Yu 1
Ivan Yu
Annotations 1-10:
1. Qualitative Methods in Environmental Health Research
Pg 2
2. On Intellectual Craftsmanship
Pg 4
3. Writing Ethnographic Fieldnotes (Ch 1)
Pg 6
4. Writing Ethnographic Fieldnotes (Ch 2)
Pg 8
5. Writing Ethnographic Fieldnotes (Ch 6)
Pg 10
6. Qualitative Research Methods_ A Data Collector's Field Guide (Module 2: Participant
Observation)
Pg 12
7. Qualitative Research Methods_ A Data Collector's Field Guide (Module 3: In-Depth
Interviews)
Pg 14
8. Case Study
Pg 16
9. Is it Possible for Qualitative Research to be Properly Valid and Reliable?
Pg 18
10. Doing Cross-Cultural Research: Ethical and Methodological Perspectives
Pg 20
Yu 2
Ivan Yu, Annotation 1, 9/29/12
Qualitative Methods in Environmental Health Research
1. Full citation.
This article is written by Phil Brown and published in the November 2003, volume 111, edition
of the Environmental Health Perspective journal.
2. Where did/does the author work, what else has s/he written about, and what are her/his
credentials?
Phil Brown is Sociology Professor at Brown University. He does research on many topics
including environmental causation of illnesses and health social movements. Some of his
publications include Perspectives in Medical Sociology, Illness and the Environment, and Social
Movements in Health.
3. What are the topics of the text?
The main topics of the text are about the legacy of qualitative research in environmental health,
the different components of qualitative research, its funding policy, and research practices.
4. What is the main argument of the text?
The main argument of the text is that qualitative research is beneficial and necessary over
quantitative research especially in environmental health research.
5. Describe at least three ways that the argument is supported.
The argument is supported in many ways. First, the author shared case studies, including the one
he was a part of in Woburn, MA. He also gave a brief history of the history of the qualitative
research in environmental health and showed how the funding for this research has been growing
from beyond the government.
6. What three quotes capture the message of the text?
Legacy – Ethnographic studies in history:
“These studies recounted stories not told in the routine scientific literature, offering a rich texture
of personal experiences and community effects. They emphasized the democratic rights of
individuals and communities to learn about the hazards and disasters befalling them and to
achieve remediation, compensation, and justice.” (Brown, 1790)
Yu 3
Components of qualitative research:
“Deciding on the nature of the study also includes the decision on what theoretic frameworks to
employ, and what themes, concepts, and issues to analyze… It is important to have this pretty
well in mind before beginning, as it shapes the way the research project is framed and
conducted” (Brown, 1793)
Funding:
“There is growing acceptance of qualitative methods among federal agencies, but in some cases
it is still very subsidiary to traditional quantitative approaches” (Brown, 1769).
“Dispite such limiting criteria for government funding, there are an increasing number of
academic community partnerships and related collaboration grants that by their very nature call
for qualitative methods either alone or in partnership with quantitative methods” (Brown, 1769).
7. What three questions about research methods does this article leave you with?
-
Why do the government tend to fund traditional quantitative approaches rather than
qualitative?
-
Was all research solely quantitative before the 1972 flood in Buffalo Creek?
-
In what situations of environmental research would the quantitative approach be better
over the qualitative?
8. What three points, details or references from the text did you follow up on to advance
your understanding of and skill with HASS research methods?
-
What other organizations fund qualitative research.
-
How to frame a flexible study design in environmental health research.
-
The biases the critics of reflexive research claim to see.
Yu 4
Ivan Yu, Annotation 2, 10/5/12
On Intellectual Craftsmanship
1. Full citation.
This article is written by C. Wright Mills and was published by the Oxford University Press in
New York in 1959.
2. Where did/does the author work, what else has s/he written about, and what are her/his
credentials?
