Brad--a schizophrenic school dropout and 'sneaky kid'--first appeared as a squatter near Harry Wolcott's forest home. He becomes Wolcott's subject in a long-term life history on how the educational system can fail students. Wolcott's trilogy of articles based on their years of interviews were well-received...until he admitted to an intimate relationship with the young man who, two years after leaving his shack, returned and attempted to murder the anthropologist. The Brad Trilogy then became the focus of heated academic discussions of research ethics, validity, intimacy, and the limitations of qualitative research. Here, Wolcott presents the full story of the Sneaky Kid and the firestorm it caused. Written in Wolcott's masterful style, the case offers an ideal starting point for discussing the complex public and personal dimensions of qualitative research with students. Included as an Appendix is the complete script of Johnny Saldana's ethnodrama recounting the story in play form.
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Review
What a tour de force, a marvelous accomplishment! Such honesty and plain talking is seldom seen in the social sciences. (Denzin, Norman K. )
Brad's story began as a case study Wolcott completed on the failures of education. . . . Wolcott published an article on the experience and this topic. This article remains a well-reference source among qualitative researchers. . . . [Wolcott] proves his adeptness as an anthropologist as he is able to capture adequately the specificities of a particular moment and place and, at the same time, indicate their relevance to a much broader social context, in this case, the dilemmas we face as qualitative researchers today. . . . The book's story reminds us again and again of the inadequacies in schooling for many of our youth, the continued stigmatization and suspicions about homosexuality, and the complex dilemmas of ethics in educational research. . . . An ethno drama is included, written by Johnny Saldana, entitled, 'Finding my place: The Brad Trilogy.' Finally, with the includsion of this play as the final chapter of the book, the story of Brad finds its final home. . . . Wolcott's work, in all its complexity and controversy is now offered to a new generation of qualitative researchers and fieldworkers. This intriguing, compelling work is a touching depiciton fo the struggles of a research amid the complexitites of a new and advancing field of research. (Audrey M. Dentith Columbia Record )
Wolcott is a well-known, iconoclastic anthropologist of education. . . . He provides a detailed, explicit, autobiographical account of the events surrounding the publication of a series of articles on educational inadequacy, subsequently labeled 'The Brad Trilogy.' It tells the story behind the trilogy, examining personal, professional, and moral issues raised by the author's romantic relationship with the middle-class homeless man whose story is told in the trilogy. The book chronicles the young man's struggle with mental illness and Wolcott's subsequent encounters with family members, the mental health establishment, the justice system, and the academic world, presenting a firsthand account of the failure of schools, communities, mental health providers, welfare agencies and courts to serve those in need. (J. Armstrong Choice )
This volume is well written and it raises a number of interesting issues, not only about research methods, but also about education, mental health, and the criminal justice system...it is sure to serve as a catalyst for a number of vigorous discussions about ethics and intimacy in the research process. (Amanda Lewis Contemp. Sociology, 33:2 )
This book is well-written, compelling and enjoyable...Not everyone will agree with Wolcott's conclusions about research and ethics. But that is precisely the point. This book can be used very productively in classes in which the ethics of field research is a topic. It will generate a lot of discussion and debate. (Don Kulick Sexualities, 7(1) )
Harry pursues difficult goals with lively style, provocative scholarship, and admirable collegiality. . . . This is a book I've long encouraged him to write because of the importance of the questions about educational adequacy and the necessary distinctions of education and schooling. The inadequacy of our institutions of schooling, justice, and welfare is an important expansion of the original agenda. (John Singleton, from the Foreword )
Brad's story began as a case study Wolcott completed on the failures of education. . . . Wolcott published an article on the experience and this topic. This article remains a well-reference source among qualitative researchers. . . . [Wolcott] proves his adeptness as an anthropologist as he is able to capture adequately the specificities of a particular moment and place and, at the same time, indicate their relevance to a much broader social context, in this case, the dilemmas we face as qualitative researchers today. . . . The book's story reminds us again and again of the inadequacies in schooling for many of our youth, the continued stigmatization and suspicions about homosexuality, and the complex dilemmas of ethics in educational research. . . . An ethno drama is included, written by Johnny Saldana, entitled, 'Finding my place: The Brad Trilogy.' Finally, with the includsion of this play as the final chapter of the book, the story of Brad finds its final home. . . . Wolcott's work, in all its complexity and controversy is now offered to a new generation of qualitative researchers and fieldworkers. This intriguing, compelling work is a touching depiciton fo the struggles of a research amid the complexitites of a new and advancing field of research. (Audrey M. Dentith Columbia Record )
Wolcott is a well-known, iconoclastic anthropologist of education. . . . He provides a detailed, explicit, autobiographical account of the events surrounding the publication of a series of articles on educational inadequacy, subsequently labeled 'The Brad Trilogy.' It tells the story behind the trilogy, examining personal, professional, and moral issues raised by the author's romantic relationship with the middle-class homeless man whose story is told in the trilogy. The book chronicles the young man's struggle with mental illness and Wolcott's subsequent encounters with family members, the mental health establishment, the justice system, and the academic world, presenting a firsthand account of the failure of schools, communities, mental health providers, welfare agencies and courts to serve those in need. (J. Armstrong Choice )
This volume is well written and it raises a number of interesting issues, not only about research methods, but also about education, mental health, and the criminal justice system...it is sure to serve as a catalyst for a number of vigorous discussions about ethics and intimacy in the research process. (Amanda Lewis Contemp. Sociology, 33:2 )
This book is well-written, compelling and enjoyable...Not everyone will agree with Wolcott's conclusions about research and ethics. But that is precisely the point. This book can be used very productively in classes in which the ethics of field research is a topic. It will generate a lot of discussion and debate. (Don Kulick Sexualities, 7(1) )
Harry pursues difficult goals with lively style, provocative scholarship, and admirable collegiality. . . . This is a book I've long encouraged him to write because of the importance of the questions about educational adequacy and the necessary distinctions of education and schooling. The inadequacy of our institutions of schooling, justice, and welfare is an important expansion of the original agenda. (John Singleton, from the Foreword )
About the Author
Harry F. Wolcott is Professor Emeritus in the Department of Anthropology at the University of Oregon. Johnny Saldana is a Professor of Theatre at Arizona State University, and his studies in qualitative research range from ethnography to ethnotheatre. He has written several articles on theatre teachers' perceptions of their practice, and young people's development as audiences and artists. One of these studies includes the ethnodrama 'Maybe someday, if I'm famous...', a one-act case study of an adolescent actor.
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2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Educational and disturbing,
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This review is from: Sneaky Kid and Its Aftermath: Ethics and Intimacy in Fieldwork (Paperback)
I think this is a great book for anyone getting started in qualitative techniques with education. You can see that even qualitative researchers are forced to filter their work to make it palatable, as can be seen by comparing Wolcott's description of his subject in the first chapters with the reality he acknowledges later. Admittedly, not all researchers have quandaries such as the author did. But you may find Wolcott to be arrogant for his refusal to apologize or even consider responsibility (which he denigrates as an overt social control mechanism).
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