Collecting and treating sensitive data
Tanja Dramac Jiries · 2021
Recalling the manner in which I obtained information and data, this chapter is dedicated in part to elaborating fieldwork, numerous trips across both countries, several months of extended ethnological observation, conversations in local languages with local actors who have aided interviews and data collection. It reflects on the ethic of working with marginalized groups and the importance of establishing trust with local communities. The chapter recalls numerous explanatory fieldwork experiences and illustrations to paint the realities on the ground and the importance of local informants such as radio hosts, local journalists, and doctors in rural areas. It will also reflect on the need to build trust not just with local communities, but with local law enforcement agencies and to a certain degree intelligence officers and how that relationship-building took years and months in the field. I argue that in order to study political violence, a researcher does not need to strive for complete emotional detachment for it will not yield trust-based relationships and useful qualitative data.