ABSTRACT
Conventional research methods in human geography especially those involving interviewing, have also been criticized on the grounds of the gender blindness of those administering the survey or undertaking the interviews. The most common strategy advocated by feminists in a search for a collaborative and non-exploitive relationship with the participants in their research project has been some variant of a qualitative methodology, either based on in-depth interviews or, less frequently, on participant observation and ethnographic research. Thus it is often argued that qualitative, detailed, small scale and case study work is ideally suited to women studying women. It is assumed that such a methodological approach draws on women's abilities to listen, to empathize, and to validate personal experiences as part of the research process. Feminist-inspired notions of doing research 'with' or 'for' rather than 'about' women seem admirable and are becoming widely accepted within human geography.
