Fieldwork Under Surveillance: A Research Note

Abstract

Apart from some rare personal accounts where researchers reflect on doing fieldwork in Russia and China, the ethical and methodological challenges of conducting research “under surveillance” are rarely discussed in published form because they may raise unwanted attention from the authorities, and this could create barriers for scholars wishing to access the region in the future. Nevertheless, reflections on how to navigate the quandaries that might arise when doing fieldwork under the watchful eyes of the authorities are useful, especially for first-time fieldworkers. While collecting data for my postdoc project in Central Asia, I experienced both labor-intensive and technology-intensive surveillance. My reflections presented here should serve as a reminder that while they are watching us, we are watching them too. As such, it is not them, but us who have the last word.