Research with others: Reflections on representation, difference and othering

As a feminist qualitative researcher I have become increasingly concerned with doing research with Others. In particular whether we, as researchers, can or should represent members of groups we do not belong to. This article examines who we are in relation to the Others we do research with, who can represent whom, and the complex relationship between the researcher and the researched. The article also outlines some of the methodological, theoretical and ethical issues around representation, difference, and Othering, particularly those raised by feminist researchers. In discussing these issues I draw on fifteen yeas of experience in doing research with Others and speaking for and about Others in my research and writing.