Moving in and out of the field: discourse, logics and critical explanation

In this chapter, Steven Griggs and David Howarth consider what it is for critical researchers to ‘do fieldwork’. They question assumptions of fieldwork, such as that it is a separate stage in a research project, and that fieldwork is always enjoyable. They describe their approach to political discourse and discuss the logics of critical explanation as a way of understanding and critiquing policy problems and political struggles. They share their experiences of doing fieldwork in airport protest and sustainability, noting the emotional labour that arises from fieldwork, and ask what it is to be a sustainable researcher.