Responsible Research in Fieldwork Environments: An Incubation Project

Fieldwork is an integral part of some types of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines. Although universities require physical and equipment safety plans, there have been few efforts to ensure safety from harassment in fieldwork environments; such harassment poses a major obstacle to the advancement of STEM. This project pilots a new approach for safe and responsible research that specifically addresses harassment to promote the safety of participants in STEM with an emphasis on off-site research fieldwork. The project will contribute to scientific knowledge about the components and conditions of strategies that can reduce harassment and thus improve science. The project consists of four components: (1) an in-person bystander intervention program, adapted for field research; (2) a pre-departure orientation that includes a facilitated discussion on field safety and responsible interactions between team members; (3) a fieldwork toolkit that includes resources detailing effective communicationand reporting; and (4) a post-fieldwork debrief that includes a facilitated discussion on the fieldwork trip and review of the template. The research team will quantitatively and qualitatively examine the impact of implementing the pilot on research participant experiences related to harassment, perceptions of the fieldwork climate and intentions to persist in STEM, and intentions to help others and seek help. Project findings will improve research environments and promote greater productivity in STEM. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.