Doing Ethnography in a Hostile Environment: The Case of a Mexico
                    Community

Chomczyński, Piotr

doi:10.4135/9781526459220

Cited by 16 publications

(16 citation statements)

References 2 publications

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“…In all three projects the data we obtained both from juvenile and adult offenders was fully anonymized. To ensure the anonymity and confidentiality that are especially needed for sensitive topics, all of the names used in this research are pseudonyms [ 52 , 53 , 54 , 55 ]. The length and content of the quotations was edited when necessary to protect our subjects from being identified.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mental and Physical Health Problems as Conditions of Ex-Prisoner Re-Entry

Pękala-Wojciechowska

Kacprzak

Pękala

et al. 2021

IJERPH

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The article focuses on a less-discussed issue of social marginalization of people leaving penitentiaries, which is the prevalence of multifaceted health problems experienced by people in this category. It includes poor health status, resulting from, among others, poor housing conditions, harmful or risky lifestyle, and lack of access to medical services. Data from the District Inspectorate of the Prison Service in Lodz, Poland on the health conditions of inmates was accessed. These data were supplemented by qualitative research conducted in 21 juvenile detention centers and 8 prisons across the country, conducting direct observations and In-Depth Interviews (IDI). A total of 198 IDIs were conducted with incarcerated (72) and released (30) juvenile offenders, and incarcerated (68) and released (28) adult offenders. These were complemented by IDIs with experts (50) and Focus Group Interviews (FGIs; 8) with male and female inmates in 4 Polish prisons. The study revealed that mental and physical health is a serious obstacle to social reintegration of ex-prisoners. It is rarely addressed by state institutions. There are strong associations between neglect of health issues in the prison population and increasing social exclusion after leaving prison. As Poland has a restrictive penal policy, former prisoners remain a group with social stigma and little support.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mental and Physical Health Problems as Conditions of Ex-Prisoner Re-Entry

Pękala-Wojciechowska

Kacprzak

Pękala

et al. 2021

IJERPH

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“…Such snowballing is a common and useful technique for ethnographers to obtain subjects in research settings that may be closed to outsiders (Berg 2007; Giampietro and Molle 2017). Research also suggests that such an intermediator is essential in such a hostile environment to gain entry and establish trust in the community (Fielding 2005; Jenkins 2015; Chomczyński 2018). Miguel also triangulated observations and provided extensive field notes after forays in the field.…”

Section: Research Methods and Datamentioning

confidence: 99%

Front Business–Back Business: The Social Anatomy of Small-Time Drug Dealing in a Mexico City Neighborhood

Chomczyński

Guy

Cortina-Cortés

2019

Journal of Contemporary Ethnography

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Research introduced here draws on over two years of ongoing qualitative work of low-level drug dealers in a Mexico City neighborhood. Through interviews and participant observation, we explore the social mechanisms that sustain and facilitate informal drug dealing. Our findings indicate that the sale of illicit products, especially drugs, is a needed supplement to household income that expands and contracts according to economic need. Drug selling is integrated into the context of small licit (front) businesses in which dealers sell small amounts of marijuana and cocaine to trusted clients as a (back) business. These “back businesses” are protected by those who operate them, and family, community members, and corrupt officials who benefit from their existence. Finally, the dealers that we studied occupy a unique niche in the overall structure of drug dealing in the neighborhood by remaining under the radar by not attracting the attention of drug cartels.

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“…We used an open-ended biographical questionnaire designed to allow our interviewees to make spontaneous statements [ 31 , 32 , 33 , 34 ]. Initially, most of the inmates expressed reluctance to discuss their criminal experiences at the sight of the printed questionnaire, so we decided to use open-ended questions, similar to an informal conversation.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…We memorized categories and invited respondents to develop and co-create interview scenarios by adding their own questions or editing ours. This gave us a richer description than a formal interview tool, and our interviewees became less suspicious [ 30 , 34 , 35 , 36 , 37 , 38 ]. We believe that this method placed our subjects on a more egalitarian footing, because we were repeatedly invited back for additional in-depth interviews [ 30 , 33 , 39 , 40 ].…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Age-Graded Transitions and Turning Points in Polish Offenders’ Criminal Careers from the Standpoint of Life Course Theory

Pękala

Kacprzak

Chomczyński

et al. 2021

IJERPH

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Both juvenile and adult criminal careers show regularities in the origins of delinquency, the dynamics of the criminal pathway, and the turning points that lead to desistance/persistence in crime. Research shows that family, education, and friendship environments contribute significantly to the individual choices that create criminal biographies. Our aim was to apply core aspects of life course theory (LCT): trajectory, the aged-graded process, transitions, institutions, and ultimately how desistance/persistence factor into explaining the criminal careers of Polish offenders. The research is based on in-depth interviews (130) carried out with both offenders (90) and experts (40). The offenders were divided into two groups: 30 were juveniles, and 60 were adults of whom half were sentenced for the first time (30) and half were recidivists (30) located in correctional institutions or released. The experts group (40) includes psychologists, educators, social rehabilitators, and prison and juvenile detention personnel working with offenders. We used triangulation of researcher, data, and methodology. Our data revealed that similar biographical experiences characterized by an early socialization, family and friends-based circles laid the groundwork for their entry and continued participation in criminal activity. Juvenile and adult first-time sentenced offenders led criminal careers significantly different from those of recidivists, who faced problems with social adaptation caused by lack of family and institutional support.

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Doing Ethnography in a Hostile Environment: The Case of a Mexico Community

Cited by 16 publications

References 2 publications

Mental and Physical Health Problems as Conditions of Ex-Prisoner Re-Entry

Mental and Physical Health Problems as Conditions of Ex-Prisoner Re-Entry

Front Business–Back Business: The Social Anatomy of Small-Time Drug Dealing in a Mexico City Neighborhood

Age-Graded Transitions and Turning Points in Polish Offenders’ Criminal Careers from the Standpoint of Life Course Theory

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