The Messiness of (De)Coloniality: An Autoethnography of the Cross-Cultural Researcher

Abstract

In this paper I explore the complexity of psychological cross-cultural research, particularly noting the ways in which cross-cultural mental health research and the global mental health movement are still driven by Western conceptualizations of mental health. By taking up decolonial theory through autoethnographic methods, I consider the responsibility, ethics, and tensions in conducting cross-cultural mental health research, particularly as a White researcher with non-White, non-Western participants. Ongoing reflexivity as a researcher and practitioner offers the opportunity to engage in culturally responsive practices that continue challenging the coloniality of Western psychology which can pervade global mental health studies when unchecked. I put forth liberatory practices such as attending to insider voices and engaging in relational practices between researcher and participants as opportunities for cross-cultural researchers to engage in rigorous research that is responsive to the local culture and active in decolonizing the field of psychological and mental health research.