Research Methodologu
PhD Research Methodology
Outline of Research Process
• Phase 1: essential first steps • Phase 2: data collection
• Phase 3: analysis and interpretation
Phase 1
• Clarify the issue to be researched and select research method(s). • Essential because a question that is unclear or too broad cannot be answered. • The research method allows the research to be conducted according to a plan or design.
Phase 1 cont.
• Clarifying the question and method enables the researcher to be clearer about the data that is needed • Therefore to make a decision about what sample size, or the amount of data, is needed.
Cyborgs:
– Interviews : I identified four categories of people to interview:
• performers working in the field of cyborg performance art; • disabled people whose bodies had been modified; • scientists making prosthetics; • and the main funders of technological research – the military.
Performers
• The first category was relatively easy – I knew people who could put me in touch with these performers, and I quickly secured interviews with two of the leading figures in the field – • Stelarc • Eduardo Kac.
Disabled People
• The second category was the most difficult, in many ways, not least because of the ethical dimension of undertaking such interviews. • As it turned out, approaches to the prosthetic department in the university for assistance in identifying potential interviewees went unanswered. • However, one disabled person, Ju Gosling, author of the website “My Not So Secret Life as a Cyborg”, attending a Performance Research conference and giving a paper about her experiences, gladly agreed to give me an interview, and from her experience and awareness of the issues gave me probably a far more insightful interview than I might otherwise have been able to achieve.
Scientists
• For the third category I simply made a search on the internet. • Most of the cutting edge prostheticians seemed to be based in the US. • Of particular
Outline of Research Process
• Phase 1: essential first steps • Phase 2: data collection
• Phase 3: analysis and interpretation
Phase 1
• Clarify the issue to be researched and select research method(s). • Essential because a question that is unclear or too broad cannot be answered. • The research method allows the research to be conducted according to a plan or design.
Phase 1 cont.
• Clarifying the question and method enables the researcher to be clearer about the data that is needed • Therefore to make a decision about what sample size, or the amount of data, is needed.
Cyborgs:
– Interviews : I identified four categories of people to interview:
• performers working in the field of cyborg performance art; • disabled people whose bodies had been modified; • scientists making prosthetics; • and the main funders of technological research – the military.
Performers
• The first category was relatively easy – I knew people who could put me in touch with these performers, and I quickly secured interviews with two of the leading figures in the field – • Stelarc • Eduardo Kac.
Disabled People
• The second category was the most difficult, in many ways, not least because of the ethical dimension of undertaking such interviews. • As it turned out, approaches to the prosthetic department in the university for assistance in identifying potential interviewees went unanswered. • However, one disabled person, Ju Gosling, author of the website “My Not So Secret Life as a Cyborg”, attending a Performance Research conference and giving a paper about her experiences, gladly agreed to give me an interview, and from her experience and awareness of the issues gave me probably a far more insightful interview than I might otherwise have been able to achieve.
Scientists
• For the third category I simply made a search on the internet. • Most of the cutting edge prostheticians seemed to be based in the US. • Of particular