Briefing Note 2. Issues in collecting (and recording) data from life histories, life stories, oral testimonies and family histories

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1 Briefing Note 2 Kate Bird and Annica Ojermark 2011 Issues in collecting (and recording) data from life histories, life stories, oral testimonies and family histories Aim Having looked at the power point presentation and read this briefing note and some of the core readings you should have a good understanding of the following issues: When the life history approach is especially useful in chronic poverty research How to decide the best parameters for a study that uses the life history method (philosophical/ epistemological approach, key research question if any, sample size, interview check list if any) Which approaches to collecting, recording and analysing life histories deliver results most likely to contribute to policy debates, and which are most likely to be valued by academic audiences? You might also be asking yourself the following questions: How can the researcher get around issues of bias? What are some useful ways to confront the ethical issues that arise in the process of collecting life histories? Do researchers using life history methods face the same challenges as others collecting primary data? If so, can they be overcome using similar approaches? If the challenges differ, how do they differ?

2 Introduction Using data from life histories to inform our understanding of chronic poverty is uniquely useful for a number of reasons. Life histories are relational. They have the potential to link macro and micro processes. Life history interviews allow individuals to discuss not only themselves, and their lives, but also the social, economic, political spaces that they inhabit. Thus, they can be used to communicate how structure and agency intersect to produce the circumstances of a particular person s life. Lastly, life histories capture processes of change. For example they can be used to map an individual s poverty trajectory and they can be used to identify the key poverty drivers, maintainers and interrupters. Additionally, a life history approach can illuminate pre-existing conceptions of poverty, refute common but damaging misconceptions (Hulme, 2003) and generate counter-intuitive findings, stimulating new areas of research. The life history approach has the potential to deliver chronic poverty researchers powerful insights. However, like other approaches, it confronts researchers with choices (research design, interviewing process, analysis, and dissemination of findings) and a corresponding set of challenges. This briefing note and connected readings will review some of the choices and outline some of the challenges. Why use life history methods? What is your key research question? What data do you have already? Is panel data available? Does your existing data help to answer the what as well as the why? Does existing data help to answer the questions about the dynamic processes that drive people into chronic poverty (drivers), about what keeps them there (maintainers) or about what might help them to leave poverty (interrupters)? If not, life histories may help to understand both what is happening as well identifying some of the dynamic forces at work. Furthermore, the CPRC has found that experienced qualitative researchers can quickly and successfully add life history methods to their toolbox. It is a powerful method, particularly when used in combination with other approaches. It generates fascinating insights and allows for the counter-intuitive to emerge and it produces a wealth of rich data. (See Davis, 2006). Davis (2006) points out that although the life history approach tends to deliver a small sample, each interview covers a number of variables and moments in time. This allows for the exploration of social mechanisms that other research instruments might miss, including multiple causation, cumulative causation, sequence effects, interaction effects and threshold effects. See Figure 1, below. 2

3 The life history method can be used either on its own, or in combination with other qualitative and quantitative methods, such as panel surveys. Life history interviews can fill the gaps in understanding that other methods leave unfilled, and may be used to validate and elaborate on previous research findings. Findings from life history interviews may help to expose the complexities of chronic poverty because the method highlights the decision making process of the respondent and the strategies they use to tackle poverty. Since the life history interview is longitudinal, linking the past to the present, as well as relational, linking the macro and micro, it is a method that can provide a great amount of depth. Including the excluded Life histories have the potential to act as an empowering form of social science methodology, as it can be used to record the opinions and life experiences of people who are disadvantaged in some way and often excluded by other forms of research (Reissman, 1993). Various approaches to using life histories A great deal of diversity exits in the ways that researchers can approach the life history method. Miller (1995) has outlined a useful way to discern between the most common approaches. 1. Narrative: The emphasis in this approach is on the active construction of life stories through the interplay between interviewer and interviewee. The finished text is the result of the collaborative project, and the informant s viewpoint is treated as a unique perspective, mediated by social context. Analysis is of the interview itself, or the informant s view of reality, the themes that emerge from the narrative, and how the respondent reconstructs the past and it s meaning. This approach emphasises the microanalysis of the text, to get at the perceptive and contextual nature of reality. 2. Realist (inductive): This approach uses grounded-theory techniques of interviewing. Researchers begin with a hypothesis and through a series of interviews produce the facts that will be incorporated into theory. Interviews are sequenced in a series or in rounds. They start unstructured and open ended and once generalisations from the first interview are identified, the interviewer returns to conduct subsequent interviews - with more specific questions. Interviews stop at the point of saturation, when no new ideas are being generated and the theory has therefore been proven. Analysis takes the form of categorising the information gathered into building blocks from which theory is constructed. This information is then validated against further empirical material; transcripts or new interviews. 3

