Preliminary field-work: methodological reflections from northern Canadian research
Year: 2009
Type: article
Abstract: In the Canadian North researchers of all disciplines are increasingly finding that local communities are neither uninterested nor ignorant of the potential for research to benefit their communities. We propose preliminary field-work as the early stages of research in the field that allow for exploration, reflexivity, creativity, mutual exchange and interaction through the establishment of research relationships with local people often prior to the development of research protocols and ethics applications. Based on a review of field research literature combined with our own personal research narratives from northern Canadian community research, we initiate a much needed discussion on the topic of preliminary field-work in order to understand more clearly its functions and contributions. We reflect on and examine our own experiences providing methodological guidance to other researchers who are contemplating community-based field research. Preliminary fieldwork acknowledges the increasingly intertwined standards of research quality, integrity and broader research ethics.
Source: Qualitative Research
Institutions: University of Alberta, University of Ottawa, University of Calgary
Language: English
Subfield: Sociology and Political Science
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $3,650
OpenAlex ID: W2139498372