“I am still incredibly angry, aggressive, and at the same time somehow on the brink of tears […].”: Gaining ‘emotionally-sensed knowledge’ as a Participant Observer in a Social Work Context

DOI zum Zitieren der Version auf EPub Bayreuth: https://doi.org/10.15495/EPub_UBT_00008493
URN to cite this document: urn:nbn:de:bvb:703-epub-8493-4

Title data

Schild, Hannah:
“I am still incredibly angry, aggressive, and at the same time somehow on the brink of tears […].”: Gaining ‘emotionally-sensed knowledge’ as a Participant Observer in a Social Work Context.
ed.: Zucchi, Carolina ; Boudjekeu, Thierry ; Gyan, Augustine
Bayreuth , 2025 . - VI, 23 S. - (University of Bayreuth African Studies Working Papers ; 58 ) (BIGSAS works!; 22)

	Format: PDF Name: FINAL Hannah Schild (58).pdf Version: Published Version Available under License Creative Commons BY 4.0: Attribution
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Abstract

This working paper reflects on doing research amongst social workers involving confrontations with emotionally difficult topics and on the role of emotions in anthropological fieldwork. Despite some advances, emotions remain a crucial and yet relatively underreported topic in scientific writing and an underexplored area of methodological training. I draw on research I conducted in Lindi, a small town on the South-eastern coast of Tanzania as part of a larger fieldwork project on parenthood, parenting and planning for ‘better future(s)’ through, with and for children, during which I carried out six weeks of participant observation in the local Social Welfare Office. A majority of cases concerned family strife, often surrounding the dissolution of relationships and ensuing conflicts about child support and custody. Bearing witness to family conflict and being part of highly-charged counselling situations took an emotional toll on me, changing my perceptions of the field and my research participants. Lacking professional training in the area of social work, I had aimed at being mostly an observer; however, I often became an unwilling and uneasy participant, drawn into ongoing confrontations by clients and social welfare officers alike. I will reflect on emotions as a factor in anthropological research, investigating how a researcher’s emotions can be translated into ‘emotionally-sensed knowledge’. Finally, I argue for a better integration of these issues into academic training and writing, especially for the sake of early career researchers who might find it particularly difficult to unsettle ‘professional conventions’ in their work.

Further data

Item Type:	Working paper, discussion paper
Keywords:	emotions; fieldwork; participant observation; social work; methodology; Tanzania; parenthood, parenting; social welfare; child support; family conflict; counselling
DDC Subjects:	300 Social sciences > 300 Social sciences, sociology and anthropology 300 Social sciences > 360 Social problems, social services
Institutions of the University:	Faculties > Faculty of Cultural Studies > Chair Social Anthropology > Chair Social Anthropology - Univ.-Prof. Dr. Erdmute Alber Profile Fields > Advanced Fields > African Studies Faculties Faculties > Faculty of Cultural Studies Faculties > Faculty of Cultural Studies > Chair Social Anthropology Profile Fields Profile Fields > Advanced Fields
Language:	English
Originates at UBT:	Yes
URN:	urn:nbn:de:bvb:703-epub-8493-4
Date Deposited:	24 Jun 2025 08:10
Last Modified:	24 Jun 2025 08:10
URI:	https://epub.uni-bayreuth.de/id/eprint/8493

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