Refection research group 4
To start with, field research was a new experience for us, and we were enthusiastic and motivated to get into the tourism field, after five months of theory in Breda. Throughout the process, we not only worked as a group, but we also carried out research tasks individually, such as participant observation and interviews. Given the large research area, it was required to divide it into smaller geographical zones to be researched individually, to optimise time. Although we divided the area, we familiarised ourselves with the whole research area, and each of us has visited every precinct. We also scheduled regular and frequent meetings to exchange information and to extensively discuss our findings. We strongly believe that exchanging ideas is the basis of group work and we can only improve when working together.
Our first meeting
Our group work plan included interview guidelines and a timeline. However, we decided to be flexible and to leave writing the report to the last week, only after we had a concrete idea about the content. Moreover, we did not set individual deadlines, as group members have different working patterns. Participant observation was a part of the methods, and it helped us gaining a feeling of the area, as well as preventing us to jump to interviews before familiarizing ourselves with the environment. Contextual questions were then developed only after having acquainted ourselves with the area.
We have learned that in order to collect most useful information a researcher needs to empathise with the reality of the people he or she is researching. It will help to realize what moves potential interviewees and apply a more sensible approach as we might be asking questions about topics that activate negative emotions within the targeted respondents. For us, asking an owner of a small business about changing markets is just a vital part of our research assignment. For him these market changes might convey severe consequences for him and his family’s life. This aspect taught us what a semi- structured interview means in a real-life scenario. It is important to react to the attitude of the respondents while at the same time try to get them to talk about what you are interested in.
Melbourne presented an overflow of information and language barrier was not a problem. Although we are satisfied with our research procedures, we are aware of the fact that Sri Lanka will be a different reality, as we understand what the term ‘context’ means in a real-life scenario. For the upcoming assignment in Sri Lanka we can improve in terms of preparing relevant questions for the stakeholder meetings that are set up for us within the first days. We now have a deeper understanding of the overall assignment of phase 2 and are more aware of what is expected from us. In this regard, also our secondary research can be pursued more effectively. We agreed on looking for data specifically relevant for our stakeholder group and our research area, while not neglecting the general context of the destination Sri Lanka as a whole.
The most important thing for us is that we have learned a lot while having fun and experiencing context related research in the field. We are truly looking forward to what challenges Sri Lanka will bring and mostly how we will develop ourselves even more in the next destinations.
Written by Roman, Laura and Janine
