Ethical and Methodological Considerations in Research with Asylum-Seeking and Refugee Youth in European Cities
Research about the lived experiences of asylum-seeking and refugee youth can evoke powerful emotions for those involved. Young people who escaped perilous situations often bear strong emotions linked to their experiences of migration and displacement, as well as their encounters with disorientation,...
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| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2025-03-01
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| Series: | Social Sciences |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0760/14/4/204 |
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| author | Rik P. Huizinga Peter Hopkins Matthew C. Benwell Mattias De Backer Robin Finlay Kathrin Hörschelmann Elisabeth Kirndörfer Ilse van Liempt |
| author_facet | Rik P. Huizinga Peter Hopkins Matthew C. Benwell Mattias De Backer Robin Finlay Kathrin Hörschelmann Elisabeth Kirndörfer Ilse van Liempt |
| author_sort | Rik P. Huizinga |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Research about the lived experiences of asylum-seeking and refugee youth can evoke powerful emotions for those involved. Young people who escaped perilous situations often bear strong emotions linked to their experiences of migration and displacement, as well as their encounters with disorientation, insecurity, isolation, discrimination and racism in unfamiliar contexts in the host society. Such emotions and emotionally charged places can be challenging to work with as researchers and require reflexive and situated methodological and ethical judgements. This paper investigates the emotional complexities of fieldwork with vulnerable young people by reflecting on (dis)comfort and discusses how to negotiate these issues with care and consideration. It draws from qualitative participatory and creative fieldwork experiences using story mapping, photovoice, walk-along and community theatre approaches in Amsterdam, Brussels, Leipzig and Newcastle-Upon-Tyne. It reports on a range of critical ethical and methodological issues that arose in our work that address meaningful relationships, reciprocity and trust, understanding the field, positionality and reflexivity, and challenges around the co-production of knowledge and leaving the field. Throughout, the paper flags various complex and, at times, ambiguous ethical and methodological issues that emerged throughout the research process and argues for research approaches that are sensitive to the contextual and multi-faceted nature of investigating young refugees and asylum seekers in European cities. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-282e5cfb32a84d9dbf1b741542ad5ae7 |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2076-0760 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-03-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Social Sciences |
| spelling | doaj-art-282e5cfb32a84d9dbf1b741542ad5ae72025-08-20T03:13:32ZengMDPI AGSocial Sciences2076-07602025-03-0114420410.3390/socsci14040204Ethical and Methodological Considerations in Research with Asylum-Seeking and Refugee Youth in European CitiesRik P. Huizinga0Peter Hopkins1Matthew C. Benwell2Mattias De Backer3Robin Finlay4Kathrin Hörschelmann5Elisabeth Kirndörfer6Ilse van Liempt7Human Geography and Spatial Planning, Geosciences, Utrecht University, 3584 CB Utrecht, The NetherlandsSchool of Geography, Politics and Sociology, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 7RU, UKSchool of Geography, Politics and Sociology, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 7RU, UKDepartment of Criminology, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, 1050 Brussels, BelgiumInstitute for Economic and Social Inclusion, University of Sunderland, Sunderland SR1 3SD, UKDepartment of Geography, University of Bonn, 53115 Bonn, GermanyDepartment of Geography, University of Bonn, 53115 Bonn, GermanyHuman Geography and Spatial Planning, Geosciences, Utrecht University, 3584 CB Utrecht, The NetherlandsResearch about the lived experiences of asylum-seeking and refugee youth can evoke powerful emotions for those involved. Young people who escaped perilous situations often bear strong emotions linked to their experiences of migration and displacement, as well as their encounters with disorientation, insecurity, isolation, discrimination and racism in unfamiliar contexts in the host society. Such emotions and emotionally charged places can be challenging to work with as researchers and require reflexive and situated methodological and ethical judgements. This paper investigates the emotional complexities of fieldwork with vulnerable young people by reflecting on (dis)comfort and discusses how to negotiate these issues with care and consideration. It draws from qualitative participatory and creative fieldwork experiences using story mapping, photovoice, walk-along and community theatre approaches in Amsterdam, Brussels, Leipzig and Newcastle-Upon-Tyne. It reports on a range of critical ethical and methodological issues that arose in our work that address meaningful relationships, reciprocity and trust, understanding the field, positionality and reflexivity, and challenges around the co-production of knowledge and leaving the field. Throughout, the paper flags various complex and, at times, ambiguous ethical and methodological issues that emerged throughout the research process and argues for research approaches that are sensitive to the contextual and multi-faceted nature of investigating young refugees and asylum seekers in European cities.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0760/14/4/204research ethicsmethodsasylum seekers and refugeesemotional fieldworkreflexivitypositionality |
| spellingShingle | Rik P. Huizinga Peter Hopkins Matthew C. Benwell Mattias De Backer Robin Finlay Kathrin Hörschelmann Elisabeth Kirndörfer Ilse van Liempt Ethical and Methodological Considerations in Research with Asylum-Seeking and Refugee Youth in European Cities Social Sciences research ethics methods asylum seekers and refugees emotional fieldwork reflexivity positionality |
| title | Ethical and Methodological Considerations in Research with Asylum-Seeking and Refugee Youth in European Cities |
| title_full | Ethical and Methodological Considerations in Research with Asylum-Seeking and Refugee Youth in European Cities |
| title_fullStr | Ethical and Methodological Considerations in Research with Asylum-Seeking and Refugee Youth in European Cities |
| title_full_unstemmed | Ethical and Methodological Considerations in Research with Asylum-Seeking and Refugee Youth in European Cities |
| title_short | Ethical and Methodological Considerations in Research with Asylum-Seeking and Refugee Youth in European Cities |
| title_sort | ethical and methodological considerations in research with asylum seeking and refugee youth in european cities |
| topic | research ethics methods asylum seekers and refugees emotional fieldwork reflexivity positionality |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0760/14/4/204 |
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