Embodying the Field

Abstract

This article focuses on the various ways in which research relationships evolve and are negotiated by paying particular attention to the embodied nature of ethnographic research. By drawing on my own research experience of interviewing South African Muslim women about sexual dynamics, I critically engage debates concerning power dynamics in research relationships as well as researcher positionality. I argue that researchers should pay increasing attention to the multiple ways in which doing research always is an embodied practice. I present three case studies that highlight the complex ways in which research encounters speak to notions of intimacy, vulnerability and affect. In this way I argue that research encounters forge primary human relationalities that are marked by moments of convergence, conflict and despondency.

Managing identities during social change

“…This view ignores the embodied processes of resistance. Specifically race, gender, social class, social identities that research suggests are embodied (Duff, 2012;Hoel, 2013), are not centered in this research. Embodiment and tying identity to organizational control and resistance are necessary steps in understanding the interconnectivity of identity work.…”

“…The second concept, positioning, refers to micro-politics that occur during research encounters (Hoel, 2013). The researcher and the participants are always connected to specific power dynamics.…”