Nathan Albury-Garcés is a research grant advisor at Erasmus School of Social and Behavioural Sciences (ESSB). He has a background in the sociology of language, focusing on multilingualism in society and diversity. Albury-Garcés chose to work at Erasmus University in large part because of its focus on social impact. For Albury-Garcés, themes such as diversity and inclusion are crucial for conducting responsible research. Because these themes are often missing in grant applications, he created a document that can help scientists integrate diversity and inclusion into their research grant submissions.
Albury-Garcés says all his colleagues agree that inclusive research is essential, but that they often have difficulty implementing this. For example, he frequently hears from researchers that they have difficulty finding enough participants from underrepresented groups unless that group is the explicit focus of a study. The people who participate the most in research are often white, heterosexual and have a tertiary education. “Even if researchers find people who fall outside of this homogeneous group, it is often not enough people to conduct statistically robust research. But by not including these people, I think we are inadvertently excluding them. And I don’t think anyone wants to exclude others.”
Including everyone you want to have a say in
Diversity and inclusion are concepts that often need clarification. Whereas diversity is about representing different types of groups, inclusive research is about doing justice to all the different perspectives that can be relevant to a research project. Some groups are not or barely included in research. Think of people from the LGBTQIA+ community or people who have difficulty with the Dutch language. “As a socially involved faculty, our research can contribute to policymaking in the Netherlands. If research consciously or unconsciously excludes people, it cannot become a good basis for developing policy. You can have more influence on policy that affects everyone if you also involve everyone- in research,” Albury-Garcés emphasizes.
Promoting inclusivity through co-creation in research
“Practical methodological limitations should not be a reason to exclude underrepresented groups from research,” Albury-Garcés emphasizes. “Striving for diversity within your research team can already help. People who are not like you have access to groups that you may not be able to reach as quickly. But the researcher should also be open to using multiple methods to ensure that underrepresented groups have a voice in the research.” He also explains that co-creation is an essential form of research that can contribute to inclusivity. “Doing research with minorities is better than doing research on minorities,” Albury-Garcés explains. “Involving citizens in complex issues creates connections. A resident of a neighbourhood you are researching can also open doors for you.” 'Doing justice to diversity and inclusion in research grant submissions' provides tips on achieving this in practice.
Social justice and inclusive research
Albury-Garcés explains that when you conduct general research, you want it to do justice to diversity within society. White, heterosexual and theoretically trained people are just one part of that. Several striking examples he mentions are, for instance, that social research that is susceptible to impact on policy often overlooks groups such as rainbow families, non-Dutch people, people with a disability and non-binary people. “If you include diversity in your research, you get a better picture of reality and give everyone a voice. This ultimately also contributes to social justice.”
Inclusion should not be a paragraph but an integral part of research proposals
Diversity and inclusion should be an integral part of a research proposal, not just a paragraph, according to Albury-Garcés. “It would be great if we could reach a point where scientists can embed diversity and inclusion in all facets of their research: within the team, in research questions, in the methodology and epistemological approach, in the fieldwork and data collection, and ultimately in the communication.” This would serve the interests of minority groups.
Language diversity
It is essential to involve everyone interested in the research during and after the research. Albury-Garcés gives an example that "not everyone in the Netherlands speaks Dutch or English well. If you conduct research in a neighbourhood where many people with a migration background live, build it into the research design that you also communicate about your research in languages other than Dutch. This gives citizens the feeling that they are being listened to and that they count."
View the full document ‘Doing justice to diversity and inclusion in research grant submissions’ here and learn more about how to put inclusive research into practice
Doing justice to diversity and inclusion in research grant submissions
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This interview is part of Spark. With these interviews, we aim to draw attention to the positive impact of the faculty's education and research on society. The stories in Spark give an insight into what makes ESSB students, alumni, staff and researchers tick.
Contact: Britt van Sloun, redactie en communicatie ESSB, vansloun@essb.eur.nl