Decolonizing methodologies

Abstract

In 1999, the seminal work of Linda Tuhiwai Smith brought to light the numerous ways in which colonial attitudes are imbedded in Western epistemologies and called for the creation and celebration of indigenous research practices. Over the last 15 years, there has been a slow but steady growth in scholarship focusing on decolonizing methodologies, but, to date, very little has been published in mainstream Western methodology journals. This Special Issue of Societies seeks to create a space for researchers from Asia, Africa, Latin America, and indigenous communities in North America, Australia and Oceania to submit manuscripts reflecting on their decolonizing research practices particularly in terms of: (1) the cultural context within which their research projects are conducted; (2) the limitations of western methodologies (3) the creation of new indigenous epistemological perspectives (4) new data collection methods (5) new data analysis techniques. Readers of Societies are encouraged to forward this call for papers to colleagues who engage in non-Western research practices and who face limited venues for featuring their work. Prof. Dr. Madine VanderPlaat Prof. Dr. Giampietro Gobo Guest Editor