June 27, 2011 – Silence and Voice

As I am preparing to begin my search for participants for my doctoral thesis research, I received a suggestion last week to consider a pilot. Not sure why I had not thought about this before, but that is what having active supervisors and a supportive community of doctoral colleagues is for–help point out things when we miss them ourselves. Seemed like a good idea, though I wanted to get some feedback as to the processes.

Let me be clear, it was suggested (and I agreed) to pilot my semi-structured interview questions, not my research purpose and research questions (I have research evidence from the past 2 years and some literature that suggests this is a real issue that we do not know much about). If I pilot my questions, it can help me determine if they are the right questions (they will give me answers to my research questions and link to my problem and purpose). Nothing like having the opportunity to ask the interview questions and then discuss / debrief them with some people. I think I wrote interview questions that will get me what I want to know, though piloting the interview questions may just be the best way to find out.

Yes, I do follow the suggestions and recommendations of my supervisors, but how about the larger community of doctoral learners (some of whom may even ultimately participate in my study!!) who may have some suggestions for piloting these questions? With this in mind I asked my online doctoral community, #phdchat:

I then received a number of responses, and followed up with one more direct request for thoughts and suggestions and help and support:

The result is there is general consensus that piloting my semi-structured interview questions is useful, though that is not the only thing I learned in this process. I learned that there is power in community, as my two initial posts, along with my individual responses to what others suggested, resulted in 52 responses to me from a number of my doctoral colleagues. They shared their stories, what worked, what did not, what they learned, who to read for more information, and so on. Overall, I am amazed at how generous this network of fellow doctoral colleagues, most of whom I have never met face-to-face though with whom I have established various levels of relationship with, is when there is a need and sharing with one another is just the support that is needed. Can this indeed be a component of a community of practice?

Yes, my supervisors are wonderful, though my fellow colleagues cannot be underestimated!

Remnants of the Pride Parade are still all over the Village. I even had trouble just now getting to my garage #NYC #Pride. #
What are all these references filling my Twitter stream about Gove? #
@Eingang 😉 #
@savasavasava Exactly; anything if it helps, I suppose. #
@NSRiazat Thanks for the heads-up with this, very helpful #phdchat #
@Eingang @lizith I value my #CPsquare work. It is such that its value is not immediately apparent; it grows and develops as a community. #
@Eingang @lizith Gkad I saw this in my Friends stream, as my name was mispelled so a Mention would not pick it up. #
@savasavasava Referring to it as piloting my semi-structured interview protocol. My study is ready to go (pending these questions). #
@4KM I needed a chuckle; anything to relieve stress before it does me in! #
@AskJasperLim So hope you feel better. Horrible experience we have all shared. #
@4KM 😉 If only discussions about experience were replicable! Would be a boring life, ehh? @kiwicito @aeratcliffe @hummingbird604 #phdchat #
@savasavasava Not sure; I am unclear of the value in transcribing or coding. Only want my questions to lead to an interesting discussion. #
@aephd Quite helpful; thanks! Forgot all about that text; I have it . . . #phdchat #
@TheBluOtter Yes, and now we simply have to do them!! #
@aephd How are you physically structuring this on your own form / device, to distinguish between the focal questions and probes? #phdchat #
@hummingbird604 @kiwicito @aeratcliffe Not necessarily replicable if engaged in qualitative research; I agree about systematic way #phdchat #
@aephd Great technique! Reminds me of the #Pomodoro process, though a little simpler. How many did you ultimately come up with? #phdchat #
@aephd Yes; that is exactly it. Looking for things that will address my research questions #phdchat #
Enough house work; time to work on my studies. Today's goal is to finish the draft of my Semi-Structured Interview Protocol #phdchat #
@kiwicito Not a fun thing; I had a large screw in a tire 3 weeks ago. #
@merry30 I don't use @scrivenerapp as file management system; I like how it helps me write in non-linear chunks #phdchat #
@Eingang @lizith Yes, I am a member; great community of people. #
Be Stress-Free: Eliminate 5 Common, Unnecessary Stressors http://t.co/wpDKvDP #
@aeratcliffe @annaoverseas @merry30 That is not needed on a Mac, what with its Spotlight search #phdchat #
@aeratcliffe Cool. What does that mean? #phdchat #
As the climate changes more and more quickly, I think New York now has a rainy season. #
@lizith @kiwicito I was also thinking about autoethonography, though that is why I asked about what "justifying" it means #phdchat #
@lizith I think you way of phrasing this for @kiwicito is right on #phdchat #
@kiwicito Tell me what you mean by "justify it"? Can you give an example perhaps of what you have in mind? #phdchat #
@kiwicito Ouch; I thought your interviews were all done? #phdchat #
@kiwicito You mean you want to use data over 4 years or personal observation to demonstrate a problem? @hummingbird604 @aeratcliffe #phdchat #
@JaneBozarth Agreed, we do not want to fatigue interviewees as they make our studies possible! #
@cambgirl Great point; thanks! #phdchat #
@PapersGenius Got it; thanks! #
@PapersGenius If done mid-way, that would mean I would not be able to use the initial data? #phdchat #
@gtombs Do you think you would have gotten different data / findings? #phdchat #
@christiepooh Fantastic price. They are already on sale?! #
@JaneBozarth Did you go back to discuss with the original people? #

Day: June 27, 2011

To Pilot, or Not to Pilot; THAT is the question + 52 Answers

Jeffrey’s Twitter Updates for 2011-06-27