Being, Knowing, and Doing: A Phronetic Approach to Constructing Grounded Theory With Aboriginal Australian Partners
Abstract
Researchers working with Aboriginal Australian partners are confronted with an array of historical, social, and political complexities which make it difficult to come to theoretical and methodological decisions. In this article, we describe a culturally safe and respectful framework that maintains the intellectual and theoretical rigor expected of academic research. As an Aboriginal woman and two non-Aboriginal women, we discuss the arguments and some of the challenges of using grounded theory methods in Aboriginal Australian contexts, giving examples from our studies of Aboriginal empowerment processes. We argue that the ethics of care and responsibility embedded in Aboriginal research methodologies fit well with grounded theory studies of Aboriginal social processes. We maintain that theory development grounded in data provides useful insights into the processes for raising the health, well-being, and prosperity of Aboriginal Australians.
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Biographies
Roxanne Bainbridge, PhD, BSocSc (Hons 1), is a postdoctoral researcher in The Cairns Institute, James Cook University, in Cairns, Queensland, Australia.
Mary Whiteside, PhD, MSW, is a lecturer in the School of Social Work at Latrobe University in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
Janya McCalman, MPH, is a senior research officer and PhD student in The Cairns Institute, James Cook University, in Cairns, Queensland, Australia.
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Article first published online: December 3, 2012
Issue published: February 2013
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PubMed: 23208201
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