[go: up one dir, main page]

IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jscscx/v13y2024i8p398-d1445153.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The Role of Emotions in Ethnographic Research: Comparing Subjectivities

Author

Listed:
  • Serena Quarta

    (Dipartimento di Studi Politici e Sociali, Università degli Studi di Salerno, 84084 Salerno, Italy)

Abstract
This article considers the role of the researcher’s emotions in ethnographic research. The topic originates from the epistemological turn that since the 1960s has dealt with the researcher–subject studied relationship. The first part of this article analyzes the pivotal elements of the epistemological debate on the researcher–studied subject relationship. It is defined through a dialogical relationship in which the researcher puts into practice their reflexivity while being aware of the elements that characterize it, including emotions. The second part of this article uses two research experiences to show how emotions in ethnographic research are a valid tool for entering into dialogue with the subjects studied. They provide a better understanding of the social cutaways and enrich the reflexivity that characterizes social research, without affecting methodological rigor. The possible risk when considering emotions is to fall into excessive relativism and enter a sort of spiral of reflexivity due to the plurality of possible interpretations. It is a risk that is mitigated by the procedures the researcher uses to explain the personal observer–author equation. Writing is one of the tools that allows the researcher to account for the construction of a meaning of the results. It gives a ‘probative’ narrative that must contain all the methodological choices that guided the research.

Suggested Citation

  • Serena Quarta, 2024. "The Role of Emotions in Ethnographic Research: Comparing Subjectivities," Social Sciences, MDPI, vol. 13(8), pages 1-18, July.
  • Handle: RePEc:gam:jscscx:v:13:y:2024:i:8:p:398-:d:1445153
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0760/13/8/398/pdf
    Download Restriction: no

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0760/13/8/398/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jscscx:v:13:y:2024:i:8:p:398-:d:1445153. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    We have no bibliographic references for this item. You can help adding them by using this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.