Traversing the Challenges of Conducting Research with Young, Immigrant Children: The Case of Korean Children

Based on a qualitative study on young Korean immigrant children’s interpretation of American popular culture, this paper reflects on the researchers’ role by examining the research challenges faced. Prior to discussing the research obstacles in conducting the study, we begin with briefly describing its methodology and design. Next, we discuss the various obstacles we encountered when conducting our study and howwe attempted to overcome these dilemmas by discussing two major struggles during the research process: a) the relationships between the researchers and our young participants, and b) the cultural sensitivity that was needed in initially gaining permission from and working with the parents of our informants. It then illuminates how the researchers attempted to cope with such difficulties by rethinking a researchers’s role emphasizing the importance of cultural context in research. Finally, the paper provides some discussions and implications based on our research experiences.