Reflections on the Narrative Approach: Dilemmas of Power, Emotions and Social Location While Constructing Life-Stories

Abstract

This paper reflects on the use of life-stories as a way to get a better understanding of the multiple identity constructions of Female Entrepreneurs of Moroccan and Turkish Origin. Since life-stories are co-constructions of the researcher and researched, the paper argues that the relationship between these two parties and their different social locations should be explicated in the analysis and writing of the material, as these might reproduce certain power structures. Accounting for such social implications requires a thorough analysis of partiality, issues of inequality, as well as emotions that may direct researchers' interpretations.