Positional and identity-based theories of research

In many ways, the “moments” of qualitative research have helped to clarify the importance of and indeed create a mandate for researchers to locate and situate themselves within their research (Denzin & Lincoln, 2000). In essence, all research is informed by the “positions” and “identities” of the researcher. These qualitative research moments, in many ways, are a result of the “postmodern turn” that helped to facilitate the proliferation of scholarship by scholars who locate themselves within particular perspectives and communities. As a result, positionality and identity-based approaches to research have become even more visible. This chapter will attempt to provide some suggestions for how reviewers might consider quality aspects of qualitative research that is explicit about positional and identity-based theories.