Research Methods in Deportation

The Power-Knowledge Approach

Edited by Agnieszka Radziwinowiczówna, Centre of Migration Research, University of Warsaw, Poland

This prescient book explores how to confront the methodological and ethical challenges in researching deportation. Agnieszka Radziwinowiczówna introduces a ‘power-knowledge’ approach, crucially taking into account the power imbalances that emerge at every stage of the deportation research process.

‘In their timely collection on ethics and methodology in deportation studies, the editors and authors have succeeded in setting new standards. In a conceptually sophisticated way, the contributions inquire into issues around power and positionality in the research process around enforced removals and assisted voluntary returns. This sophisticated account is bound to become an essential guide for understanding the importance of the power-knowledge nexus not only in migration studies but also in qualitative methodology.’
– Thomas Faist, Bielefeld University, Germany

‘Deportation has increasingly become a problematic global response to our worldwide migration crisis. This edited book is a timely and much needed exploration of how to thoroughly, thoughtfully, and ethically research the brutal practice of deportation.’
– Jason De Leon, University of California, Los Angeles, US