Beyond Victimhood, Expanding Narratives: A Generative Inquiry with Trafficking Survivors

This study is a generative inquiry with survivors of trafficking from a social constructionist perspective. Inspired by the principles of Appreciative Inquiry, its focus is collaboration between researchers and trafficking survivors with a view to shaping and understanding their trafficking experiences together, expanding understanding of the topic and co-constructing a relational space in which counter-narratives on victimhood can be generated. It consisted of 10 interviews with women survivors of trafficking at the Italian Anti-Trafficking System. These women were from a range of nations and their experiences of exploitation varied. Taking a constructionist approach to research, we formulated an episodic-generative interview made up of circular and reflexive questions inspired by the Post Traumatic Growth Inventory. The research questions are as follows: How can we collaboratively create counter-narratives that challenge the narrative of victimization? What themes promote the co-construction of transformative narratives in survivors of trafficking? Reflexive thematic analysis was then performed on the textual material gathered, which generated five themes: resources/strengths, relationships, future, helpful aspects, and momentary feelings. Overall, this study suggests that through a generative methodology, it is possible to collaboratively co-generate counter-narratives oriented towards personal strength, dreams, and the future. This approach could represent an important inquiry scenario for both clinical and psychosocial inquiry with survivors of trafficking and refugees in general. Grounded in a social constructionist perspective, this inquiry sheds light on the way a theoretical-methodological framework can amplify voice diversity and offer a more nuanced understanding of what it means to be a survivor of trafficking, thereby opening new opportunities for action.