Investigating vicarious trauma: dramaturgical challenges for qualitative research

Abstract

PurposeThis article examines personal performances of vicarious trauma (VT) related to the Ocean Ranger Disaster. It investigates the extent to which the self is at stake in passionate storytelling about tragic consequences of extreme work.Design/methodology/approachDramaturgical concepts of self-presentation and impression management are used as a qualitative lens to provide an alternative view of published trauma stories arising from emotional research interviews.FindingsThe catastrophic disaster created secondary traumatization for families and friends of extreme workers lost at sea. This article shows that research interviews of these disaster survivors are opportunities for participants to engage in dramatic storytelling. The paper also reflects on related (problematic) storytelling by the trauma researcher.Research limitations/implicationsThe article provides a theory illustration using dramaturgy as an alternative theoretical perspective to document previously under-appreciated aspects of the Ocean Ranger case. The discussion causes us to think about research interviews in a way that past research would not normally suggest.Social implicationsThe Ocean Ranger Disaster continues to be a remarkable source of sorrow for the people of Newfoundland. This research provides a needed contrast to the numerous positivist, and overwhelmingly technological, studies of the disaster.Originality/valueThe research tradition of dramaturgy is a useful lens to apply to the expanding field of trauma studies. VT is rarely a subject of direct discussion in the management and organization studies (MOS) literature. This paper is among the first to consider storytelling interviews from a VT perspective.