'Becoming' through the Research Experience: The Quotidian Tensions of Social Transformation.

The importance of personal experiences of a researcher that are "outside" of the research domain in dealing with the researcher's object of study is explored. It is equally true that research questions can also affect how one understands or experiences topical issues in a later personal experience. The researcher's personal experience dealing with a child with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder became a factor in her reaction to the suggestion that she herself was dyslexic. Reflecting on the labeling of people with "deficit" conditions resulted in increased understanding of her own situation and an altered perception of research objects. No matter how hard the researcher tries to be objective, he or she cannot escape the personal components of the interpretive framework being applied. Research is furthered when those personal constructions are acknowledged and examined. The dialectic between research and researcher cannot be ignored. (Contains 17 references.) (SLD)