Researcher Well-being in the Context of Fieldwork Studies

When research ethics is mentioned, the first thing that comes to mind is the rules which are acknowledged to protect the participants. Behind this, is the scientists and researchers who have misused their scientific power in the past. Protecting participants is a crucial and necessary part of research ethics, however, one aspect which is ignored is the researchers themselves.
Researchers who adopt the role of interviewer in fieldwork studies risk themselves physically and emotionally by interacting with people one on one. In addition to this, whether it is the participants, the subject of the research or the environment in which the fieldwork takes place, there are numerous situations that also put researchers’ wellbeing at risk. The recent years have seen the discussion that researcher wellbeing is indeed an ethical responsibility for researchers themselves and also for the institutions. The main purpose of this study is to understand the fieldwork experiences and how the participants (are) prepare(d) and support(ed) for the challenges of the process.