[URBANTH-L]a question concerning methods/ethics
Lawless, Robert
robert.lawless at wichita.edu
Thu Jul 30 11:01:22 EDT 2009
I should added to my hastily written response (that included the statement "The informant may not realize what use could be made of the published item") that anthropologists themselves do not realize what use could be made of these studies, as is well documented in the cases of the U.S. military's use of anthropological information.
-----Original Message-----
From: urbanth-l-bounces at lists.ysu.edu [mailto:urbanth-l-bounces at lists.ysu.edu] On Behalf Of Brian L Adams-Thies
Sent: Thursday, July 30, 2009 6:35 AM
To: Bascom Guffin; URBANTH-L at lists.ysu.edu
Subject: Re: [URBANTH-L]a question concerning methods/ethics
Just to play devil´s advocate......I am a bit concerned that the notion that
informants don´t understand how or in what manner their information will be
used is in itself highly problematic. Informants are just as capable of
understanding the repercussions of their participation as we, the
anthropologists, are. Assuming that informants are somehow less imbued
with the logical capacity of understanding their decision smacks of
colonialism/power/domination. In this world we live in I think it very
difficult to assume we, as anthropologists, are privvy to possible outcomes
to which our informants remain oblivious.
With that said, I think what everyone who has responded so far is indicating
is that this decision is contextual. We should be explaining the risks of
using real names and engage in an extended conversation with informants
about this decision. If, after that conversation, an informant demands
that their name be used then I don´t see how we can ethically anonymize
them.
These thoughts are also off the top of my head and I am sure there are
people much more qualified to speak to the issue.
All my best,
Brian L. Adams-Thies, PhD
Assistant Professor - Anthropology
Department for the Study of Culture and Society
Drake University
Des Moines, IA
Email: Brian.Adams-Thies at drake.edu
Phone: 515.271.2936
----- Original Message -----
From: "Bascom Guffin" <mbguffin at ucdavis.edu>
To: <URBANTH-L at lists.ysu.edu>
Sent: Wednesday, July 29, 2009 11:09 PM
Subject: Re: [URBANTH-L]a question concerning methods/ethics
>I would say that in the case of B (she/he doesn't care), I would still
>anonymize the informant. If they specifically ask that their names be
>mentioned, it becomes a tougher call. I know of one person who had DJs as
>informants, and many of them asked that their real names (at least their
>real DJ names) be used, because they saw it as an opportunity for
>publicity. In this case, you might consider using their real names to be a
>sort of reciprocation for the time and effort they've put in to helping
>you out. But this researcher still ended up anonymizing their sources,
>because informants made statements that the researcher determined could be
>controversial. There may have been other aspects to the researcher's
>reasoning as well. If the informants are public figures, other
>considerations might also apply, in that there may be good reason to use
>their real names, especially if it is overly difficult to hide their
>identities. All this is off the top of my head, and I am sure there are
>other members of the list who have given this much deeper thought, and
>been directly faced with these practical considerations. I too would be
>interested to hear what folks have to say.
>
> Best,
> Bascom
>
> ----------------
> Bascom Guffin | PhD Candidate
> Department of Anthropology
> University of California, Davis
> mbguffin at ucdavis.edu
>
>
>
> On Jul 24, 2009, at 9:41 AM, Fethi Keles wrote:
>
>> Friends,
>>
>> I would like to receive opinions on the following issue, if possible.
>>
>> What most everyone does when we write things up is to change names and
>> use pseudonyms etc. etc. But, what do you do if an informant a)
>> specifically asks to be identified with his/her actual name in your
>> study (book, article whatever) b) says s/he doesn't care/wouldn't mind
>> if you were to use his/her actual name?
>>
>> I feel the answer to this must be more than 'well go ahead and do as
>> s/he says', for there could be a whole lot of other implications if one
>> does so. Any readings you would suggest? What courses of action would be
>> on the table in the two cases above?
>>
>> Any thoughts will be appreciated. Thank you.
>>
>> Fethi Keles
>> PhD Candidate in Cultural Anthropology
>> Maxwell School
>> _______________________________________________
>> URBANTH-L mailing list
>> URBANTH-L at lists.ysu.edu
>> http://lists.ysu.edu/mailman/listinfo.cgi/urbanth-l
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> URBANTH-L mailing list
> URBANTH-L at lists.ysu.edu
> http://lists.ysu.edu/mailman/listinfo.cgi/urbanth-l
>
_______________________________________________
URBANTH-L mailing list
URBANTH-L at lists.ysu.edu
http://lists.ysu.edu/mailman/listinfo.cgi/urbanth-l
More information about the URBANTH-L
mailing list