Applied political theory and qualitative research in migration studies

Abstract

This chapter proposes a framework for a dialogue between theoretical normative issues and empirical research in migration studies. My point of departure is that political theorists and qualitative researchers are likely to be working in different academic rooms but within the same social science building. Their links, however, have been unexplored. The evaluative character that follows a normative analysis is what is distinctive of political theory, and the identification of themes and patterns of particular migration issues is what is peculiar to qualitative research. Hence, in linking both through an interdisciplinary and scholarly axis, the bridging values become evident. This chapter will underline not only that there are many commonalities between them, but will also concentrate on the benefits they can generate: qualitative research provides political theory with evidence-based and knowledge-based arguments, and political theory provides qualitative research with theoretically-founded arguments within liberal-democratic conceptual frameworks. To develop this particular focus, I propose to follow a conflict-based approach, since it is through conflict analysis that both develop their potentialities. I will argue that this specific focus allows for the inferring of contradictory-practice patterns and the identifying of policy paradoxes within liberal democracy in dealing with migration issues. Then after a section outlining the specificities of conflict and how to focus a conflict-based approach, I will devote the remainder of the chapter to the three main bonding practices of the understanding function: interpreting, conceptualizing and contextualizing.