will discuss the role emotions played in the data collection of this study, and I will also explain how I attempted to manage my emotions in pursuit of maintaining neutrality as a researcher.
Throughout the data collection process, there were several times that participants‟ stories touched me so deeply and opened my eyes to the tragedies people experience in life. I found it extremely difficult to detangle myself from these stories that I could actually hear these respondents‟ voices in my head for days after their interviews. For instance Kishani spoke about how she lost both her parents to cancer within three months and was left all alone in the world with nothing but her work and her faith in Buddhism to help her go on in life. Being the only child in a family myself this story upset me and made me think about how I would have dealt with a similar experience myself. I didn‟t think that I would have had the courage to go on. Similarly Charka talked about how her husband had an extra marital affair and how she wrapped herself in her work as a means of coping with it because she didn‟t want to leave
him and jeopardise her family‟s reputation. I met her husband a couple of minutes before the interview and he seemed to be very nice, so I was shocked by what I heard about him.
Moreover I was extremely uncomfortable and almost resentful towards her husband when I had to socialise with him after the interview. This event remained in my mind for weeks and I realised that I was speculating about how I would have reacted if I was in her shoes or if someone dear to me was experiencing a similar situation.
A particular challenge I faced was managing my emotions while respondents were telling me these stories. Hochschild (1998: 9) defines emotion management as ‘an effort by any means, conscious or not, to change ones feeling or emotion’. On one hand I was reminding myself that I was a professional researcher and that I should not get drawn into various emotions which will distract me from my purpose (Dickson-Swift et al., 2009). On the other hand however I found it difficult not to sympathise with respondents and indicate to them that I shared their sorrow. Scholars have argued that the ability to be empathetic is one of the main skills needed to undertake qualitative research (for more detail see Liamputtong, 2007;
Liamputtong and Ezzy, 2005; Minichiello et al., 2000). While I was able to empathise with my participants it was a challenge not to get drawn into the emotion while being empathic, especially when I was face-to-face with a person experiencing emotion.
In the extant literature scholars talk about emotions in research in the case of sensitive research topics such as bereaved parents (see Dickson-Swift et al., 2009). In the context of my experience I would argue that emotions are not limited to only sensitive research topics.
My respondents‟ emotional stories were often beyond the point of my research area. Most women just got drawn into these stories while they were talking about their career experiences. I knew that I was supposed to divert their interest back to my area of interest
but I found it extremely difficult to do so. Scholars such as King (2004) talks about strategies interviewers could use to divert participants‟ attention back to the research process. One such strategy is making statements such as „that‟s very interesting but could we get back to what we were talking earlier on‟. In my case I simply could not cut off a person in distress, it seemed almost inhuman to do so. I just had to listen to what they said. Once they had finished talking about an emotional experience it took almost a super human effort on my part to carry on with asking the next question. Sometimes it seemed as if I was more affected by their stories than they were.
Hubbard et al. (2001: 134) argues that researchers need to find strategies to manage not only the emotions of the participants but also their own emotions. One strategy I used was constantly reminding my-self that this was not about me and therefore I should not get involved. In the case of certain participants I sensed that they had unconsciously disclosed very personal information to me which they would not have revealed if they had more time to think about it. Thus I felt that they would prefer me not to get too affected by what they said.
Concern towards my participants‟ pride helped me go on with the interviews. However this did not mean that respondents‟ words left my mind after the interview. My situation was particularly difficult because I could not get out of my participants lives after the interview.
Since almost all respondents were close contacts of my friends and family and I interviewed most women at homes of people known to my family, I was often obliged to socialise with my respondents and their hosts after the interviews. Moreover in three instances I interviewed respondents in Scotland, Sussex and Devon and I had to stay overnight at their families‟
homes since it was too late for me to get a train back to my home in Leicester, and their families who are well known to my own family would not hear of me staying at a hotel.
I found myself closely observing my respondents‟ interactions with their families and trying to assess their personal situations. Even after transcribing my data I found myself dwelling about certain participants‟ lives. Dickson-Swift et al. (2009) suggests that qualitative researchers can use colleagues, trusted friends and family members for support in such situations. I however was not able to do this since most of my close friends and family knew my participants and therefore I would not be able maintain confidentiality if I had I done this.
However time helped me get over my emotions as did the interesting data which emerged as part of my research.