Who’s really right for the job when it comes to research?

The Mix Global’s Jasmine Lo questions whether the right researcher is always who we think it is – and asks if we need to take a fresh look at how we approach fieldwork

Ethnography, digital or in-person, is integral to our work at The Mix - and it’s without a doubt my favourite part of the job. It’s a privilege to be privy to other people’s lives.

But, as researchers, we must acknowledge our role within the research itself. Every human carries their own background and experiences within them: this includes our privileges and our biases. This is important to admit. So, in the dynamic we create in our conversations with others, we need to acknowledge that our differences can alienate some and bring others closer.

Let’s say you’re a researcher from South London, tasked with speaking to a fellow South Londoner about sports culture. You will likely find similarities in the places you frequent, the expressions you use to describe things, you might even support the same sports teams. On the flip side, perhaps you were raised across the pond and tasked with speaking to Europeans about drinking culture across the continent. Your accent easily gives you away but, perhaps, you also don’t understand all their references. Which of these two scenarios do we assume is the more considered? The one more likely to get the best response?  

When I reflect on all the people I’ve spoken to in the early stages of my career, I immediately think of the range. At the same time, I also think about the times where I was told, indirectly but often directly, that perhaps “on this occasion” it would be best to send someone else. After all, I am not white. I am not originally from the UK. My accent is ambiguous, my ethnicity is in plain sight, and I am a woman. I am, by general societal perceptions, still young.

Through ingrained unspoken rules of research, we can end up making assumptions: for example, that a vast age gap between participant and researcher will result in awkward lack of common ground, that a junior strategist should let their senior take on the higher-income bracket, or that the city local will know best. Yet, when we take a step back, who decided what really makes each of these pairings strongest for the research?

This article isn’t about deciding which scenario is right or wrong. We know that each case presents its own strengths and weaknesses. There’s usually a decent enough argument behind what makes the most sense. So, what’s there to talk about?

I’ll never forget the conversations I’ve had with a young mum in the suburbs, the pool player who was redecorating his flat so he could foster two kids, the Muslim women whose weekly grocery shop I joined across East London, Arsenal mums and dads who showed me their beloved football trinkets (but kept insisting it was their kids’), the San Francisco and Hong Kong natives who hosted the most remarkable get-togethers, the list goes on. These conversations were not without hurdles - language, socio-economic differences, and cultural divides - yet we arrived at a real appreciation for what we didn’t know of each other, and from this came a willingness to open up and discover what really moves them.

It is our responsibility to think more intentionally and talk more openly about how we pair and plan our project teams, research design, and the fieldwork itself. It’s about tapping into the invaluable cultural know-how of a team member and asking how our individual biases might sway our thinking. It’s about doing our due diligence in making sure our team members - junior and more senior alike - are empowered to bring out the best possible conversations with participants.

And consider this: when your team is fundamentally diverse, it’s inevitable that your researchers do not always “match” the participants they might speak to. So, it’s a matter of training up your team to tackle any scenario they’re faced with. It’s about challenging ourselves to move beyond obvious pairings and instead towards what will make this research braver and stronger? There are always more ways to ask questions, so there are always as many, if not more ways to arrive at our responses. We’re in the business of people, local and global - nothing should feel out of bounds.