Sage Journals: Discover world-class research

Abstract

Despite the importance of studying the dynamics and consequences of trauma, there has been concern that trauma-focused questionnaires and interviews could further harm vulnerable participants, such as pregnant women who have suffered prior sexual trauma (e.g., rape, incest, sexual abuse). There has also been concern that employing personal interviews, rather than anonymous written questionnaires in traumafocused research procedures may compromise participants' confidentiality. This exploratory study examined the methodological differences associated with perceived discomforts and benefits among pregnant women participants in a two-phase, trauma-focused research study. In Phase I, pregnant women (N = 109) completed anonymous, trauma-related questionnaires. In Phase II, a subsample of Phase I participants (N = 10) who reported a previous history of sexual trauma completed in-depth, personal interviews. Participants in both phases of the study rated their reaction to research participation using the Response to Research Participation Questionnaire Revised (RRPQ-R). Results suggest that both written survey and personal interview methods are well tolerated by pregnant women. Specific findings indicated that pregnant women with a sexual trauma history reported significantly higher “personal benefit” from participating in personal interview procedures compared to written questionnaires. Recommendations for conducting trauma-focused research with potentially high-risk or vulnerable populations are provided. In addition, recommendations for future research are outlined in an effort to further extend the ethical understanding of the benefits and costs of trauma-focused research.

Keywords

trauma-focused research research subjects pregnancy women ethics risk-benefit analysis

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Briere

(1996). Psychometric review of the Trauma Symptom Checklist-40. In Stamm

B. H.

(Ed.), Measurement of stress, trauma, and adaptation. Lutherville, MD: Sidran Press.

Carlson

E. B.

Newman

Daniels

J. W.

Armstrong

Roth

, & Loewenstein

(2003). Distress in response to and perceived usefulness of trauma research interviews. Journal of Trauma and Dissociation, 4, 131–142.

Chu

A. T.

DePrince

A. P.

, & Weinzierl

K. M.

(2008). Children's perception of research participation: Examining trauma exposure and distress. Journal of Empirical Research on Human Research Ethics, 3, 49–58.

DePrince

A. P.

& Chu

A. T.

(2008). Perceived benefits in trauma research: Examining methodological and individual difference factors in responses to research participation. Journal of Empirical Research on Human Research Ethics, 3, 35–47.

Griffin

M. G.

Resick

P. A.

Waldrop

A. E.

, & Mechanic

M. B.

(2003). Participation in trauma research: Is there evidence of harm? Journal of Traumatic Stress, 16, 221–227.

Kassam-Adams

& Newman

(2002). The reactions to research participation questionnaires for children and for parents (RRPQ-C and RRPQ-P). General Hospital Psychiatry, 24, 336–342.

Newman

& Kaloupek

(2004). The risks and benefits of participating in trauma-focused research studies. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 17, 383–394.

Newman

Kaloupek

D. G.

Keane

T. M.

, & Folstein

S. F.

(1997). Ethical issues in trauma research: The evolution of an empirical model for decision making. In Kantor

G. K.

& Jasinski

J. L.

(Eds.), Out of darkness: Contemporary perspectives on family violence (pp. 271–281). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Newman

Walker

E. A.

, & Gefland

(1999). Assessing the ethical costs and benefits of trauma-focused research. General Hospital Psychiatry, 21, 187–196.

10.

Newman

Willard

Sinclair

, & Kaloupek

(2001). Empirically supported ethical research practice: The costs and benefits of research from the participants' view. Accountability in Research, 8, 309–329.

11.

Parslow

R. A.

Jorm

A. F.

O'Toole

B. I.

Marshall

R. P.

, & Grayson

D. A.

(2000). Distress experienced by participants during an epidemiological survey of posttraumatic stress disorder. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 13, 465–471.

12.

Schauer

Neuner

Schauer

, & Elbert

(2003). Training manual for narrative exposure therapy (NET)—A short-term intervention for the treatment of traumatic stress disorders in children & adults. Cupramontana, Italy: Vivo.

13.

Schwerdtfeger

K. L.

& Goff

Nelson B. S.

(2008). The effects of trauma-focused research on pregnant female participants. Journal of Empirical Research on Human Research Ethics, 3, 59–67.

14.

Schwerdtfeger

K. L.

& Wampler

K. S.

(2009). Sexual trauma and pregnancy: A qualitative exploration of women's dual life experience. Contemporary Family Therapy, 31, 100–122.

15.

Vrana

& Lauterbach

(1994). Prevalence of traumatic events and post-traumatic psychological symptoms in a nonclinical sample of college students. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 7, 289–302.

16.

Walker

E. A.

Newman

Koss

, & Bernstein

(1997). Does the study of victimization revictimize research participants? General Hospital Psychiatry, 19, 403–410.

The Appraisal of Quantitative and Qualitative Trauma-Focused Research Procedures among Pregnant Participants

Abstract

Keywords

Get full access to this article

References