Stories from the Field – Details, episodes & analysis

When conducting research and fieldwork on civil war, it is not only challenging to remain impartial or get physically and emotionally close to conflict participants, but it is especially difficult to do both, given that more of one often requires—or leads to—less of the other. How do researchers navigate the challenges of partiality and proximity in the field? How do they deal with their values and emotions in the context of their research? In this episode, Peter takes a break from his regularly scheduled hosting duties to join us as a guest alongside Sarah Zukerman Daly, Associate Professor of Political Science at Columbia University, as they discuss their coauthored article Whose Side Are You On?

Sarah and Peter discuss how their field research on conflict in Latin America, the Middle East, and North Africa motivated them to distill the complex balance of what they call "The Impartiality-Proximity Dilemma." The conversation also explores the various combinations of partiality, proximity, and neutrality that are adopted while on the ground, and what a proximate, impartial research process can look like from beginning to end. We also explore the biases that researchers may hold, consciously or not, and how they influence advocacy, scholarly integrity, and the research process. 

2:17: Origins of the Article: Whose Side are you On?

6:15: Explaining the Impartiality-Proximity Dilemma

9:26: Navigating the Impartiality-Proximity Dilemma During Fieldwork

13:59: Why Civil War Research Presents Unique Challenges

25:49: How Researcher Background and Identity Shape the Impartiality-Proximity Dilemma

37:13: How the Impartiality-Proximity Dilemma Shapes Research Design and Methods

44:47: A Call for Methodological Pluralism

50:42: Advice for New Graduate Students

Publications Mentioned in This Episode

1. Daly, Sarah Z., & Krause, Peter. (2024). Whose side are you on? Balancing impartiality and proximity in the study of civil wars. Conflict, Security & Development, 24(6), 621–644. https://doi.org/10.1080/14678802.2024.2435057 
2. Daly, Sarah Z., Paler, Laura, & Samii, Cyrus (2020). Wartime ties and the social logic of crime. Journal of Peace Research, 57(4), 536-550. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022343319897098 

Producers: Hannah Bingham, Dominic Calareso, Jasmine Han, Anna O’Donnell

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Even though you might think you know the place that you’re researching, things can still surprise you when you’re new to the field. In this episode, we welcome Ana Paula Pellegrino and Ulaş Erdoğdu. Pellegrino is the Gerhard Casper Postdoctoral Fellow in the Rule of Law at the Center on Democracy, Development, and the Rule of Law (CDDRL) at Stanford University. She will be starting as an Assistant Professor at the School of Government at the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile in July 2026. Erdoğdu is a PhD candidate in political science at Northwestern University. 

In this episode, Ulaş and Ana Paula share their research experiences as current and recently-graduated doctoral students. We talk about methods training within the broader context of researching armed groups, the complexities of doing research as a native, and compare experiences in the field to lessons learned in the classroom. 

3:02: Background on Pellegrino's Research

6:58: Background on Erdoğdu’s Research

14:30: The Institute for Qualitative and Multi-Method Research (IQMR) Experience

21:30: Fieldwork Training in Graduate Programs

30:25: Aspects of Field Research that Go Beyond Classroom Training

41:02: Safety Precautions in the Field

44:53: What is the Future of Fieldwork?

56:17: Advice for Prospective PhD Students

Publications Mentioned in This Episode

1. Mampilly, Zachariah Cherian. “The Field Is Everywhere” in Stories From the Field: A Guide to Navigating Fieldwork in Political Science. New York, New York: Columbia University Press, 2020. https://cup.columbia.edu/book/stories-from-the-field/9780231193016/
2. Jumet, Kira D., and Merouan Mekouar, eds. Doing Research as a Native: A Guide for Fieldwork in Illiberal and Repressive States. New York, New York: Oxford University Press, 2025. https://academic.oup.com/book/59605
3. Erdoğdu, Ulaş. “Leadership Decapitation in Civil War: Leadership Arrest and the Negotiations between the State and the Insurgents.” Review of International Studies, 2025, 1–21. https://doi.org/10.1017/S026021052510106X.
4. Bullock, Jessie, and Ana Paula Pellegrino. “How do Covid-19 stay-at-home restrictions affect crime? Evidence from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.” EconomiA, vol. 22, (December 2021): 147-163. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1517758021000175

Producers: Nathaniel La Blanc, Katherine Tan, Claire Geratz, Taylor Perkins

Find Stories from The Field at Columbia University Press or Amazon

We talk to Enze Han from the University of Hong Kong and Robert Ross from Boston College about the significant potential and challenges of doing research in China. Our guests reflect on everything from their experiences building academic relationships with colleagues at Chinese universities to how local perceptions of researchers' own identities can shape the research process.   

