Reflections on ethics, care and online data collection during the pandemic: Researching the impacts of COVID-19 on migrants in Latin America

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.59670/ml.v20i2.2838

Keywords:

Research ethics, online interviews, COVID-19, migration, latin Americ

Abstract

While most borders in Latin America were closed during the COVID-19 pandemic, the dynamics of mobility and immobility in the region did not stop. In this extreme context, there was a growing need to understand how the pandemic impacted migrant and refugee populations, as well as the long-lasting effects of measures implemented to mitigate its effects. With many migrants facing exacerbated conditions of vulnerability and with new working modalities affecting all members of society, especially those who were key respondents to protect migrants in the first year of the pandemic, key ethical questions emerged about how, when and where, should research be conducted. This paper reflects on the ethical challenges we faced – such as interviewees' research fatigue, negotiation of access, researcher’s positionality and the strategies to create rapport – and the methodological decisions we made in the context of a regional project (CAMINAR) that conducted online interviews with governmental and non-governmental actors working with migrants between June and August 2020.

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Author Biographies

Marcia Vera Espinoza, Queen Margaret University

Dr Marcia Vera Espinoza is a Reader at the Institute for Global Health and Development, Queen Margaret University. 

Alethia Fernández de la Reguera

Dr Alethia Fernández de la Reguera is a researcher at the Instituto de Investigaciones Jurídicas at Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México. 

Irene Palla, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Perú

Irene Palla is an associate researcher at the Instituto de Democracia y Derechos Humanos, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Perú.

Julieta Bengochea, Universidad de la República de Uruguay

Dr Julieta Bengochea is an associate researcher at the Programa de Población - Facultad de Ciencias Sociales - Universidad de la República de Uruguay.

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Published

2023-03-22

How to Cite

Vera Espinoza, M., Fernández de la Reguera, A., Palla, I., & Bengochea, J. (2023). Reflections on ethics, care and online data collection during the pandemic: Researching the impacts of COVID-19 on migrants in Latin America. Migration Letters, 20(2), 325–335. https://doi.org/10.59670/ml.v20i2.2838

Issue

Section

Special Dossier: Ethics practices in research with refugees and migrants