Interviews with women in India

Abstract

Significant social science research has been dedicated to determining and describing effective means of gathering data via the interview, while minimizing bias and accounting for the methodological and ethical problems created by gender power imbalance and racial privilege. This research note contributes to this discussion by providing insight from fieldwork conducted in the highly patriarchal environment of Rajasthan, India, with a focus on experiences often unique to conducting research in the developing world. I discuss the unique theoretical and methodological challenges created by a white male using semi-structured interviews with women to determine the degree of independence among representatives brought in through the gender quota system.

Keywords

developing world ethics gender India methodology narrative interviews women

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