Navigating “Insider” and “Outsider” Status as Researchers Conducting Field Experiments

Field Experiments in the Global South: Assessing Risks, Localizing Benefits, and Addressing Positionality

“…Regardless of the source of an idea, prioritizing early and ongoing inclusion of community voices is the first imperative for a study (Davis 2020). 3 It is challenging to determine who counts as a relevant stakeholder; addressing questions of positionality, belonging, and "insider/outsider" status can be as complex and frustrating as it is essential (Kim et al 2022). 4 Nevertheless, all researchers who are planning to work in the Global South-whether 5,000 miles or five blocks away from home-should ask themselves tough questions before proceeding with any RCT (Cowen 2019).…”

“…Consequently, RCTs carry significant benefits but also costs and risks for participants, research staff, and researchers themselves (Kaplan, Kuhnt, and Steinert 2020). Although all political science studies require ethical and cost-benefit evaluations, RCTs invoke special considerations of identity, positionality, and power dynamics (Haas et al 2022;Kim et al 2022), especially for studies conducted in the Global South. The resource-intensive nature of RCTs means that they often are conceived of and led by scholars from the Global North (Corduneanu-Huci, Dorsch, and Maarek 2022;Panin 2020).…”

What, Where, Who, and Why? An Empirical Investigation of Positionality in Political Science Field Experiments

“…4. One caveat is in order: our data do not capture systematically the researcher's country of origin, which may have important implications for the insideroutsider status (Kim et al 2022). We emphasize institutional affiliation instead as a proxy for access to resources.…”

Insiders, Outsiders, and Credible Visitors in Research

“…Insider/outsider status refers to the proximal location of a researcher vis-à-vis a group. Thinking about how near or far a researcher is from participants infuses accounts of best practices across the discipline, including recent and important reflections on field experiments (Kim et al 2022) and research in conflict zones (Parashar 2019). Traditionally, this conception has been presented as largely dichotomous: insiders are members of a self-defined group and outsiders are not (Merton 1972, 21).…”