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Abstract:
The aim of this paper is to explore the self-reflexivity required to be a researcher in very remote communities. Specifically, the current experiences of a non-indigenous PhD candidate working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are considered. This paper arises from thirty years of lived experiences in remote cross-cultural contexts and relationships with people in the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Lands of South Australia and also in Papua New Guinea. It highlights the influence of relationships upon the PhD journey thus far. Thereby it recognises a fundamental ontological premise of relatedness which researchers must bear in mind when locating and positioning themselves at this significant and contested cultural interface. When working in such remote cross-cultural sites it is a sine qua non that researchers deliberately seek to unlearn matters they have taken for granted, and explicitly examine their personal and academic assumptions. The place of values and phronetic constructivist approaches within a researcher’s role will be investigated. At the same time the use of a postpositive paradigm underlying the common expectation of a researcher to be objective will be considered in the light of the ways in which relatedness affects epistemological, axiological and cosmological perspectives. The notion of a paraclete standpoint will be presented to explore how researchers might identify themselves and how others might perceive them. It parallels issues such as how a researcher could ‘come amongst’ and then ‘come alongside’ Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Possible movement from unknown stranger to known foreigner to friend will be discussed. This paraclete standpoint affirms the importance of relationships and may enhance appropriate protocols, leading to the co-construction of research.