C. Wright Mills was an American Sociology Professor at Columbia University from 1946 to
1962. He received his Ph.D. in Sociology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1942.
Some of his publications include The Power Elite (about the relationship and class alliances
among US elites), White Collar (about American middle class), and The Sociological
Imagination (about the relationship between biography and history in sociological scholarship).
3. What are the topics of the text?
The topic of this text is about quality journaling and documentation in social research.
4. What is the main argument of the text?
In this text, Mills describes the importance for social scientists to document their thoughts,
experiences, and reflections during their research in a journal. He goes on by explaining the
practical steps of keeping a journal and documentation.
5. Describe at least three ways that the argument is supported.
The argument is supported by presenting examples of notes from writers, giving step-by-step
instructions, and presenting diagrams.
6. What three quotes capture the message of the text?
Importance of a journal and documentation:
“As a social scientist, you have to control this rather elaborate interplay, to capture what you
experience and sort it out; only in this way can you hope to use it to guide and test your
reflection, and in the process shape yourself as an intellectual craftsman. But how can you do
Yu 5
this? One answer is: you must set up a file, which is, I suppose, a sociologist’s way of saying:
keep a journal”. (Mills)
“The sociological imagination, I remind you, in considerable part consists of the capacity to shift
from one perspective to another, and in the process to build up an adequate view of a total
society and of its components.” (Mills)
“To overcome the academic prose you have first to overcome the academic pose. It is much less
important to study grammar and Anglo-Saxon roots than to clarify your own answers to these
three questions: (1) How difficult and complex after all is my subject? (2) When I write, what
status am I claiming for myself? (3) For whom am I trying to write?” (Mills)
7. What three questions about research methods does this article leave you with?
-
This article was written in 1959. Can all of Mills’ suggestions of journaling still be
applied in today’s world?
-
How has writing by hand and writing by typing on a computer affected the way one
documents things in terms of the way they think?
-
Mills mentions the importance of organizing your files, but how do you do so in a way to
easily prepare for projects? How does organizing differ with today’s computer files?
8. What three points, details or references from the text did you follow up on to
advance your understanding of and skill with HASS research methods?
-
Examples of Mills writing as well as others.
-
Who the other writers Mills mentioned were.
-
Difference between academic prose and academic pose.
Yu 6
Ivan Yu, Annotation 3, 10/6/12
Writing Ethnographic Fieldnotes (Ch 1) – Fieldnotes in Ethnographic Research
1. Full citation.
Writing Ethnographic Fieldnotes is a book written by Robert Emerson and published by the
University of Chicago Press in 1995. Chapter 1 is entitled “Fieldnotes in Ethnographic
Research”.
2. Where did/does the author work, what else has s/he written about, and what are her/his
credentials?
Robert Emerson graduated from Brandies University with a Masters and Ph.D. in Sociology. He
currently is a professor in the Department of Sociology in the University of California – Los
Angeles. His research interests are focused on troubles – criminal, domestic – and how they
arise and are reacted to. His other publications include Judging Delinquents: Context and
Process in Juvenile Court and Contemporary Field Research: A Collection of Readings.
3. What are the topics of the text?
The topic of the text is on the work involved to collect data for ethnographic fieldnotes and how
to write them.
4. What is the main argument of the text?
The main argument of the text is that it is important for ethnographers to collect data while in the
field through participant observation and record details on social interactions and meanings when
writing fieldnotes.
5. Describe at least three ways that the argument is supported.
The author supports this argument by analyzing case studies and showing what kind of fieldnotes
can be drawn from each one. He also quotes other ethnographers and gave examples of what
types of interpretations are good for fieldnotes.
6. What three quotes capture the message of the text?
“Clearly, ethnographic immersion precludes conducting field research as a detached, passive
observer; the field researcher can only get close to the lives of those studied by actively
participating in their day-to-day affairs” (Emerson).
Yu 7
“Writing fieldnote descriptions, then, is not so much a matter of passively copying down ‘facts’
about what happened. Rather, such writing involves active processes of interpretation and sensemaking” (Emerson).
