Studying Political Participation in a Time of Turmoil and Vulnerability

Background. Amid political turmoil across the nation and within academic institutions, a group of faculty members and graduate students from multiple universities across the country, in red, purple, and blue states, will discuss complex dynamics that emerged when researching social work programs¢ and students¢ political participation during the 2024 election. This roundtable panel will discuss methodological experiences related to implementing a program-focused survey and a student-focused survey in Spring 2025, as universities, faculty, and students experienced a wave of political targeting. Panelists will cover different aspects of the methodological decision-making process and how the challenges and opportunities they faced relate to those currently facing researchers, educators, and students across the country. Roundtable Content. From their vantage points representing a range of academic institutions across the country (including the south), panelists will begin by discussing the multiple political contexts that were relevant to this particular study. They will focus particular attention on how these contexts impacted social work research and social work education, as these themes were core to the survey design. Panelists will discuss methodological decisions that the team navigated when administering a political survey to program leaders and students at a larger number of CSWE accredited social work programs across the nation during a rapidly changing political environment. What was intended to be a relatively straightforward study replicating a set of surveys administered after previous presidential elections evolved and changed as political turmoil involving universities continued to grow. Research team members considered their own positionalities, specific university contexts, and ethical concerns around capturing data related to political participation and ideological stances while ensuring the safety of marginalized participants most impacted by incoming political debates and directives. Panelists will discuss how they adjusted recruitment language, survey cover letters, and survey instruments with specific consideration to the increasingly tenuous political climate. Panelists will also share unique experiences and issues they considered depending on their states, institutions, and positionalities, and how these evolved over the course of conducting the study. Lastly, panelists will engage the audience to discuss the current state of social work research within the current political climate, how this impacts social and racial justice priorities, and how attendees are navigating research opportunities and challenges in this particular political context. Implications. At a moment where the profession of social work faces multiple threats from federal, state, and institutional levels, it is now more important than ever for researchers, educators, and students to find community and discuss the implications for marginalized communities most at risk in this political climate, the research we conduct, the education we provide, and the social and racial justice values of our profession. This roundtable will create space for social workers to engage in conversation about what they have experienced while engaging in research related to issues where the public is politically divided in this volatile political context and how the profession of social work and social work researchers can respond.