Engaging the Russian elite: Approaches, methods and ethics

Paul Richardson

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

This article discusses the strategies and country-specific challenges of conducting elite interviews overseas. Drawing on examples from fieldwork undertaken in the Russian Federation, it explores the ways in which the knowledge produced from such interviews is contingent on the analytical approaches selected; the researcher's time-specific entry into the field; issues of ethics; the contemporary political environment; and notions of insider/outsider. Undertaking elite interviews overseas places the researcher in a particularly intense and unique set of power relations with his or her research subjects. This provides both opportunities and challenges, which ultimately have the potential to elicit insights into the personal convictions and beliefs of the political and intellectual elite, as well as the contexts within which they operate. © 2013 Political Studies Association.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)180-190
Number of pages10
JournalPolitics
Volume34
Issue number2
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2014

Keywords

  • Elite interviews
  • Ethics
  • Fieldwork
  • National identity
  • Russia

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