Violenza, genere e antropologia applicata. Rifrazioni e tensioni metodologiche

This article investigates the research settings, conditions and opportunities offered by an applied research on gender violence conducted in Sicily (2004) by a group of associated independent researchers called DAERA. The research obstacles and results are outlined to shed light on the potentialities, negotiations and legitimacy of anthropological analysis in contributing to policy-oriented investigations and informing public debate. At the same time, I describe the hierarchies of knowledge and social dynamics that influence the research process, in this case visible in negotiations over ethnography as a research tool, the validity of anthropological arguments and the final report write-up. Suggesting that domestic violence might be illuminated by anthropological insights on violence, social suffering, subjectivity and gendered power relations, this paper discusses how theory and engagement might be intertwined and expressed. I conclude by arguing that, even when it is related to a professional job, applied anthropology requires methodological rigour, the ability to combine multiple research tools, an ethical and socio-political awareness and a strong commitment to and command of anthropological conceptualisations and theories.