Methodological considerations for researching with prisoners: Reflections about an experience in Costa Rica jails

Abstract

In this article, I want to reflect on the methodological procedure that I designed to face the challenges imposed by a fieldwork I conducted in two prisons in Costa Rica during the months of April and August 2006. In particular, I am interested in drawing attention to the measures taken to guarantee the safety of those who participated in the study, as well as those aimed at avoiding the reproduction of stereotypes and power practices over the interviewees, and highlighting the usefulness of typological hypotheses as a tool to analyze interviews with inmates. I have organized the text in five sections: introduction, security aspects, epistemological surveillance, methodological innovation and final considerations.