Beyond ‘Vulnerable Populations’: Towards Relational Vulnerability in Fieldwork

Discussions on vulnerability during fieldwork in political science research are frequently limited to arguments on ethics and focus on the static and oftentimes loaded label of “vulnerable populations.” Problematising this focus, the paper makes a twofold argument. First, by surveying existing literature as well as departmental guidelines of the top ten political science departments across the US and Europe, we show that vulnerability frequently remains ontologically restricted to certain pre-defined groups, instead of appreciating the existential nature of vulnerability as universal human condition. Considering vulnerability in this way allows us to focus on the importance of a broader discussion of the concept in the context of fieldwork. Second, building on this critique, we propose a relational view of vulnerability: Instead of focusing on the vulnerability of certain groups or individuals, a relational approach underlines how vulnerability can be exacerbated or alleviated within relationships with others in the field. Drawing on various examples of fieldwork from the literature, we show that understanding vulnerability as a relational concept provides researchers with a powerful analytical lens to identify ethical and methodological challenges arising from their engagement in the field.