Research Methods in Conflict Settings: A View from Below

Increasing numbers of researchers are now working in regions experiencing high levels of conflict or crisis, or among populations that have fled violent conflict to become refugees or internally displaced persons. Understanding these conflicts and their aftermath should be shaped not only by the victors and their elite companions but also by the local people whose daily lives become intertwined with the conflict – and it is this “view from below” that this volume's authors seek to share. Yet conducting rigorous research in these kinds of field contexts presents a range of ethical, methodological, logistical, and security challenges not usually confronted in non-conflict field contexts. This volume compiles a rich variety of lessons learned by experienced field researchers, many of whom have faced demanding situations characterized by violence, profound and well-grounded distrust, and social fragmentation. The authors' offer options, ideas, and techniques for studying the situations of people affected by conflict and, by focusing on ethical and security issues, seek ways to safeguard the interests and integrity of the research “subjects” and of the researchers and their teams.