“Ethnographers should attempt to write fieldnotes in ways that capture and preserve indigenous
meanings. To do so, they must learn to recognize and limit reliance upon preconceptions about
members’ lives and activities. They must become responsive to what others are concerned
about, in their own terms.” (Emerson).
7. What three questions about research methods does this article leave you with?
-
What happens when the observation in your fieldnotes differ than the information
collected from qualitative interviewing?
-
The article warns about not generalizing the way one person acts or thinks with the whole
community, but to see if others reflect the same thing before doing so. How many people
should you observe that have similar characteristics before you make conclusions about
the community? Is there even such a “rule”?
-
How does one as an ethnographic researcher observe and make interpretations about what
he or she sees in a community without letting his or her socially constructed thoughts and
environment hinder the research?
8. What three points, details or references from the text did you follow up on to advance
your understanding of and skill with HASS research methods?
-
I want to learn more about what indigenous meanings are and their importance.
-
Examples of good fieldnotes that include the components mentioned in the article
-
Who were some of the ethnographers mentioned (Geertz, Cifford… etc.)
Yu 8
Ivan Yu, Annotation 4, 10/6/12
Writing Ethnographic Fieldnotes (Ch 2) – In the Field: Participating, Observing, and Jotting
Notes
1. Full citation.
Writing Ethnographic Fieldnotes is a book written by Robert Emerson and published by the
University of Chicago Press in 1995. Chapter 2 is entitled “In the Field_ Participating,
Observing, and Jotting Notes”.
2. Where did/does the author work, what else has s/he written about, and what are her/his
credentials?
Robert Emerson graduated from Brandies University with a Masters and Ph.D. in Sociology. He
currently is a professor in the Department of Sociology in the University of California – Los
Angeles. His research interests are focused on troubles – criminal, domestic – and how they
arise and are reacted to. His other publications include Judging Delinquents: Context and
Process in Juvenile Court and Contemporary Field Research: A Collection of Readings.
3. What are the topics of the text?
The main topics of the text are the modes of participation in fieldwork, knowing when to how to
jot field notes, and knowing what to observe in the field for writing fieldnotes.
4. What is the main argument of the text?
The main argument of the text is that there are many approaches to jotting notes and an
ethnographer must choose a strategy that will allow him or her to be a full participant, not
marginalize activities, or not be insensitive to the other participants.
5. Describe at least three ways that the argument is supported.
The argument is supported by presenting unfortunate situations of exchanges between an
ethnographer and the participant as examples. The writer also showed illustrations of jotted
notes and analyzed them. Finally he also gave step by step instructions on the methods
presented.
6. What three quotes capture the message of the text?
“All in all, it is a defining moment in field relations when an ethnographer takes out a pad and
begins to write down what people are saying and doing in the presence of those very people.
Yu 9
Therefore, fieldworkers take the very different approaches to jottings, their strategies both
shaped by their setting and by their relationships” (Emerson).
“First, ethnographers should take note of their initial impressions… Second field researchers can
focus on observing key events or incidents” (Emerson).
“In sum, in most social settings writing down what is taking place as it occurs is a strange,
marginalizing activity, marking the writer as an observer rather than as a full, ordinary
participant. But independently of the reactions of others, participating in order to write leads to
assume the mind-set of an observer, a mind-set in which one constantly steps outside of scenes
and events to assess their “write-able” qualities” (Emerson).
7. What three questions about research methods does this article leave you with?
-
Are fieldnote-taking strategies universal for each ethnic or racial community or are they
different?
-
Overall, are there some strategies are used more often than others?
-
How do you know which strategy to use before you begin in the field? Do you have to
use trial and error and risk complications?
8. What three points, details or references from the text did you follow up on to advance
your understanding of and skill with HASS research methods?
-
More about mnemonic words and phrases
-
Examples of jotted fieldnotes by other researchers
-
Ways to practice fieldnote taking strategies in my own community.
