http://www.loc.gov/mods/v3 http://www.loc.gov/standards/mods/v3/mods-3-2.xsd
The qualitative study of topics that are illegal or socially taboo presents a number of challenges for a researcher. How does one locate interview respondents? Will people be willing to talk about their experiences in an illegal or taboo activity? Other concerns include winning the trust of respondents and the tensions that can exist between a researcher and the social group he or she is studying. Maintaining a professional distance between the researcher and those being interviewed and studied is another issue that often arises in such work. This case study examines the challenges faced researching graffiti and outlines the research methods that were used and how they helped to produce useful and reliable data and results. The case study reveals that graffiti is the product of a complex subculture of young people with their own rules and motivations. The case study also shows how when researching a challenging topic the textbook methods for research are not always helpful and sometimes researchers need to mix together a number of methods, and take an active stance in their research. The case study will be of interest to those undertaking qualitative research into subcultures, youth issues, crime and deviance, marginalized social groups, trauma and risk, occupations, studies of disaster management, and related fields.
Includes bibliographical references and index.