Making Space for Failure in Geographic Research

Harrowell, Elly, Davies, Thom and Disney, Tom (2017) Making Space for Failure in Geographic Research. The Professional Geographer, 70 (2). pp. 230-238. ISSN 0033-0124

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Official URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00330124.2017.1347799

Abstract

The idea that field research is an inherently “messy” process has become widely accepted by geographers in recent years. There has thus far been little acknowledgment, however, of the role that failure plays in doing human geography. In this article we push back against this, arguing that failure should be recognized as a central component of what it means to do qualitative geographical field research. This article seeks to use failure proactively and provocatively as a powerful resource to improve research practice and outcomes, reconsidering and giving voice to it as everyday, productive, and necessary to our continual development as researchers and academics. This article argues that there is much value to be found in failure if it is critically examined and shared, and—crucially—if there is a supportive space in which to exchange our experiences of failing in the field.

Item Type: Article
Uncontrolled Keywords: ethnography, failure, field research, geography, qualitative methods
Subjects: L700 Human and Social Geography
Department: Faculties > Health and Life Sciences > Social Work, Education and Community Wellbeing
Depositing User: Tom Disney
Date Deposited: 21 Aug 2018 10:57
Last Modified: 01 Aug 2021 09:51
URI: http://nrl.northumbria.ac.uk/id/eprint/35374

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