Methods

In class we’ve been working on our IRB proposals. With this, we have to include the methods that will be used to conduct our research project. Initially I imagined that this only included interviews or participant observation. Fortunately I discovered that there are many other ways that exist or that can be developed to derive information from research subjects. We can do things like pile sorting, an activity that helps develop ideas. It consists of writing key words on note cards and having the subjects sort them in a way that makes sense to them. This sort of idea will help me to understand how Tongans perceive things. It allows them to have more control over the discussion, and consequently invites a more friendly and beneficial environment.

A second method I want to use while doing research is designing questionnaires to be filled out by the subject. It may be the case that the people I talk to are more comfortable in writing. This will leave room for thoughtful explanations and therefore a deeper conclusion. Overall, I want to be sure to preserve the thoughts and ideas of the Tongan people. We also talked about bringing focus groups together. This will help drive comfortable discussions about things that Tongans may not normally be comfortable talking about, especially with someone like me.

I also plan on collecting a lot of photographs of the plants and gardens and people that I see. This will help prepare me for any sort of presentation or information I need to bring back to BYU. I might consider drawing the plants that I study as well. Voucher specimens (dried samples of plants) will also be taken and brought back to the US. I have to learn how to do this, however, and so will probably be writing a learning journal about this in the near future.

Each of these methods will be very beneficial to me while on the islands. They also will help to diversify the evidence that I gather and make my trip more interesting. Mapping out these methods in detail is also a way to predict the success of my project.