“Mind Playing Tricks on Me”: Reflections on Conducting Policing Research After Experiencing Police Violence in the Insane Empire California

• In Event: Latina/o/x Criminology #2: Critical Perspectives on Conducting Ethical Carceral Studies: A Chicano/a/x /Latino/o/x/ Practical Approach

Abstract

Objective: This paper explores the author occupying both insider and outsider status in criminal legal research, which can be beneficial and challenging. The researcher reflects on interviews conducted for his project “Got it Bad Cause I’m Brown” that elicited detailed opinions about involuntary encounters with police after being affected by police violence firsthand.
Methods/Data: The researcher interviews Black and Latinx men and women in the Inland Empire and reflects on his positionality that varied across participants. With these experiences, the author asks, “how can researchers and participants deal with trauma, and how can they be best supported during and after interviews?”

Results: This discussion will advance conversations on navigating protecting populations in research, building rapport, discussing sensitive topics, barriers accessing participants, and mental wellness.

Conclusion/Implications: The author calls upon researchers to open up about sensitive conversations, engage in reflective and therapeutic memo writing, and provide research participants with psychological and counseling resources.

Author

• Humberto Flores, University of California, Santa Barbara