Multiple Positionalities of a Researcher

In the midst of an ongoing war, oral history interviewers bear a particular responsibility toward vulnerable groups they are working with. As Polish scholars, we were an outside privileged group unaffected by the Russian aggression against Ukraine. This article is a critical evaluation of positionality toward our interviewees who consist of Ukrainian refugees in Poland. As researchers in the “24.02.2022, 5 a.m.: Testimonies from the War” documentation project, we discuss challenges associated with undertaking such a qualitative research study encompassing language usage, interview ethics, and data processing. The multiple positionalities included our role as helpers in a hosting country, ethnicity, personal ties with Ukraine, class, and gender. From the point of view of researchers’ individual and collective positionalities, we explore the pivotal principle in qualitative research, which is empathetic understanding (verstehen). Our goal is to delineate our research process, extending beyond interviews, and to delve into aspects such as team supervision and further dissemination of research data and results.