Field research ethical challenges in a post–conflict Rwandan society: mistrust experienced in data collection in Kigali City

Abstract

Field research in a post-conflict society brings about the concern of ‘mistrust’. Due to bad experiences endured, people in such a society are plagued with fear and suspicion to talk about some topics. This happens while the researcher is also required to adhere to research ethics and collect much-needed baseline data. From his experience while he was conducting his PhD research on the informal urbanization and modernization of the City of Kigali, the author explains how he managed to deal with the informants who feared to criticize urban development policies and implementation strategies. The study recommends researchers in a mistrust context, to use different types of data collection methods and to take enough time to gain trust and confidence of informants to discuss on presumed sensitive topics.

Keywords: Fieldwork, research ethics, mistrust, good data, Kigali City