Consider and Assess Exclusions.
Every research will include some, and exclude other participants. Deliberately assessing exclusions upfront can reduce situations where this may happen inadvertently, and possibly even contrary to a research question.
It is important to acknowledge that e.g. talking about topics associated with stigma may only be possible if the participants feel safe and secure enough to so. Such participants may be privileged1 in certain ways. Being aware of such exclusions also enables researchers to attend to unmarked norms, e.g. Whiteness2 in the context of tech.
Being privileged means to have advantages in certain contexts (or not being at a disadvantage), without having actively done something to achieve that status: easily finding - and keeping - a job; being heard in meetings; feeling safe while walking outdoors at night. Of course, privileged people can have difficult times and lives, too - but their difficulties are usually not systemic.↩︎
Especially in IT, the unmarked norm consists of able-bodied, white cis men, usually with higher than average socio-economic status.↩︎