Improving the wellbeing of researchers who work in sensitive and emotionally challenging topics: The value of sharing a personal perspective and lived experience

I’ve recently returned to my role as an Associate Professor at the International Policing and Public Research Institute (IPPPRI) after a long sickness absence, which was triggered, in large part, by the cumulative impacts of working in the field of sexual violence against women and children. I have worked in this space, in various roles across various sectors, for almost 35 years, but working as a researcher for the last 14 years, which I have loved, has had the most negative impact on my emotional wellbeing.

I know that I am not alone in this. I believe that it was fundamentally due to a lack of awareness, recognition and therefore support for researchers who do sensitive and emotionally challenging (SEC) research.

In contrast, when I worked as a Learning Mentor in the education sector and as a frontline project worker in the third sector supporting young girls who were being sexually exploited – work which was deeply distressing at times – there was a built-in support system, such as regular supervision and clinical supervision that recognised the potential impacts of the work. This helped minimise and mitigate the negative impacts of the work and was thoroughly normalised as a routine and expected part of doing this work. As yet this does not exist as normal practice in academia.

However, since working at ARU, my experience of support, directly related to the content of my research, has vastly improved. In fact, I do not think I would have been able to return to this work without the support I have received from my line manager and from ARU more widely.

What do we mean by SEC research?

When we talk about SEC research, it is really important to be broad and inclusive about research topics, and focus more on the impact on researchers than the topic itself. If a researcher is feeling distressed by the topic of their research, if they begin to avoid the topic or experience symptoms of vicarious trauma, then that research is likely to be SEC research.

Gabor Maté says that trauma is “not what happens to you, it’s what happens inside you, as a result of what happened to you” (2018), which highlights the subjective nature of trauma and vicarious trauma. What’s traumatic for one researcher may not be traumatic for another, and that is really relevant when we’re thinking about SEC research and researcher wellbeing (RWB). Trauma can also impact different people differently, at different times, and it can be chronic and acute.

Talking about emotion in academia

It is important to recognise SEC research as emotional labour that can cause an emotional burden and harm. This is a first step to changing and improving research culture.

It’s generally unusual in academia for researchers to talk about how we feel, about how the work itself can affect us. I’d like to change that because, in the case of RWB, it’s crucial that we do. Our lived experience of doing SEC work matters. Researchers doing this work represent a ‘grassroots voice’ which needs to be elevated and heard in order to create positive changes.

SEC research is a very human endeavour and for many, if not most, this work is personal. For some, like me, there may be a personal motivation to work in their chosen sensitive area; for others, this work becomes personal as a result of exposure to the content of their sensitive work. How can we not be changed when we work so closely with people, listening to their intimate and often horrendous experiences? And, importantly, how can we not be enriched by it?

Some symptoms of the harms that can be caused by conducting SEC research

I love doing this work and I’ve done it for a long time. But I have also experienced burnout and vicarious trauma, in the past and more recently, not only as a result of the work, but also because the violent content of my professional world has at times invaded my personal life. The content of my research, the traumatic experiences I’ve heard about and sometimes absorbed, and the challenging data I’ve been exposed to, and immersed in, on top of my previous frontline experience, has been difficult to manage at times.

An example is during my PhD, working with adult survivors of child sexual abuse and exploitation, and with parents whose children were sexually exploited, where my fieldwork was intense and produced very brutal and emotionally challenging data. During this time I began to have intrusive thoughts – snippets of awful things that participants had told me. Things that shocked and disgusted me. Things I didn’t know existed, and could not conceive that a person would do to a child. Things that I have never been able to tell another person: I don’t want to pass the poison on.

So they remained lodged in my head. I became exhausted and I felt uncertain and confused by what was happening to me. Although my supervisors were very supportive, there was not an institutional recognition, understanding or service that was able to support me through managing the impact of the content of my research. I did take some time off, but I also carried on pushing through.

