Abstract Book of the 8th International Conference on Research in Social Sciences and Humanities
Year: 2025
[PDF]
Narrating the Unspoken: Vignettes as a Method for Revealing Epistemic Violence in Field Research
Melisa Yilmaz
ABSTRACT:
This paper explores the potential of the vignette method as a qualitative research tool for uncovering experiences of epistemic violence within field studies. Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork conducted with waste pickers in Türkiye, the study highlights how conventional interview techniques often fail to capture the intricacies of epistemic oppression, particularly in contexts where marginalized groups have internalized hierarchical knowledge systems. By presenting participants with contextually grounded hypothetical scenarios derived from the lived realities of waste pickers, the vignette technique created a reflective and safer space in which participants could address sensitive issues—such as discrimination, epistemic exclusion, and societal devaluation—without the risks associated with direct personal disclosure. The findings reveal that while participants frequently refrained from articulating experiences of epistemic violence during direct interviews, they responded more openly when engaging with these hypothetical situations. This method illuminated how waste pickers negotiate, resist, or internalize the epistemic violence embedded in their everyday interactions with municipal authorities, formal labor markets, and even family members. It further exposed the subtle yet pervasive moral distancing mechanisms through which broader society legitimizes their marginalization. The study argues that, when applied ethically and sensitively, the vignette method offers a powerful strategy for revealing latent epistemic injustices and serves as an invaluable methodological tool for social scientists engaging with structurally silenced and marginalized communities.
Keywords: discrimination, ethnography, marginalization, qualitative methods, symbolic violence