Full Description
Fieldwork as Craftwork: A Practical Guide for Conducting Research in the Real World shows security studies researchers how to apply and develop a skill set that can be applied to all aspects of their work, from securing necessities and navigating a foreign landscape, to wrestling with theory and wrangling data. The author, Suzanne Levi-Sanchez, an assistant professor at the US Naval War College, has conducted extensive fieldwork in the borderlands of Afghanistan. Throughout this book, she draws upon this experience to illustrate the principles and best practices of field research.
Contents
Introduction: Practical Guidance from an Experienced Researcher
Part I: Designing Your Research Strategy
1. The Right Research Strategy: Different Approaches to Fieldwork
2. Research Design: Sites, Sources, Methods, Internal Review Boards
3. Funding: Fellowships, Grants, Contracts, Volunteer Work
Part II: Preparing for the Field
4. Research Logistics: Field Plan, Travel, Equipment
5. Health and Safety: Self-Preservation and Self-Defense
Part III: Working in the Field
6. Access: Contacts, Interpreters, Subjects
7. Engagement: Interviews and Casual Conversations
8. Participant-Observation: Sites, Jobs, Volunteer Work
9. Additional Sources: Artifacts, Documents, Digital Media
10. Departure: Leaving the Field and Returning Home
Part IV: Analyzing Your Data and Writing Your Report
11. Evidence: Assessment, Analysis, Documentation
12. Writing and Publishing: From Researcher to Author
Conclusion: No One Best Way, Only a Messy Way