I see now that I’d internalised the completely untrue and unhelpful social stigma about poor mental health equalling weakness. This is called ‘self-stigma’ and relates to a fear of losing respect and credibility; a very common and human fear but one that creates barriers to seeking support.

I’m writing about this because it is so easy, ‘normal’ even, for anyone to respond how I did at that time. I’ve done it, and I’ve seen other people do it. I’m sharing some of my symptoms in this blog in case they feel familiar to anyone. If they do, it is likely that you are experiencing symptoms of harm from the content of your research, and you if haven’t already sought support, it is probably time to, so you’ll be okay.

A powerful, supportive way to improve wellbeing during SEC research is adopting a trauma-informed approach towards yourself and others, developing your reflexive practice, arming yourself with understanding, and working in a research environment that normalises the potential for harms, and mitigates against them. These are extremely valuable tools to have.

How difficult experiences can motivate one to create positive change

I joined IPPPRI in 2021 and, as a direct result of my previous experiences, I knew that I had to find a way to improve the support and wellbeing of researchers like me, and I started my new post talking about RWB.

I have been extremely fortunate to work with colleagues who have a positive response to, and recognition of, the importance of RWB. I’m proud to Co-chair the ARU Researcher Wellbeing Network (RWN), with Dr Abbie Lake, that drives this work forward, and I was also very proud to be asked to do the keynote address for our first Researcher Wellbeing Symposium at ARU in February 2026.

In this keynote address I set the tone for, and validated, the value of sharing lived experiences of conducting SEC research by sharing my personal experience of the negative impacts that conducting this research can have, highlighting the emotion labour that is often involved and that it can be a heavy burden to hold.

This was difficult to do in front of over 60 strangers and I felt incredibly vulnerable. However, Brené Brown describes vulnerability as "uncertainty, risk, and emotional exposure" and “our most accurate measurement of courage.” (Brown, 2012). Being vulnerable is scary, and sharing it takes courage, but it can also be empowering for ourselves and for others.

Courage to change the things we can

At ARU, within the RWN and with institutional support, we are raising awareness and understanding of the impacts of conducting SEC research, advocating embracing the value of lived experience and learning from researchers who work in SEC areas so we can develop more effective support pathways that are informed by the very people who need them. Ultimately, we’re working to ensure that the support offered to SEC researchers becomes a golden thread, woven into the fabric of the institutions in which we work.

I was able to return to work in IPPPRI, doing SEC research, because I had sensitive and trauma-informed support from my line manager and from ARU policies and practices more widely. I never felt judged and always felt valued. It was never suggested that my illness – a direct result of prolonged exposure to SEC content - was somehow my fault, a failure to cope or weakness on my part. And It wasn’t any of those things.

There was, however, a simple recognition that SEC work is challenging at times and every one of us has a threshold: a breaking point. The wellbeing of these researchers can be protected and maintained by developing a trauma-informed approach, support strategies and pathways that mitigate and minimise the potential harms.

Sensitive and emotionally challenging research is enormously important. And it can be difficult and challenging, heartbreaking and shocking. It can leave researchers feeling depleted and exhausted; disgusted and even frightened by the world. It can alter their worldview. We need to be able to acknowledge that to ourselves and to each other, so we can better support ourselves and each other.

And, SEC research matters. It must be conducted because it can bring light to experiences and people that are overlooked, in the margins and shadows; it can be transformative in terms of societal and cultural understandings, narratives, policy and practices. As a researcher, this work is interesting and meaningful. We are privileged to do it, and we can feel proud that we make a valuable contribution.

Dr Theresa Redmond, Associate Professor, subject specialist and applied researcher in sexual violence against women and children, International Policing and Public Research Institute (IPPPRI)

References

Brown, B. (2012) Daring Greatly: How courage to be vulnerable transforms the way we live, love, parent and lead. London: Penguin.

Maté, G. (2018) In the realm of hungry ghosts, London: Vermilion.