Experience of Negotiating Access in the “Field”: Lessons for Future Research

Abstract

Accessing the field for the purposes of conducting research often starts with negotiation and engagement with gatekeepers. This is the first requirement for the research to be conducted; however, this step has challenges. While research has been conducted on negotiating access and research ethics, very little is known about the experiences of doctoral students from the Global South on negotiating access in fieldwork, and thus giving an account of what it entails conducting qualitative research from the Global South. As such, this article engages with the challenges of negotiating access to the field for my PhD studies. Due to the nature of research for my thesis, I conducted interviews with key informants from the departments and participants from the taxi ranks. In this article, I problematize the view that gaining access to the field is a simple process, by exposing my own uncomfortable encounters during the process.

Problematising access: reflections on ethnography in a bureaucratic organisation

“…Challenges around access are often addressed as practical problems, considering the concept of access is seen as instrumental. However, examining access as an analytical concept, Riese (2019, p. 671) argues that as knowledge production in qualitative research is relational, access is also co-constructed and therefore relational and processual as well (see also Fobosi, 2019, p. 506). Riese also points to the dynamic and multidirectional process of gaining access (2019, p. 627).…”

Space, geography and gendered experiences of children: a narrative study of four high schools in Hhohho region, Eswatini.

“…According to Fobosi (2019), accessing the field for research purposes begins with negotiating and engaging with the gatekeepers. The inability to gain access in the field can hinder qualitative researchers from carrying out research.…”

Teachers’ understanding and enhancement of learning for sustainability in Mauritian primary schools.

“…My main role as a researcher was to gain ethical clearance and the gatekeeper's permission to conduct the study (Spacey et al, 2021). The necessary permission was obtained from the MoETEST and the Headmaster of the chosen primary school where the study was conducted (Fobosi & Fobosi, 2019). The participants (teachers) were invited through WhatsApp messages, telephone calls, face-to-face contact, and written notes.…”