Full Description
Bringing together a unique set of narratives from social scientists who have been situated in risky environments, this volume discusses the moral and ethical dilemmas of doing fieldwork in environments that are characterised by insecurity.
These narratives are situated in the Global South, and the majority of the authors are themselves from the Global South, bringing both authenticity and originality to the scholarship in this book. Coming from the Global South can both facilitate and complicate navigating the complexity of doing research in places characterised by precariousness. The authors demonstrate how the 'morality of the moment' and indigenous sensibility is often more pertinent than formal ethical considerations as stipulated by universities and other institutions. The authors are refreshingly honest about their own identity dilemmas, their choices to exit the field prematurely, and the raw emotions that emerged in the process of doing fieldwork in these settings.
This book is likely to be instructive to young researchers entering into fields that are risky, often with little instruction or supervision prior to doing so. It is also an excellent resource for more seasoned researchers who might have had comparable experiences and are keen to reflect on such research journeys. It will be an invaluable resource for teaching qualitative research across a wide spectrum of disciplines.
This book was originally published as a special issue of Contemporary Social Science.
Contents
Foreword: Coping with Risks in Field Research Introduction: identity, jeopardy and moral dilemmas in conducting research in 'risky' environments 1. Field, ethics and self: negotiating methodology in a Hindu right wing camp 2. 'Don't say "research"': reducing bidirectional risk in Kibera slum 3. Environmentalist protection: feminist methodology and participant risk for research with Chinese NGOs 4. Ethical and methodological responses to risks in fieldwork with deaf Ugandans 5. 'We are your brothers, we will know where you are at all times': risk, violence and positionality in Karachi 6. Accommodating fieldwork to irreconcilable equations of citizenship, authoritarianism, poverty and fear in Egypt 7.Where the dust settles: fieldwork, subjectivity and materiality in Cairo 8. Risky closeness and distance in two fieldwork sites in Brazil 9. Rumours, fears and solidarity in fieldwork in times of political turmoil on the verge of war in Southern Yemen
