Field Research on Collective Victimization in the Indian Subcontinent: Challenges and Strategies for Navigation

Although fieldwork is not uncommon in social psychological research on the consequences of collective victimization for intergroup peace and violence, the bulk of this work has focused on the global North. Further, there is a scarcity of accounts by social psychologists regarding how they navigated the challenges of conducting fieldwork in developing nations, which are often marked by long-standing inequality and conflicts. Consequently, researchers working in the global South often draw on concepts that may not be relevant in these contexts. Additionally, they are left underprepared to tackle the difficulties that can arise during their fieldwork in these settings. Building on our field experiences in the Indian subcontinent, in this chapter, we share various challenges that are relevant for different stages of research: (1) the preparation stage, (2) the conceptualization and design stage, (3) the data collection stage, (4) the analysis stage, and (5) the writing and dissemination stage. Furthermore, we suggest some strategies to navigate these challenges sensitively. We hope this chapter can inform and aid the work of field researchers working on similar issues in developing contexts.