From forms to process: informed consent practices among fieldwork researchers in Central Asia

Many researchers and ethics boards have begun to recognize how research, particularly qualitative research, occurs within contexts. National and cultural contexts matter, power dynamics matter, the researcher’s identities matter, participants’ positionalities matter and participants’ familiarity with research methods matter. All affect willingness to participate in research. Thus how informed consent is obtained in different contexts is important, but the process in Central Asia is not well documented. Earlier, we asked Central Asian scholars about gaining informed consent. They suggested using verbal consent, working within established social networks and seeking permission from gatekeepers, paralleling the new trend of viewing informed consent not as a form, but as a process (Fons-Martinez, Ferrer-Albero, and Diez-Domingo Citation2021). In this study, we sought to learn what methods of obtaining consent researchers in Central Asia currently used. Thirty respondents who collected data between 2015–2022 indicated that their home institutions now more commonly allow verbal consent than previously. All researchers in our sample, limited in size due to the pandemic, share essential information about informed consent at some point during the process. The majority also utilize a mixture of recommended practices (working within established social networks, building trust and seeking permission from gatekeepers).