5th ISA Forum of Sociology (6-11 July 2025)

Conducting qualitative research is inherently challenging as it calls for finding a balance between compliance with methodological requirements and adaptability to fieldwork realities. Despite thorough preparation “at a desk”, qualitative research mostly “happens” in a field where the probability of unexpected is high and, realistically, unavoidable. Qualitative researchers often “insert” themselves into natural, uncontrolled environments, subjectivities of research participants and living contexts of researched phenomena. An important part of conducting qualitative research is being able to “react as you go” even if along the framework of methodology requirements, guidelines of a particular method and setup of research design.

Doing qualitative research in cross-cultural, multi-lingual and multi-country contexts produces an additional layer of challenges, from complex research logistics to a demanding analytical cycle. Researchers’ cultural sensitivity, language skills, ability to gain trust with research participants and respect for local communities gain crucial importance in cross-cultural research. It is likely that researchers encounter a wide variety of issues that might not be discussed in conventional research methodology literature, experiencing uncertainty and lack of guidance.

The session, therefore, invites researchers who have been involved in cross-cultural, multi-lingual and multi-country qualitative research to share their experiences, reflect upon the difficulties they encountered and discuss how they navigated their research decision-making.