UNHR’s Simulation in Human Rights Quarterly: Reducing Bias in Human Rights Fact-Finding
Abstract
This article considers the ethical tensions inherent in international human rights field documentation and proposes intensive, simulation model, prefieldwork training as a means of reducing the risk of insensitive encounters. The article evaluates the social, educational, class, racial, and other power imbalances between parties in the ordinary fact-finding process. After mapping pitfalls and challenges, it assesses the simulation training method and its potential to respond to the volatile dynamics of fact-finding. We conclude that the rigorous, three-day or week-long exercise, carried out in a controlled, supervised setting, holds potential to train future advocates to navigate power dynamics, challenges in intercultural engagement, and other communications barriers.