4 Figure 1: Exploring causation over time Source: Davis, 2006:7 3. Neo-positivist: This approach validates pre-existing theory against empirical reality. Previous work or a literature review on the topic of interest generates the form of the interview and the questions that will guide it. The aim is to fill gaps in existing research, or to provide a more holistic or nuanced perspective to an existing understanding of phenomena. The identified gaps form the basis of the analysis, as they determine the topics to be investigated and the subject of the interviews. 4

5 Combining life history methods with other data collection techniques Regardless of the approach taken, analysis of life histories requires the researcher to understand the social context that the respondent is operating in (Van Onselen, 1993). This can be achieved by combining methods to collect contextual information, drawing on data from household surveys, PRAs (Participatory Rural Appraisals), focus group discussions and key informant interviews and a range of secondary sources. Household surveys can be used to provide a contextual understanding of the area under study. Depending on the design of the survey it may provide useful insights into income and consumption, education and health outcomes, access to key markets and public services, access to and control of resources, livelihoods and coping strategies all differentiated by important dimensions of social difference (e.g. status of household head, age, gender, income group and ethno-linguistic group). Where panel and crosssectional data is available it may be possible to explore changes over time. Qualitative data can then be used to complement such data to provide insights into processes and to explore relationships between households and social groups as well as the institutional and political economy issues that can only be weakly explored by household surveys. PRA data can provide contextual information about a study site or community (e.g. historical timelines, an understanding of local customs, norms and institutions, local understandings of poverty for example what are the processes driving, maintaining and interrupting poverty) as well more detailed information (e.g. community listings, wealth ranking exercises, poverty maps, an analysis of key shocks and trends and of local livelihood and coping strategies). Focus groups can also generate wealth ranking information and can identify important lines of social differentiation within the community and the characteristics associated with chronic poverty and marginality. As such, focus groups can both help to identify a sampling frame for random (or purposive) sampling of respondents for life history interviewing and can also give a sense of the power and wealth distribution within a community. Focus groups can also be used to identify issues to discuss during life history interviews and to triangulate and verify initial findings from such interviews. Using these methods of data collection in combination with in-depth life history interviews provides the opportunity to develop a richer and more complex understanding of issues being examined by the research. Importantly, it also makes it likely that findings will be more robust, since the life history findings are often validated by findings from community level participative research. For this reason, combining methods is especially fruitful for researchers who are intent on influencing or shaping policy since many policy makers or donors are interested in to what extent a trend or phenomenon is generalisable/ representative and on the rigour of the method. This is 5

6 arguably even more so where qualitative methods are used alongside household surveys and quantitative analysis. Challenges faced by researchers using life history methods Dealing with bias Life history data cannot easily be "managed" by standardised analytical procedures, which most social scientists have been trained in (Agar, 1980). A number of issues arise in the process of collecting, interpreting, and communicating life histories that may challenge the researcher. To begin with, life histories are constructed. Life histories reveal the subjective perceptions of living in chronic poverty, as well reflecting the researcher s conscious and unconscious emphasis; such as the important themes that emerged from the interview, or stages in the informant s life that were identified as the most important (Kumar-Nevo, 1996). It is the author or interviewer/researcher who ultimately decides how people s narratives are represented. As a result, the reflection of personal and social life that life histories provide are not mediated by the researcher (Reissman, 1993). Many researchers therefore prefer to see life history materials as resulting from a collaborative effort, and which speak to the subjective nature of the collaboration rather than as representation of fact or truth. The results of the life history interview can therefore be seen as interactive texts (Miles and Crush, 1993) (see the section on approaches, above). Some scholars who use the life history method reject the notion that data gathered is purely subjective, but posit that truths and fact-finding can very much be a part of the process. Daniel Bertaux (1984) for example, employs a method of saturation, also described by Miller (1995) as the realist approach (above). Bertaux suggests that by repeatedly testing a hypothesis using the life history method, and moulding that hypothesis as findings dictate, until the hypothesis has been confirmed, theory formed and the point of saturation reached, objective truth can be realised (Bertaux, 1984). This perspective sees interviewees as informants, and uses the life histories in an ethnographic fashion to get an accurate picture of the trajectories within certain social contexts in order that patterns of social relations may be identified and the process that shape them better understood. Researchers who are interested in establishing objective truths through the life history method will be more concerned with, and challenged, by the validity of findings from life history interviews (see section on approaches, above) The data from life history interviews is at risk of bias from a number of different sources, for example the post-hoc rationalisation of the respondent (e.g. I decided to become a tailor because I knew that I would be able to make a lot of money. Rather than there was a place in the local vocational training college and they provided a bursary, so it seemed like a good idea. ); recall bias where the respondent puts (positive or negative) gloss on events (e.g. I left the village and went to the city because I knew that I would find a good job there and improve my situation. Whereas actually the respondent left the village because he had been accused of adultery and 6