Producers: Harper Barbaree, John Gehman, Alyssa Iferenta
Editors: Sam Biasi, Madison Sarka, Shavonne Farrell

Find Stories from The Field at Columbia University Press or Amazon

We welcome Matthew Cancian from MIT, Kristin Fabbe from Harvard Business School, and Kristin Michelitch from Vanderbilt University to talk about conducting field surveys and experiments. We discuss what goes into designing an experiment or survey, developing local relationships, and navigating the ethical and logistical challenges of conducting complex research projects with multi-member research teams.

Producers: Harper Barbaree, John Gehman, Alyssa Iferenta 
Editors: Zeyad Anwar, Sam Biasi, Shavonne Farrell, Abigail Hamilton, Garrett Madden, Madison Sarka 

Find Stories from The Field at Columbia University Press or Amazon

We welcome Zoe Marks from Harvard Kennedy School and Will Reno from Northwestern University to talk about doing research in insecure or conflict-affected situations, and learning how to keep our research participants, our teams, and ourselves safe in difficult environments.

Producers: Harper Barbaree, John Gehman
Editors: Hannah Jones, Garrett Madden, Gabriel Wallen, Lila Zarrella

Find Stories from The Field at Columbia University Press or Amazon

Once you're in "the field," how can you most effectively gain knowledge and collect information? How do you build trust and connections with local leaders? How to show respect and become part of a new community? How to access and decipher classified archival documents? We welcome John McCauley from The University of Maryland, Rich Nielsen from MIT, and Lindsey O'Rourke from Boston College to discuss the creative strategies they used to navigate each of these research challenges in Central and West Africa, the Middle East, and the United States.

Producers: Harper Barbaree, John Gehman
Editor: John Gehman

Find Stories from The Field at Columbia University Press or Amazon

How do our identities and lives outside of academia shape our fieldwork? And what does that look like in a region like the Middle East? We talk to Carla Abdo-Katsipis from Wesleyan University, Nadya Hajj from Wellesley College, and Ian Lustick from the University of Pennsylvania about doing research across the Middle East, and reflect on how our personal backgrounds shape the experience of doing field research. 

Producers: Harper Barbaree, John Gehman, Alyssa Iferenta
Editors: Sam Biasi, Shavonne Farrell, Madison Sarka

Find Stories from The Field at Columbia University Press or Amazon

Peter and Ora welcome Erica Chenoweth from Harvard Kennedy School and Zachariah Mampilly from the Marxe School of International Affairs at Baruch College to discuss research ethics, including whether political scientists should have an individual and/or shared code of ethics, tough decisions about accepting funding from government and non-government institutions, and how to ethically engage with policymakers, the general public, and the individuals you are studying during field research.

Producers: Harper Barbaree, John Gehman
Editors: Hannah Jones, Garrett Madden, Gabriel Wallen, Lila Zarrella

Find Stories from The Field at Columbia University Press or Amazon

Ora and Peter welcome Christina Greer from Fordham University, Wendy Pearlman from Northwestern University, and Paul Staniland from the University of Chicago to discuss local knowledge, perhaps the most important aspect of field research. Local knowledge is a collection of facts, beliefs, and perceptions used by people in a specific region to interpret the world around them. Ora and Peter discuss their definitions of local knowledge and how it has applied to their own work, followed by an interview with Christina Greer on her survey research on Black and Caribbean identities in urban communities, an interview with Wendy Pearlman about non-instrumental "field being", and an interview with Paul Staniland about political geography and "fieldwork on foot." The podcast concludes with a collective discussion among all guests on insights and advice for developing local knowledge.


Producers: Harper Barbaree, John Gehman, Hannah Jones 
Editors: Garrett Madden, Gabriel Wallen, Lila Zarrella

Find Stories from The Field at Columbia University Press or Amazon

In this introductory episode, Peter and Ora discuss the evolving definition of "field research," which is conventionally defined as research conducted outside of one’s institution to observe, interact with, and interview people, work in the archives, and otherwise learn about a place and its politics and society. Regardless of where and how it is conducted, field research poses numerous logistical and ethical challenges, which this podcast is designed to help you navigate.

We begin by talking about the origin story and plan for our book Stories from the Field , then discuss what the book and podcast are (and what they are not), and conclude by previewing the podcast episodes to come. Enjoy, and welcome to the podcast!


Producers: Harper Barbaree, John Gehman, Alyssa Iferenta
Editors: Garrett Madden, Madison Sarka, Sam Biasi, Shavonne Farrell 

Find Stories from The Field at Columbia University Press or Amazon