Ethical and Effective Ethnographic Research Methods: A Case Study with Afghan Refugees in California

Abstract

SCHOLARLY STUDIES OF REFUGEES and other vulnerable populations carry special ethical concerns. In this invited case study of Afghan refugees in Fremont, California, I provide illustrations and recommendations of ethical research methods with refugees. I also compare and contrast some ethical issues in the U.S. with issues in Thailand. The qualitative, ethnographic methods I report here demonstrate how to conduct culturally sensitive investigations by ethically approaching gatekeepers and other community members to preserve autonomy, ensure confidentiality, build trust, and improve the accuracy of interpretations and results. Six groups at risk for being marginalized in multiple ways within refugee populations are described. Ten best practices are recommended for ethically acquiring an in-depth understanding of the refugees, their community, and appropriate research methods.

Factors associated with cervical cancer screening participation among immigrants of Russian, Somali and Kurdish origin: a population-based study in Finland

“…A qualitative research with an ethnographic approach [47, 48] might be successful in studying such factors, especially among Somali women. An ethnographic method would provide a deeper understanding of Somali women’s participation barriers and thus an opportunity to support their screening participation.…”

Aspectos éticos de la investigación etnográfica en salud. El papel del comité de ética de la investigación

“…Sin embargo, la difusión de los detalles recolectados durante la inmersión etnográfica puede ser el momento en el que, por ejemplo, el derecho a la intimidad y al libre desarrollo de los miembros de un grupo particular se vea vulnerado por la difusión de la investigación, dado que una vez los resultados estén en poder del público la posibilidad de señalamientos, estigmatización, invasión a la privacidad y ruptura de la confidencialidad son riesgos reales que surgen, precisamente, de la capacidad de la técnica investigativa de pormenorizar y exponer con profundo detalle al grupo de interés (33,46,47).…”

“Us and Them” – Approaching the Refugee Other? Cultural Anthropological Rethinking of the Fieldwork Experience in Slavonia

“…Finally, I have also consulted papers that deal with the methodolo y and ethics of studyin topics of refu eehood (cf. Harrell-Bond and Voutira 1992; Kość-Ryźko 2012-2013Smith 2009) and the already mentioned texts of authors who rethink autoethno raphy as a method (cf. Škrbić Alempijević et al 2016;Chan 2008).…”