The Question of Gatekeeping Consent: Negotiating Organizational Access to Fieldwork

Abstract

Conducting fieldwork in collaboration with NGOs is becoming increasingly common. However, the process and difficulties of obtaining organizational access are rarely outlined in ethnographic literature. This article unravels the author’s experience of negotiating consent for fieldwork, which took place at an organizational level between an NGO and the researcher, rather than with the participants whom the consent concerned. This experience does not stand alone; various Africanist scholars have debated the role of ‘gatekeepers’ and explored how researchers’ and gatekeepers’ moral perspectives on ‘protecting vulnerable participants’ may clash. Drawing on the author’s own experiences and similar cases from the African continent, the article investigates the potentials and challenges of negotiating with gatekeepers, such as NGOs, in the process of accessing the field and ensuring consent. This article argues that such processes are determined by the following factors: research topic, research participants, organizational characteristics, gatekeepers, and researcher positionality. Combined, these intertwined factors shape researchers’ experiences of negotiating for access to conduct fieldwork with organizations. When these factors encompass ethical dilemmas that may be deemed vulnerable or sensitive, researchers are likely to encounter difficulties in their attempts to access the field. The article aims to contribute to the scholarly field which explores the difficulties of negotiating for access to conduct research, by providing an empirical case-based study. The article exemplifies the need for researchers to investigate their own unpreparedness and naivety in the field, particularly when negotiations do not come to fruition. By candidly sharing such experiences, we may provide learning opportunities for fellow researchers.