ABSTRACT
This chapter is not written as a guide for professional researchers on ‘how to do’ research on ethnic minorities. In adopting a sociopolitical perspective, we aim to engage in a critical discussion of the problems and possibilities in making research relevant to changing, for the better, the situations and contexts of minority ethnic groups in Europe today. These are situations that for many are characterised by high levels of social deprivation and the attendant consequences such as ill health, poverty, unemployment, welfare dependency and violence (SCLRAE 1992). In situations of multiple deprivation, social work is only one of the potential resources or professions which may be relevant to the needs of such populations. Therefore, the issue of research with these groups is also relevant to related professions such as health, justice, and housing. Moreover, under such conditions of powerlessness, minority populations are more likely to come under the gaze of state authorities and professionals and surveillance becomes a normal state of affairs. This itself has implications for the practice of social research by members of these professions, and for the collection and keeping of information relating to minority populations (see Johnson, Chapter 5).
