Methodological Memo-Sidewalk

I have greatly enjoyed Sidewalk by Mitchell Duneier.

After reading about one-third of the work I wanted to know more about the methodology so I flipped to the Appendix where Duneier discusses his methods. Several statements captured my attention:

• "Fieldwork can be a morally ambiguous enterprise." (p. 336)

• "The question for me is how to show respect for the people I write about, given the impossibility of complete sincerity at every moment (in research as in life)." (p. 336)

• "Surely, it would have been a methodological error for me to believe that apparent rapport is real trust" (p. 338).

• "Once again the Becker principle comes into play: most social processes are so organized that the presence of a tape recorder (or a white male) is not as influential as all the other pressures, obligations, and possible sanctions in the setting." (p. 340)

• "There were things that showed up over and over again on my tape" (this is the data talking and the part I just love!)

• "At this stage of my research, I sought mainly to diagnose the processes at work in this setting and to explain the observed patterns of interactions of people." (p. 341)

• "Research design often emerges after data has been collected" (Oh the LUXURY of already having your PhD)

• "There is no such thing as a logical method for having new ideas" (This is just SO TRUE for someone who has IDEATION as her #1 strength!!!)

• "On the other hand, when it comes to the connection between these details and constraints and opportunities, his or her claims can seem quite skimpy by contrast." (p. 343)

• "Most people were much more interested in how they looked in the photographs than in how they sounded or were depicted." (p. 348)

Thoughts in response to these quotes:

• Is fieldwork really morally ambiguous? I believe we start off with a moral urging which drives us into the fieldwork, which shapes our research and research question(s) but do we really become ambiguous as we submerge ourself into the data? In thinking about fieldwork I would say that it is critical to be open to more than one interpretation however is it vital to be morally open to more than one? As I wrestle with this notion I believe it important to be open because my own values may not be the values and priorities of those in my study those I should not impose my values, beliefs onto the participant.
• "Once again the Becker principle comes into play: most social processes are so organized that the presence of a tape recorder (or a white male) is not as influential as all the other pressures, obligations, and possible sanctions in the setting." (p. 340)-So this thought basically proposes that life is on "autopilot" and until something knocks life off-course it will continue on the same path in mindless movement. I agree with this. I think that American society gets so caught up in the busy-ness of life that we forget to experience life. In Unequal Childhoods the author noted one child's life that was so structured and so busy he had little time for reflection or even a slow pace. I think our country is on autopilot and it takes a big "something" every once in a while to whack us off course for us to re-examine priorities and values. I think this is the case for Christians too!