Page 176 - Through the gate of the neoliberal academy • Herschberg

174 CHAPTER 6
6.4 Methodological reflections and suggestions for further research
Methodological reflections
In this section I reflect on two main methodological aspects of my dissertation: 1) Doing research in my own organisation and 2) Studying practices and practicing.
Doing research in my own organisation
Studying recruitment and selection practices is challenging, as it is a sensitive and confidential matter. Reluctance of potential research participants to participate increases in research projects with a known critical agenda (Skrutkowski, 2014). Our GARCIA partners encountered difficulties collecting data on recruitment and selection procedures. They encountered various levels of resistance, often in the name of confidentiality issues. Some of our research partners held precarious positions while on the project, and their position was at times jeopardized by the sensitive nature of the topic of study.
In my case, collecting data for my dissertation in my own organisation allowed me easier access to documents, researchers and opportunities to ask for their participation. In case of a non-reply to my written invitation I could step by their office to ask them in person and explain the aim of my research. Most invitees were willing to take part in my research. Being a PhD candidate might also have contributed to their willingness of helping me with my data collection, as they know the importance of collecting data for completing a PhD project. Also, my supervisors are respected researchers in the organisation and experts in the field, which might have contributed to participants’ willingness too.
Even though I did not face many access problems, studying recruitment and selection practices remained challenging, also due to confidentiality concerns. Regarding the reporting of data on the sensitive topic of recruitment and selection, I tried to omit case details and I have anonymized names of participants but it is impossible to fully conceal the hiring cases from those that know the organisation well (Skrutkowski, 2014).
Studying practices and practicing
The practice approach can be used for carefully examining practices “that produce and reproduce the very resilient discriminatory, unequal social order of an organization” (Janssens & Steyaert, 2018, p. 35). In this dissertation, using a practice approach contributed to a nuanced understanding of the (re)production of inequalities in the recruitment and selection of early-career researchers. Despite the opportunities