Yu 10
Ivan Yu, Annotation 5, 10/8/12
Writing Ethnographic Fieldnotes (Ch 6) – Processing Field Notes: Coding and Memoing
1. Full citation.
Writing Ethnographic Fieldnotes is a book written by Robert Emerson and published by the
University of Chicago Press in 1995. Chapter 6 is entitled “Processing Field Notes: Coding and
Memoing”.
2. Where did/does the author work, what else has s/he written about, and what are her/his
credentials?
Robert Emerson graduated from Brandies University with a Masters and Ph.D. in Sociology. He
currently is a professor in the Department of Sociology in the University of California – Los
Angeles. His research interests are focused on troubles – criminal, domestic – and how they
arise and are reacted to. His other publications include Judging Delinquents: Context and
Process in Juvenile Court and Contemporary Field Research: A Collection of Readings.
3. What are the topics of the text?
The topic of the text is on the importance and process of closed reading, open coding, and
writing initial memos as forms of analysis after the completion of fieldnotes.
4. What is the main argument of the text?
The main argument of the text is that through these different methods of coding and memoing,
the ethnographer is able to ask specific questions about his or her data and able to draw general
theories and themes from the field of study. This makes the data meaningful.
5. Describe at least three ways that the argument is supported.
The argument is supported by explaining the different methods of coding and memoing, giving
specific case study analysis, and providing examples of coding in field notes.
6. What three quotes capture the message of the text?
-
“Qualitative analytic coding usually proceeds in two different phases. In open coding
the, ethnographer reads fieldnotes line-by-line to identify and formulate any and all ideas,
themes, or issues they suggest, no matter how varied and disparate, In focused coding the
fieldworker subjects fieldnotes to fine-grained, line-by-line analysis on the basis of topics
that have been identified as of particular interest.” (Emerson)
Yu 11
-
“In creating codes, the fieldworker is engaged in an analytic process; she seeks to move
beyond the particular event or situation in the fieldnotes to capture some more general
theoretical dimensions or issue. While it is often useful to begin coding by focusing on a
term in the notes – whether the fieldworker’s or a members – the fieldworker must
transform that term so that it references a more general category.” (Emerson)
-
“The goal in fieldwork, then, is to generate theory that grows out of or is relevant to
activities occurring in the setting under study” (Emerson)
7. What three questions about research methods does this article leave you with?
-
Is there a method of coding (open, closed, or other) that is preferred or more effective?
-
How do you code data that is not written? For example, audio recordings?
-
How meaningful does data become when generalized theories and themes are made?
8. What three points, details or references from the text did you follow up on to advance
your understanding of and skill with HASS research methods?
-
More examples of coding in fieldnotes
-
What computer programs are used for coding.
-
What is done with the “meaningful” data.
Yu 12
Ivan Yu, Annotation 6, 10/9/12
Qualitative Research Methods: A Data Collector’s Field Guide (Module 2: Participant
Observation)
1. Full citation.
Qualitative Research Methods: A Data Collector’s Field Guide is a book written by Mack et al
and published in 2005 by the Family Health International. Module 2 is entitled “Participant
Observation”.
2. Where did/does the author work, what else has s/he written about, and what are her/his
credentials?
The authors of this book are Natasha Mack, Cynthia Woodsong, Kathleen M. MacQueen, Greg
Guest, and Emily Namey. They are all members of the Family Health International, a “nonprofit
organization working to improve lives worldwide through research, education, and services in
family health”.
3. What are the topics of the text?
The topics of this text are the explanation of what participation observation is, the ethical
guidelines for doing it, how to do it, and how to be effective in doing it.
4. What is the main argument of the text?
The main argument of the text is that participation observation is an important process to
understand members of a particular group or community and their culture through experiences
and connections. It has to be done in the correct way to be effective and productive.
5. Describe at least three ways that the argument is supported.
The argument is supported by making use of tables to explain concepts of participant
observation, providing applicable examples in grey boxes, and providing steps for participant
observation.
