The authors argue that the problems of "hidden" minority ethnic communities can be overlooked by researchers due to their focus on broad racial or ethnic categories in examining a particular issue, while neglecting to identify the distinctive perspectives and experiences of specific communities within the broader racial/ethnic group. There are subgroups within broad racial/ethnic groups who can be distinguished by common experiences that have molded their development. There has also been a lack of recognition and analysis of subpopulations for whom religion, rather than ethnicity, is a key self-defining characteristic. Without this recognition, criminal justice and social service agencies will not be able to tailor their services to the needs of these groups. Still, there are circumstances when the use of broad racial/ethnic categories can be beneficial, particularly when there is widespread discrimination and disadvantage suffered by virtually all members of the group in a particular society or region. This means that the parameters for a particular research effort that involves minority groups and households will depend on the goals of the research and, to an extent, initial findings about the common and distinctive experiences of research subjects. One way to increase the chances of making correct fieldwork choices is to involve members of the minority ethnic group to be researched in all stages of the process. The authors also discuss the advantages and disadvantages of a researcher being of the same or different race/ethnicity of those being researched. 50 references