ABSTRACT
Conducting research in the area of sexual violence has complex ethical and practical challenges for the researcher. Managing ethical issues in sexual violence is important and can be achieved through the use of pilot studies. The primary purpose of the pilot study was to identify and manage potential ethical and practical problems that could jeopardise the main study or violate the ethical and human rights of participants in the main study on women's journey of recovery from sexual assault. The secondary purpose was to collect preliminary data in order to determine the human, financial and time resources needed for a planned study. The methods and processes used in conducting the pilot study in the study on women's journey of recovery are discussed according to each of the objectives of the pilot study, methods used to achieve the objective, observations or findings made during the pilot study, and implications for the main study. This article aims to demonstrate how a pilot study was used to manage identified potential ethical and practical research issues during the recruitment of participants and data collection for the research that was conducted by the first author to investigate women's journey of recovery from sexual assault trauma within the first week following sexual assault.
Subject(s)
Ethics, Research , Rape/psychology , Women/psychology , Compensation and Redress , Humans , Informed Consent , Patient Selection , Pilot ProjectsABSTRACT
Thousands of women and children experience sexual assault trauma annually in South Africa. The challenge posed by recovery from sexual assault trauma is a reality that confronts the survivors of sexual assault, their families and the larger community of service providers. Yet, little research has been conducted on recovery from sexual assault as a phenomenon. The purpose of the study was to explore and analyse the journey of recovery which is undertaken by women who have been sexually assaulted, with the aim of discovering and developing the grounded theory of recovery from sexual assault trauma within the first six months following the event of rape. The main research question was: What constitutes the journey of recovery undertaken by women within the first six months following sexual assault? A longitudinal qualitative study was conducted using the principles of grounded theory methodology as proposed by Strauss and Corbin (1990, 1998). A series of in-depth one-to-one interviews were conducted with a sample of ten women. The participants were selected through open, purposive and theoretical sampling procedures. The study was conducted over a period of six months following the event of sexual assault. The substantive theory was discovered and constructed through the inductive and deductive analysis of data, grounded on the ten women's descriptions of their journey of recovery from sexual assault. The theory of women's journey of recovery that was discovered and developed consisted of eight theoretical concepts or categories. These included the following concepts: 1. Sexual assault trauma 2. Awakening 3. Pragmatic acceptance 4. Turning point 5. Reclaiming what was lost 6. Defining own landmarks of healing 7. Readiness for closure 8. Returning to self. The grounded theory of the journey of recovery from sexual assault is a contribution to the knowledge about women's journey of recovery from sexual assault. It provides a process and language for understanding women's experiences within the larger social context of recovery from assault. The findings suggested that women's journey of recovery from sexual assault trauma is an individual experience that is influenced by many and varied causal and intervening conditions. These included personal biographies, relationships, supportive and non-supportive environments at individual, family, community and societal levels. Recommendations for future research and clinical management of sexual assault are made based on the researcher's interpretation of the findings.
Subject(s)
Adaptation, Psychological , Attitude to Health/ethnology , Black People/ethnology , Rape/psychology , Survivors/psychology , Women/psychology , Adult , Convalescence/psychology , Female , Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice , Humans , Life Change Events , Longitudinal Studies , Nursing Methodology Research , Psychological Theory , Qualitative Research , Rape/rehabilitation , Self Concept , Social Support , South Africa , Surveys and QuestionnairesABSTRACT
The purpose of the study was to explore and analyse the journey of recovery which is undertaken by women who have been sexually assaulted, with the aim of discovering the grounded theory of recovery from sexual assault within the first six months following the event of rape. The main research question was: 'What is the journey of recovery that is undertaken by women within the first six months following sexual assault?' Another question that developed during data collection and data analysis was 'What is the meaning that women attach to recovery?' The findings are discussed under the eight concepts or categories and the context and the intervening conditions that influence the journey of recovery from sexual assault trauma. Refer to part 1 article. These are complemented with abstracts of data from the participants' voices and the related discussions. The developed theory highlights the process and the interconnectedness of the different stages of what the women experience in their journey of recovery from sexual assault trauma.
