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Doing Research in a Politicized Field and Surviving It: Lessons Learned from the Field of Migration

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Engaged Anthropology

Part of the book series: Approaches to Social Inequality and Difference ((ATSIAD))

Abstract

Migration research often fosters political awareness and polemics. In the instances where a politically based critique of research results evolves, the critique is often directed toward the researcher(s) who carried out the project. Can the researcher be trusted? Or, is he or she simply an agent with political intentions, disguised as research? The personal consequences for the researcher and his/her options for speaking out in such contexts are surprisingly undescribed—not least within academic, methodological publications.

In this chapter, I will address the role of the migration researcher as a political agent in Denmark. The chapter builds on personal experiences within a politicized research field, but it will point to a more general discussion on the public and political role of researchers.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Communication and Arts, Roskilde University, Roskilde, Denmark

    Garbi Schmidt

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  1. Garbi Schmidt
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway

    Tone Bringa

  2. University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway

    Synnøve Bendixsen

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Schmidt, G. (2016). Doing Research in a Politicized Field and Surviving It: Lessons Learned from the Field of Migration. In: Bringa, T., Bendixsen, S. (eds) Engaged Anthropology. Approaches to Social Inequality and Difference. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-40484-4_4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-40484-4_4

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  • Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-40483-7

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-40484-4

  • eBook Packages: Social SciencesSocial Sciences (R0)

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