What is the word “difficult” doing in social studies research? A systematic literature review of empirical research on difficult knowledges and histories, 2004–2022

This review of research investigates the empirical scholarship on difficult knowledges and difficult histories within the field of social studies education. Guided by critical conceptualizations of discourse, our analysis revealed that the research on “difficult” topics can (re)produce unequal power dynamics and (re)center whiteness within social studies education. The authors offer recommendations to researchers, teacher educators, and educators on how to mitigate the potential harm that can be (re)produced from uncritically researching and teaching historical topics as difficult.