Chinese Positionality: A reflective discussion on conducting research in Africa

Various speakers

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Abstract

While research within the field of China-Africa studies has been proliferating, scholars have recently started to reflect on the politics of knowledge production behind that (Alden and Large, 2019). Very few China-Africa researchers address their own positionality (i.e. position based on class, race, ethnicity, gender, education etc.) and biography, which could affect how they conduct researches on China-Africa encounters. “The researcher as “any person, without gender, personality or historical location, who would objectively produce the same findings as any other person,” is completely mythical” (Warren, 1988, quoted in England, 1994: 248). How a scholar is located in society might enable or inhibit particular fieldwork encounters, methods and interpretation and eventually shape research outcomes. This workshop, therefore, aims to contribute to a growing awareness of ‘self-reflexivity’ in China-Africa studies by focusing on the ‘Chinese positionality in Africa’ as a starting point.

Programme

Programme : speakers, topics and times.

Registration

This event is open to the public and free to attend, however registration is required. Online Registration

Organiser: Zheng Weidi; Li Hangwei; Zhou Hang (SOAS PhD Students); Yang Yuezhou (LSE) with support from SCI

Contact email: sci@soas.ac.uk

Contact Tel: +44 (0)20 7898 4823

Sponsor: Sino-British Fellowship Trust and LSE