This article scrutinizes and reconceptualizes covert research in social science. Surveying recent literature about this research method, we reflect on the ethical and safety implications stemming from the widespread, even if well-intended, lack of transparency characterizing many research projects, especially ones conducted in difficult research contexts. While the standard definition of covert research holds that researchers deliberately do not declare to research subjects that academic research is taking place, we argue that the remoteness of Western academia from most researched contexts often a priori renders field research at least partially covert, irrespective of the researcher’s intentions. This is because its aims, utility, and expected outputs are hard to understand for research participants unrelated to academia. We illustrate this argument by analyzing our own fieldwork experiences in Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. In conclusion, we emphasize the need to critically reflect on the de facto use of covert techniques by social researchers.

本文仔细审视并重新定义了社会科学中的秘密研究。调查有关这种研究方法的最新文献，我们反思了许多研究项目，尤其是在困难的研究环境中进行的项目，普遍存在的、即使是出于善意的缺乏透明度所带来的伦理和安全影响。虽然隐蔽研究的标准定义认为研究人员故意不向研究对象声明正在进行的学术研究，但我们认为，西方学术界与大多数研究背景相距甚远，通常先验地使实地研究至少部分隐蔽，而不管研究人员的意图。这是因为与学术界无关的研究参与者很难理解其目标、效用和预期产出。我们通过分析我们自己在塔吉克斯坦和吉尔吉斯斯坦的实地工作经验来说明这一论点。总之，我们强调需要批判性地反思社会研究人员对秘密技术的实际使用。