Ethics of Decolonial Research
What does decolonial research really mean in practice? Sara Ababneh explores why ethical practice matters and how research can still repeat harm.
In the pursuit of addressing long-standing colonial practices within and via academia, claiming a decolonial approach to research has become popular, particularly among Western institutions funding research in the global South. However decolonial research is limited in praxis, particularly when it comes to researching commonly othered and Orientalised communities and spaces. Sara Ababneh explains how ethical practice is at the heart of decolonial research and sheds light on the often - paradoxically - obscured ethical implications of reproducing ‘the other’ in research funded and designed in ways that perpetuate colonality.
Dr Sara Ababneh is lecturer of International Relations at the University of Sheffield. Prior to this she lectured at the University of Jordan’s Center for Strategic Studies. Sara has conducted research on Mandate Palestine, gender and Islamism, Muslim family laws, and labour movements. Her research interests include class, gender, resistance, struggles for liberation, social justice, and economic sovereignty.
Recommended Reading:
Credits
- Host: Hannah Redman (PhD Candidate at the University of Sheffield)
- Guest: Dr Sara Ababneh (Lecturer in International Relations at the University of Sheffield)
- Producer and Editor: Hannah Redman (PhD Candidate at the University of Sheffield)
- Producer and Editor: AC Davidson (Lecturer in Human Geography at the University of Sheffield)
- Producer and Editor: Nabeela Ahmed (Lecturer in Human Geography at the University of Sheffield)
- Music: (freesoundproject - ‘Night sessions (Piano and Bass)’ by elaineaeris)