6. What three quotes capture the message of the text?
What is participant observation?
“Participant observation is a qualitative method with roots in traditional ethnographic research,
whose objective is to help researchers learn the perspectives held by study populations” (Mack et
al., 13)
Yu 13
Ethical guidelines:
“When conducting participant observation, you should be discreet enough about who you are and
what you are doing that you do not disrupt normal activity, yet open enough that the people you
observe and interact with do not feel that your presence compromises their privacy” (Mack et al.,
16).
Being an effective participant observer:
“In preparing for the participant observation activity, it is useful to find out as much as you can
about the site where you will be participating or observing about and about any activities in
which you might participate. If necessary, visit the scene and make initial observaitons before
you set up your official data collection time.
7. What three questions about research methods does this article leave you with?
-
Despite the disadvantages of participant observation that were mentioned, are there any
ways to speed up the process of it without compromising the quality or effectiveness of
it?
-
How is the coding and memoing process different after participant observation in a team
rather than individually?
-
What is the best way to identify an informant? Is it good to make the connection before
you start your fieldwork?
8. What three points, details or references from the text did you follow up on to advance
your understanding of and skill with HASS research methods?
-
More categories of information to observe in addition to the ones listed in Table 3.
-
Look at some of the suggested readings.
-
The difference between objective and subjective research.
Yu 14
Ivan Yu, Annotation 7, 10/9/12
Qualitative Research Methods: A Data Collector’s Field Guide (Module 3: In-Depth Interviews)
1. Full citation.
Qualitative Research Methods: A Data Collector’s Field Guide is a book written by Mack et al
and published in 2005 by the Family Health International. Module 3 is entitled “In-Depth
Interviews”.
2. Where did/does the author work, what else has s/he written about, and what are her/his
credentials?
The authors of this book are Natasha Mack, Cynthia Woodsong, Kathleen M. MacQueen, Greg
Guest, and Emily Namey. They are all members of the Family Health International, a “nonprofit
organization working to improve lives worldwide through research, education, and services in
family health”.
3. What are the topics of the text?
The main topic of this module is to inform the reader about the ethics, logistics, and effectiveness
of in-depth interviews.
4. What is the main argument of the text?
In-depth interviews are one of the most common qualitative methods for research. In these
interviews, information is collected directly from a human who is usually a primary source. To
be effective, an interviewer must conduct the interviews in a certain way.
5. Describe at least three ways that the argument is supported.
The argument is supported by giving step-by-step instructions in a box separated from the main
text, presenting the reader with scenarios of possible situations in the form of questions and then
revealing the solution, and by using tables to help the reader understand better.
6. What three quotes capture the message of the text?
What are in-depth interviews:
“The in-depth interview is a technique designed to elicit a vivid picture of the participant’s
perspective on the research topic. During in-death interviews, the person being interviewed is
considered the expert and the interviewer is considered the student” (Mack et al., 29).
Yu 15
Ethics of in-depth interviews:
“Before asking any interview questions, you must obtain informed consent in accordance with
procedures specified for the study. For in-depth interviews, informed consent is often oral and
tape-recorded, but some studies may require participants to sign a written informed consent
document” (Mack et al., 32).
Effective interviews:
A productive interview is one in which participants relate a richly detailed, sincere account of
how the research issues occur in their daily lives. Obtaining superior data requires that the
interviewer be well prepared and have highly rapport-building skills, social and conversational
skills specific to the capacity of interviewer, and facility with techniques for effective
questioning.” (Mack et al., 37).
7. What three questions about research methods does this article leave you with?
-
What is a better way or “safest” way legally to document consent: oral or written?
-
How do you create in interview guide?
-
If interviews are recorded and eventually transcribed, is there a need for written notes at
all?
8. What three points, details or references from the text did you follow up on to advance
your understanding of and skill with HASS research methods?
-
Looked at some of the suggested readings
-
Thought about how my interviewing skills in the past could improve and be more
effective.
