Whose voices matter? using participatory, feminist and anthropological approaches to centre power and positionality in research on gender-based violence in emergencies
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Authors
Potts, Alina
Kolli, Harriet
Fattal, Loujine
Issue Date
2022-04-18
Type
Article
Language
en_US
Keywords
Gender-Based Violence , Decolonisation , Feminist Research , Humanitarian Aid , Participatory Action Research.
Alternative Title
Abstract
An expansive view of 'rigorous' research is needed, particularly when studying complex health and human rights issues in settings where the imbalance of power between research participants, users and producers is heightened. This article examines how applying participatory, feminist and anthropological methods in gender-based violence research can hold researchers accountable to both acknowledging and explicitly addressing these power disparities. Applying these approaches throughout the research process takes time - to build trust and share stories rather than 'extract' data, to engage in collective meaning-making with those whose lived experiences are a form of expertise, and to consider how knowledge is represented and with whom it is shared. We provide examples and reflections from Empowered Aid, participatory action research that examines sexual exploitation and abuse in relation to humanitarian aid distributions, and tests ways for making aid safer. The study is grounded in ethnographic research by Syrian and South Sudanese women and girls living as refugees in Lebanon and Uganda, to safely take an active role in asking and answering questions about their own lives.
Description
Citation
Potts, A., Kolli, H., & Fattal, L. (2022). Whose voices matter? Using participatory, feminist and anthropological approaches to centre power and positionality in research on gender-based violence in emergencies. Global public health, 17(10), 2530–2546. https://doi.org/10.1080/17441692.2022.2062026
Publisher
Global Public Health