Call for papers: RGS-IBG Annual International Conference,
Cardiff University, 28–31 August 2018
*Hierarchy and inequality in research: Practices, ethics and experiences*
Session conveners: Lars Frers ([log in to unmask] <mailto:[log in to unmask]>),
University College of Southeast Norway, and Lars Meier
([log in to unmask]), Goethe-University of Frankfurt
The relation between researcher and their research subjects is
a well-established subject of reflection and inquiry in human geography
and the social sciences in general. At the same time, methods and
general approaches to research have multiplied and there has been a
growing focus on participative methods, action research, and lately the
co-production of knowledge. A critical reflection of hierarchies in
these relations can also be a contribution on its own to research on
social inequalities in general.
In this session, we want to retrace how these developments have
affected the ways in which social hierarchies are negotiated
in different kinds of research practices and settings. We want to
emphasize the tension between established patterns of hierarchy
and spontaneous and unexpected events and experiences. How do those
involved in the research process affect each other? Which kinds
of positionalities (related to status, gender, language, …) are played
out in research practices and who is involved or pulled into
the relation (only those that are co-present and enabled? How are
others, things, animals, photos, youtube clips, superiors, guidelines
etc. evoked and mobilized?
While the inversion or destabilization of hierarchies in research can
be experienced as a complication, it can also be highly relevant for the
research questions and how they should be addressed. When, how and why
did it come to such a destabilization, how do the different actors that
are involved respond in the here and now, and what kind of trajectory
might result from such more-or-less unexpected incidents?
Taking all of these aspects together, hierarchy in research is not
a stable, pre-established relation, but is dynamical produced.
This entails a need for content-related reflection and ethical awareness
to which this session hopefully will contribute.
We encourage contributions that are based on actual research
experiences and we want to create a space for shared reflection that
is also open for the disturbing and problematic. Here is a brief and
non-exclusive list of list of possible topics:
* layered identities in research encounters, where different markers
of identity are connected to different hierarchies (gender,
age, socio-economic status, language skills, etc.)
* positionality and researcher’s self-reflectivity
* moments of crisis but also turning points in research process
* participative methods and co-production
* ethical questions related to diversity and hierarchy (children,
criminals, dis/abled individuals, marginalized groups)
* different hierarchies in mixed-method and multi-method approaches
* closeness and distance, friendship and enmity
Please send abstracts of no more than 250 words to Lars
Frers [log in to unmask] and Lars Meier [log in to unmask] by 31st
January 2018. These should include a title, author affiliation and email
address.
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Lars Meier
Guestprofessor for Sociology and Social Inequality
Institute for Sociology
Goethe-University Frankfurt, Germany
http://www.fb03.uni-frankfurt.de/65638384/Dr_-Lars-Meier
Latest publications:
Frers, L.; Meier, L., 2017: The limits of resistance in public spaces.
Space and Culture. 20(2)
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