Abstract
In this article we examine the characteristics, challenges and added value of qualitative prison research in a Belgian context. As the many dynamics and challenges of qualitative research are often underreported in academic publications, we pay particular attention to the research processes and the pains and gains of qualitative prison research. Firstly, drawing on experiences from several prison studies, we describe the different steps of gaining access to the field as a constant process of negotiation. Secondly, we discuss some of the dilemmas of prison research based on two ethnographic studies of prison staff. We end with discussion of the value added by a qualitative research approach to facilitate understanding of what is at stake in prisons and how this fits with a critical research position.
Highlights
Prisons are generally recognized as particular, complex and conflicted institutions
Fifteen years ago, Liebling (1999: 163) described prison research as ‘an enterprise made complex by the human nature of the researchers and the researched
Literature focusing on the process of doing qualitative prison research and on the challenges this brings for the fieldworker was rather scarce and the craftsmanship1 of doing prison research often faded away into long footnotes, appendices of books or research reports or in informal conversations between researchers
Summary
Prisons are generally recognized as particular, complex and conflicted institutions. Fifteen years ago, Liebling (1999: 163) described prison research as ‘an enterprise made complex by the human nature of the researchers and the researched. Observations and open or semi‐structured interviews with staff as well as with prisoners are our preferred research methods They allow us to study people in their natural surroundings, examining their everyday behaviour, interactions, routines and rituals, along with the artefacts and symbols that bring meaning to their lives (Noaks and Wincup 2004). We aim to better understand the cultural meanings of social actions to actors and normative bonds, which are often important in everyday social life (Bottoms 2008) This interpretative understanding requires attention to formal and informal interactions and a sensitive analysis of the particular in the local and social embeddedness of the routines and habits of the researched group. We discuss the added value of qualitative research to understanding prison life and how this fits with a critical research position
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