Emotions in Fieldwork: Affective Reflections Based on my Doctoral Process

Abstract

This paper studies the topic of emotions and their ethnographic value. In general, emotions and their different implications during research have been scarcely explored because they are considered an unscientific, subjective, feminized (and therefore, lacking value) issue that could endanger the validity of the results. However, in recent times, due to contributions from feminism, there is an increasing emphasis on the need to theorize and reflect on all those areas which, labelled as subjective and irrational, have been excluded from scientific thought, despite they are constantly shaping it.

Based on my own experiences and concerns throughout the doctoral process, this article will not propose significant results, but simply share some reflections about emotions and their implications throughout the research process. To do so, I will introduce three possible ethnographic impacts. First, I will analyse the importance of acute pain and how it guides and orients us during research. Second, I will examine the affective assembly that emerges from reencounters with people we already know during the fieldwork. Third, I will highlight the significance of absences and the emotional weight they involve. Although these three cases are based on my personal experiences, they are broadly applicable to the majority of research endeavours, which is where their relevance and interest lie. Finally, conclusions will be presented to summarize the points discussed.

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