Ethnographic Researcher

Sambodhi Research and Communications helps create high-impact knowledge and catalyze accountability in the public domain through its project management and monitoring and evaluation solutions. At Sambodhi, we offer objective, evidence-based support implementers, governments, donors, and corporates. Over the past decade, we have emerged as a pioneer for developing cutting-edge methodologies for evaluation of large-scale development interventions. With a close-knit team of 150 professionals, we work across South Asia, Southeast Asia and Sub- Saharan Africa. Headquartered at Noida (Delhi National Capital Region), India, we have full service regional offices in Phnom Penh (Cambodia) and Dar-e-Salam (Tanzania). Sambodhi provides services to federal agencies, donors, foundations, and corporates, in areas of public health, HIV/AIDS, nutrition, water and sanitation, environment, and renewable energy. We have made valuable contributions in monitoring, learning and evaluation programs and have influenced development policies and improved implementation efficiency.

About Project – Agency for All
Agency for All is a five-year (2022-2027) USAID-funded project that aims to generate evidence on the role of agency in effective social and behavior change programming to improve health and well-being for individuals and communities. As a consortium, it aims for collaborative learning on agency and social and behavior change in the areas of family planning and reproductive health, maternal, newborn, and child health, nutrition, infectious disease, and HIV/AIDS. Sambodhi is the research partner for the South Asian hub of the project and in its present engagement will be conducting a study on understanding measures of agency in Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh. The overall goal of this study is to understand how married women and men understand agency across a continuum of reproductive and maternal health and nutrition behaviors, and to use that knowledge to develop quantitative measures of agency for use in SBC programming.

Job Responsibilities:
The candidate will perform the following key functions:

• Conduct ethnographic research via participant observation, interviews, and focus groups in rural and peri-urban study areas of Gwalior to understand local perceptions and behaviors around the agency.
• Build a rapport with community members to facilitate recruitment for informal interviews and surveys.
• Schedule and conduct informal interviews & cultural informant interviews.
• Ensure secure management of all collected data, including digital files, notes, and audio recordings.
• Participate in daily team debriefings and provide feedback to improve data collection processes.
• Train, coordinate & manage on-field data collection team(s).
• Transcribe and manage field notes during data collection.
• Conduct data analysis along with the core project team and PI, including coding data from observations, interviews, and FGDS.
• Maintain quality control standards to preserve the integrity of data and findings.
• Participate in the dissemination of results to stakeholders.

The above essential functions are representative of the major duties of positions in this job. Specific duties and responsibilities may vary. Other duties may be assigned similar to the above, consistent with the knowledge, skills, and abilities required for the job.

Education:
Master’s degree in public health, sociology, anthropology, social work or a related field.

Experience:
Extensive experience in qualitative data collection, particularly in anthropological methods (cultural consensus modeling, participant observations, free list interviews, pile sorting, etc.) and ethnographic fieldwork.

Personal Competencies:

• Advanced skills in qualitative data analysis and software like Dedoose.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills in English and Hindi is essential.
• Effective communication skills with internal and external stakeholders.
• Ability to work independently and to carry out assignments within given parameters.
• Strong attention to detail, with a proven ability to handle multiple responsibilities at one time, successfully prioritize tasks and meet deadlines.
• Ability to multitask and work cooperatively with others.
• Previous work experience in social and behavior change research, particularly in the areas of empowerment or gender studies, would be an asset.
• Candidates with prior research experience in sexual and reproductive health and/or family planning will be preferable.
• The candidate must demonstrate a commitment to relocate to Gwalior for the entire duration of the study. This relocation is essential to ensure full participation and engagement in the program.
• The candidate must commit to a 5–6-month engagement with the study.

Application Instructions:
Interested applicants may send their updated resume to hr@sambodhi.co.in