Relationality

Relationality refers to the fundamental understanding that existence is constituted through relationships. No human, more-than-human, or social phenomenon exists in isolation; all are embedded within networks of interdependence. These relations are situated in specific languages, knowledges, and traditions. A relational research approach not only creates cross-contextual linkages  but also requires researchers to locate themselves within these relations. As scholars like Christopher Powell (2013), Rebecca Buys and Vince Marotta (2021), or Sara Ahmed (2000, p. 7) argue, relationality is “ontologically prior to the question of ontology”, meaning that relations precede the very conditions of being. Rather than aiming at finding or proving relationality, relational research takes it as a starting point for critically reflecting on the asymmetrical power relations that shape how relationships are formed, experienced, and studied. As such, the ways in which we perceive of, study, or actively construct relationality are always political.

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