Seide Kapriskie, Casanova Felicia O, Ramirez Esmeralda, McKenna Melanie, Cepeda Alice, Nowotny Kathryn M
Department of Sociology, Davidson College, Davidson, NC, USA.
Miller School of Medicine, Department of Public Health Sciences, Center for HIV and Research in Mental Health, University of Miami, Miami, FL, USA.
Int J Qual Methods. 2023 Jun 8;22:16094069231183119. doi: 10.1177/16094069231183119. eCollection 2023 Jan-Dec.
Little is known about the experiences of minority stress among Latina women who have sex with both women and men (WSWM), a sexual and gender minority group situated at the intersection of multiple marginalized identities. The current article presents an exploratory study aimed at addressing this knowledge gap. The research utilized a flexible diary-interview method (DIM) to investigate stress-related experiences among Mexican American WSWM residing in an economically disadvantaged community in the U.S. during the third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. A detailed description of the study is provided, including information on the background, methodology, participants' experiences, and how the project was managed remotely by a virtual research team. Twenty-one participants were asked to maintain a diary for a 6-week period spanning from March to September 2021. They submitted weekly entries in diverse formats (visual, audio, typed, and handwritten) through a user-friendly website or via mail while communicating regularly with researchers over the phone. Following the diarizing period, in-depth semi-structured interviews were conducted to clarify pertinent information within the entries and validate researchers' preliminary interpretations. Out of the initial 21 enrollees, 14 participants stopped diarizing at different stages, and nine completed the entire study. Despite facing challenges exacerbated by the pandemic, participants reported the diary-keeping process as a positive experience that offered an authentic outlet to share parts of their lives they seldom reveal. The implementation of this study highlights two significant methodological insights. Firstly, it emphasizes the value of employing a DIM to explore intersectional narratives. Secondly, it underscores the importance of adopting a flexible and sensitive approach in qualitative health research, particularly when engaging individuals from minoritized groups.
对于双性恋拉丁裔女性（WSWM）这一处于多种边缘化身份交叉点的性与性别少数群体中的少数群体压力经历，人们知之甚少。本文呈现了一项探索性研究，旨在填补这一知识空白。该研究采用了灵活的日记访谈法（DIM），以调查在新冠疫情第三波期间居住在美国一个经济弱势社区的墨西哥裔美国双性恋拉丁裔女性中的压力相关经历。文中提供了该研究的详细描述，包括背景、方法、参与者的经历，以及虚拟研究团队如何远程管理该项目的信息。21名参与者被要求在2021年3月至9月的6周时间内记录日记。他们通过一个用户友好的网站或邮寄方式，以多种格式（视觉、音频、打字和手写）提交每周的记录，同时通过电话与研究人员定期沟通。在记录日记阶段之后，进行了深入的半结构化访谈，以澄清记录中的相关信息并验证研究人员的初步解读。在最初的21名登记者中，14名参与者在不同阶段停止了记录，9名参与者完成了整个研究。尽管面临疫情加剧的挑战，但参与者们表示写日记的过程是一次积极的经历，为他们提供了一个真实的渠道来分享生活中很少透露的部分。这项研究的实施突出了两个重要的方法论见解。首先，它强调了采用日记访谈法来探索交叉叙事的价值。其次，它强调了在定性健康研究中采用灵活和敏感方法的重要性，特别是当涉及到来自少数群体的个体时。
