I am quite excited: I have started to do interviews for my research. I have known most people I am interviewing before. However, the main differences between interviews and normal conversations with my research partners are basically the following:
- After they have agreed that the transcript (or the protocol) is okay, I am allowed to quote from it. That means I do not have to ask for permission everytime I want to quote from the transcript (however, interviewpartners can withdraw their permission any time.) I never quote from any other conversation or exchange (be it offline or online) without explicitly asking for consent.
- I try to stay focused on the topic of my research (Islam, knowledge practices and new media). In informal conversations, we talk also about a host of other things (men, kids, studies, weather, latest news etc.) and joke. Although I love this, I try to stay to the point, at least as long as my interview partners do this
- The content of the conversation in interviews is recorded, be it literally as a voice recording or as a sort of protocol.
One main aspect that I have learned from my interview partners is that knowledge is more than just abstract knowledge. It is not enough to know what the prophet has said or done or what he would do in a certain situation. Knowledge in the salafiyyah seems to be always applied knowledge: It relates to everyday life and actions in everyday life. It tells you what to do and what to be in which situation. Knowledge needs therefore to be practiced. This explication of knowledge through the people I talk to is very much in sync with my “scientific” conceptualization of “knowledge practices” which I best find described by Casas-Cortés, Osterweil and Powell (from: Casas-Cortés, María Isabel, Michael Osterweil, and Dana E. Powell. 2008. “Blurring Boundaries: Recognizing Knowledge-Practices in the Study of Social Movements.” Anthropological Quarterly 81(1): 17-59.):
As will become apparent, knowledge practices in our view range from things we are more classically trained to define as knowledge, such as practices that engage and run parallel to the knowledge of scientists or policy experts, to micro-political and cultural interventions that have more to do with “know-how” or the “cognitive practice that informs all social activity” and which vie with the most basic social institutions that teach us how to be in the world.
So we are talking about abstract knowledge practices running parallel to that of scientists or experts, cognitive practices that tell us how to be in the world and the know-how of daily life which encompasses our behaviour, doings and not-doings.
I am really looking forward to further interviews. I have done a few now with women and only one interview with man. That is, of course, due to gender segregation inside the salafiyyah. However, I am not sure whether and how this applies to me as a “non-believing woman” (kafira). I have not found any advise or let alone a fatwas on this by religious scholars. I would, however, really like to overcome this “gender bias” in my research. Maybe computer-mediated technologies can help since physical co-presence of both conversation partners is not needed. This, however, rules out any non-verbal communication. Any ideas or suggestions? I will try to find out more…
