New Books in Political Science

Dána-Ain Davis and Christa Craven, "Feminist Ethnography: Thinking Through Methodologies, Challenges, and Possibilities" (Rowman & Littlefield, 2022)

Apr 14, 2025

Join Christa Craven, an expert in anthropology and women's studies, and Dána-Ain Davis, a professor in urban studies, as they delve into the dynamic world of feminist ethnography. They explore how this approach reshapes our understanding of knowledge and research methodologies. Discussing the intersection of art, community, and activism, they share insights on collaborative projects and the importance of including marginalized voices. Their conversation advocates for critical engagement and self-awareness in research, making a compelling case for a more inclusive academic landscape.

56:21

Episode guests

Dána-Ain Davis

Christa Craven

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Episode notes

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Quick takeaways

Feminist ethnography emphasizes the critical role of community involvement and diverse perspectives in shaping meaningful social research outcomes.

The collaboration between researchers fosters a richer exploration of feminist ethnography by combining individual strengths and promoting inclusivity in research.

Deep dives

Introduction to Feminist Ethnography

Feminist ethnography emphasizes the importance of understanding how gender and related social factors shape knowledge acquisition. It involves gathering diverse perspectives from a variety of individuals within a culture to gain deeper insights into social issues. The methodology highlights the need to differentiate between methods, such as surveys and interviews, and the underlying approach to conducting research. This practice encourages researchers to consider their positionality and the complexities of the subjects they study.

Intro

5min

Feminist Ethnography: Collaboration and Critique

11min

Art, Community, and Feminist Ethnography

7min

Exploring Feminist Ethnography

14min

Exploring Feminist Ethnography and Collaborative Research

6min

Uncovering Marginalized Histories

10min

How do we acquire knowledge about societies? Does how we acquire social knowledge shape what we know? How conscious must we be of our own experiences as we do our research? What does feminism add to our methods and modes of research?

Now in its second edition, Feminist Ethnography: Thinking through Methodologies, Challenges, and Possibilities (Rowman and Littlefield, 2022) by Drs. Crista Craven and Dána-Ain Davis answers these questions. The book is at once a how-to manual for doing feminist ethnography and a compendium of contributions from influential feminist ethnographers. Designed for students, scholars, community activists, and anyone interested in social knowledge, the book is multi-vocal and interdisciplinary and promotes critical methodologies as sites for reflection, collaboration, and creativity. It is a particularly important work for this moment in which anti-DEI efforts aim to minimize the work and perspectives of minoritized groups.

Dr. Christa Craven (she/her/hers) is a Professor of Anthropology and Women’s, Gender & Sexuality Studies at the College of Wooster, and co-founder of the Global Queer Studies minor. She has published four books, including Feminist Ethnography. Her 2019 monograph, Reproductive Losses: Challenges to LGBTQ Family-Making was awarded the Council on Anthropology & Reproduction’s Book Prize in 2021, and selected by Women.com as a book that puts “the long, complicated history of reproductive rights into sharp focus.”

Dr. Dána-Ain Davis is Professor of Urban Studies at Queens College, City University of New York and on the faculty of the PhD Programs in Anthropology and Critical Psychology. She is the director of the Center for the Study of Women and Society at the CUNY Graduate Center. Davis is the author, co-author, or co-editor of five books including Feminist Ethnography. NYU Press published Davis’s Reproductive Injustice: Racism, Pregnancy, and Premature Birth in 2019 and the book received the Eileen Basker Memorial Prize from the Society for Medical Anthropology and The Senior Book Prize from the Association of Feminist Anthropology. Dr. Davis is also a doula.

Mentioned in the Podcast:

Feminist Activist Ethnography:Counterpoints to Neoliberalism in North America, edited by Christa Craven and Dána-Ain Davis
Jafari S. Allen’s The Anthropology of ‘What is Utterly Precious: Black Feminists, Black Queer Habits of Mind, and the ‘Object’ of Ethnography,” in Unsettling Queer Anthropology: Foundations, Reorientations, and Departures, edited by Margot Weiss
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College of Wooster’s Women’s Gender and Sexuality Studies’s oral histories

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