The traveling researchers’ sisterhood

• Published in: Qualitative research journal 2016-08, Vol.16 (3), p.251-262
• Main Authors: Zapata-Sepúlveda, Pamela, Stanley, Phiona, Ramírez-Pereira, Mirliana, Espinoza-Lobos, Michelle
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Autoethnography; Collaboration; Culture; Ethnography; Qualitative research; Research methods; Researchers; Swimming; Women; Writing
• ISSN: 1443-9883; 1448-0980
• DOI: 10.1108/QRJ-07-2015-0062

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present a collaborative (auto)ethnography that has emerged from the meeting of four academic researchers working with and from the heart in various Latin American contexts. Design/methodology/approach – Our “I’s” have mingled with our very varied participations in different themes, latitudes, and disciplines – health, education and psychosocial approaches. We have worked, variously, in both English and Spanish. At the core of this piece are our own biographies, motivations, senses, academic dreams, international contexts, and the injustices and suffering felt in our bodies. Findings – We seek to reflect from our experience of traveling as young researchers and as women with Latin souls. Through our stories, we show how crossing cultures as part of our research and work gives us both a privileged position but also the constant stress and questioning that goes beyond the intellectual and appears in our embodied experiences of interculturality. Research limitations/implications – The limitation of this piece of research is that it is based on personal experiences, that although there may be people who feel identified with these experiences, these are not generalizable or transferable. Practical implications – Performative autoethnography is an instance to understand the world like a crisol with different faces; self, social, cultural and methodology, which allows us to understand the world from a holistic perspective. Social implications – With this paper, we hope to contribute for other women in academia to see themselves reflected in the experience of moving through a globalized world. Originality/value – Through both living in and reflecting on this process, we show how our experiences provide us with new, intercultural “worlds under construction.”