-
What are more examples of probes and how and when should I use them in interviews.
Yu 16
Ivan Yu, Annotation 8, 10/10/12
Case Study
1. Full citation.
Case Study is an article written by Bent Flyvbjerg and published as chapter 17 in Norman K.
Denzin and Yvonna S. Lincoln’s book The Sage Handbook of Qualitative Research. This book
is published by Sage from Thousand Oaks, CA in 2011.
2. Where did/does the author work, what else has s/he written about, and what are her/his
credentials?
Bent Flyvbjerg is a Doctor of Technology and Engineering and a Doctor of Science. He has
Ph.D. in Urban Geography and Planning from Aarhus University in Denmark. He is currently a
professor teaching in the Department of Development and Planning at Aalborg University. His
research focuses include theories of success and failure, risk assessment and management, and
complexity and innovation. Some of his books include Megaprojects and Risk: An Anatomy of
Ambition and Decision-Making on Mega-Projects.
3. What are the topics of the text?
The topics of the text include the importance of case studies and refuting the five common
misunderstandings of them.
4. What is the main argument of the text?
The main argument of the text is that these five common misunderstandings are not correct.
Rather case study research in the social sciences is qualitative in its narratives.
5. Describe at least three ways that the argument is supported.
The argument is supported by using examples of the work of researchers in history, showing case
studies, and using tables.
6. What three quotes capture the message of the text?
“John Gerring (2004, p.342) has correctly point out that the many academic attempts to clarify
what “case study” means has resulted in a definitional morass, and each time someone attempts
to clear up the mess of definitions, it just gets worse” (Flyvbjerg, 302).
Yu 17
“The five misunderstandings may be said to constitute the conventional view, or orthodoxy, of
the case study. We see that theory, reliability, and validity are at issue; in other words, the very
status of the case study as a scientific method” (Flyvbjerg, 302).
“The main strength of the case study is depth-detail, richness, completeness, and within-case
variance – whereas for statistical methods it is breadth” (Flyvbjerg, 314).
7. What three questions about research methods does this article leave you with?
-
What is the origin of each of these five misunderstandings?
-
What can we do to ensure we do not follow these misunderstandings in our case studies?
-
How do researchers not fall into having preconceived views in their research (as
suggested in misunderstanding number 4)?
8. What three points, details or references from the text did you follow up on to advance
your understanding of and skill with HASS research methods?
-
The strengths and weakness of other qualitative and quantitative methods and how they
may be complimentary to each other.
-
I initially thought misunderstanding number 2 would be true. What are cases where
generalizations are made just from one case study?
-
Gerring and the discovery of this case study paradox.
Yu 18
Ivan Yu, Annotation 9, 10/10/12
Is it Possible for Qualitative Research to be Properly Valid and Reliable?
1. Full citation.
Is it Possible for Qualitative Research to be Properly Valid and Reliable? is an article written by
Mohammed Ali Bapir and published by the University of Warwick.
2. Where did/does the author work, what else has s/he written about, and what are her/his
credentials?
Mohammed Ali Bapir is a Doctoral Research in Politics and International Studies at the
University of Warwick. His research interests include political philosophy, political science, and
nationalism and state building. His other papers include Theoretical Conceptualizations of
Development and The Art of Interpretation and Understanding.
3. What are the topics of the text?
The topic of the text is on qualitative research whether it is valid and reliable. The writer does
not conclude with just a “yes” or “no”, but rather addresses an answer.
4. What is the main argument of the text?
The main argument of the text is that qualitative research can be proven to be properly valid and
reliable based on the characteristics and definitions of validity and reliability.
5. Describe at least three ways that the argument is supported.
The argument is supported by defining what qualitative research is, identifying common
characteristics of the different definitions and types of validity of qualitative researchers, as well
as identifying the common characteristics of the different definitions and types of reliability of
qualitative researchers.
