Critical Autoethnography: A Qualitative Research on Knowledge Construction through Embodied Experience and Once-silenced Voices
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Abstract
This article presents Critical Autoethnography, a qualitative research approach that employs personal narratives as a key instrument for analyzing power relations embedded within social, cultural, and structural contexts that produce experiences of oppression. Its purpose is to create space for those who have been silenced or othered by society to be heard through academic work. The researcher’s own experiences serve as co-constructed data, intertwined with the voices and lived experiences of others who share similar situations, contexts, cultures, and social structures. These are regarded as valuable sources for generating deep, life-connected knowledge. The approach emphasizes narrative and storytelling as analytical and critical tools to expose and challenge the hidden power structures in everyday life, while also proposing possibilities for social transformation. Furthermore, the article contrasts conventional autoethnography with critical autoethnography, and discusses the methodological challenges of data collection, interpretation, and maintaining research trustworthiness. It ultimately argues that experiential voices hold epistemic power that is, they can generate knowledge and actively advance social justice.
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