It is important that researchers are trauma-informed, and aware that including lived experience expertise involves emotional labour and might be triggering. However, all emotions serve a purpose and despite how it might feel, no emotion is permanent. An awareness and understanding of emotions and the effect they have can help people to navigate research with more ease.
To mitigate psychological distress, researchers can learn about trauma-informed principles (safety, trust, choice, collaboration, empowerment and respect for diversity), and provide debriefings to people with lived experience that explore the thought–feeling connection. Other strategies include connecting people with others who can support them (for example, using a peer-based buddy system), and providing people with access to an employee assistance programme.
“It is important that researchers are trauma-informed, and aware that including lived experience expertise involves emotional labour and might be triggering”