6. What three quotes capture the message of the text?
Conclusion about validity:
“All the types of conceptualization of qualitative validity discussed above have tow
characteristics in common, first to do research in a profession, accurate and systematic manner,
second, to state how research is concocted, transparently” (Bapir, 10s).
Yu 19
Conclusion about reliability:
“Reliability as been discussed and defined within the context of qualitative research is about the
methods of conducting a research; it is a methodological concern. Therefore, the technique by
which a qualitative study can be evaluated or regarded reliable is to check whether how and to
what extent consistent methods and procedures are used” (Bapir, 15).
Can qualitative research be valid and reliable?
“… the more data and conclusion in a piece of qualitative research are correspondent the more it
is valid… to calculate reliability in a qualitative research, it is required from the researcher to
document their procedure and to show that categories have been used consistently” (Bapir, 17).
7. What three questions about research methods does this article leave you with?
-
How does one define whether the data and conclusion in a qualitative research are
correspondent to be valid?
-
Are there other ways for determining validity and reliability of qualitative research?
-
How do you determine the validity and reliability of quantitative research?
8. What three points, details or references from the text did you follow up on to advance
your understanding of and skill with HASS research methods?
-
Who the researchers are who were mentioned in the article and their qualitative work.
-
Internal and external reliability as terms used by Lecompte and Goets.
-
Inductivist, constructionist, and interpertivist features
Yu 20
Ivan Yu, Annotation 10, 10/11/12
Doing Cross-Cultural Research: Ethical and Methodological Perspectives
1. Full citation.
Doing Cross-Cultural Research: Ethical and Methodological Perspectives is a book published in
2008 by Springer Science + Business Media B.V.
2. Where did/does the author work, what else has s/he written about, and what are her/his
credentials?
Pranee Liamputtong is a medical anthropologist and a professor of the Health Sciences
department at La Trobe University. Her research focus is on the health of different people
groups, including immigrants and refugees. Previously, she had carried out a number of research
projects about the health of immigrant women in Australia and Southeast Asia. Throughout her
cross-cultural research, she gained experience in building relationships with these people and
conducting her interviews in a moral and ethical way.
3. What are the topics of the text?
The main topic of this chapter is to address the challenges that researchers face when involved
with cross-cultural research. These challenges include cultural sensitivity, language issues,
moral and ethical issues.
4. What is the main argument of the text?
When these challenges are not addressed correctly, not only may the data collected be inaccurate,
but also harm may be caused to the participants in the research.
5. Describe at least three ways that the argument is supported.
Liamputtong presents the issues of these challenges by quoting other cross-cultural researches,
giving examples of different cultures, and offering practical solutions.
6. What three quotes capture the message of the text?
Challenge of cultural sensitivity:
“The researcher ‘demonstrates cultural sensitivity and competence through knowing key values
and stakeholders’” (Liamputtong, 4)
Yu 21
(Essentially, a researcher has to be knowledgeable about every aspect of a culture, including the
social, religious, and historical aspects)
Challenge of language barriers:
“Cultural insiders have the additional advantage over outsiders because they have the facility
with the language and culture that allows them access to the cultural community, which can be
extremely difficult to gain by sensitive and knowledgeable outsiders” (Liamputtong, 7).
When is research morally or ethically justified?
“Research can only be justified if the outcome will benefit the community rather than further
damaging it” (Liamputtong, 11-12).
7. What three questions about research methods does this article leave you with?
-
It is impossible to know everything about a culture before going into the field. How can
one know if he or she is ready intellectually and aware of cultural sensitivity?
-
How does having a translator rob one of fully being a participant observer? Are there any
other alternative without knowing the language?
-
The writer brings to light of issues while doing research in an ethnic field. What are the
issues of coding, drawing conclusions, and reporting? Is there a requirement to let the
participants review the data before it is published?
8. What three points, details or references from the text did you follow up on to advance
your understanding of and skill with HASS research methods?
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Ways of asking for consent in different cultures.
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Other mistakes ethnic field researchers have made and how can I learn from them.
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More about the concept and process of snowballing.