Knowledge of the heart: Ethical implications of sociological research with emotion

Emotions have been the subject of social science research for many decades. Predominantly, this research has been orientated around research on emotion. While this genre of research focuses on emotion as a topic of inquiry, I propose that research with emotion can contribute to different ways of understanding social experience. Due to a different epistemological foundation, different methodological approaches are required with different ethical implications. This article will define research with and on emotion, before providing examples of the former. Based on these examples, this article explores ethical implications. The article concludes with a brief reflection on the benefits of sociological research with emotion, against which the many challenges should be assessed.