7 had to run away; bias caused by mood/ level of rapport with interviewer; bias causes by the way the researcher conducts the interview. See the text box, below. Box 1: Bias caused by the interests of the researcher During a life history interview in Uganda, it emerged that a key shock in the respondent s life had been the simultaneous death of livestock and several members of the extended family. The respondent attributed these deaths to witchcraft. However, as an interviewer, rather than probing belief systems (which were outside the remit of my research project) I focused on how the death of the interviewee s father and the loss of livestock had affected his household s well-being, his relationship (as a child) with his new step-father and the long run impact of the shock. Poverty researchers tend to focus on events/ cause and effect relationships rather than on respondents friendships and their sources of happiness. Does this bias results? Poverty researchers also tend to focus on issues amenable to development policy (e.g. asset thresholds) rather than social policy issues (e.g. domestic violence, household fragmentation, mental illness) Other sources of bias include: Insider/outsider perspective (does the interviewer speak the local language and/or share in a common history? Is the interviewer very familiar with the community and it s history, or not?) Both perspectives have their merits and shortcomings (Miles and Crush, 1993). Gender of interviewee and interviewer Whether an interpreter is present - what gets lost in translation? If other family members are present for the interview (may the interviewee be storying the life history for the enjoyment/ educational benefit of family members (or hiding unpalatable truths)? For example, a woman may describe herself as more strong and resilient than she actually was (See Box 2, below). Inherent problems involved in memory recall - how accurate? The assumptions and biases of the researcher(s). Box 2: Storying and parallel truths Even highly skilled researchers will find that they stumble across inconsistencies in their respondents stories. This may be because the respondent is struggling to remember facts and sequence them correctly or because they are seeking to mislead you. In the power point presentation accompanying this Briefing Note we discuss two cases where a respondent told a convincing life story only for the researcher to find out later that an alternative truth was available. 7

8 Life history researchers can seek to limit the risk of inaccuracies in the stories they collect by a structure approach which helps respondents to remember facts and figures (see da Corta, 2007a and 2007b) and by triangulating their findings, but it is impossible to fully remove. Instead, where the researcher identifies that a respondent has sought to mask the truth, it is important that they seek to understand why (e.g. to preserve their dignity and status, to bolster their self image as a sensible decision-maker, out of fear that the information will be given to the authorities, because they hope for direct or indirect benefits from telling you a sad story, etc.). Ethical issues Regardless of the approach taken researchers will almost always confront a host of ethical issues in conducting the life history research and disseminating the findings. In particular, when conducting research with chronically poor people some important questions that may arise include: Research takes up poor people s time, which is often a scarce and important resource - how can research be pursued in the most time effective manner for the respondent? Should researchers provide payment/ payment in kind to respondents? How should researchers approach anonymity/ masking the identity of respondents? Does the interviewer have a responsibility to the community? o o To provide feedback? To ensure that issues are taken on by local government? o To provide results to a local NGO for action? What approach should researchers take to feeding back locally/ subnationally/nationally/regionally/internationally? Should researchers using this method consciously commit to building a long-term partnership with a service delivery or welfare NGO, in order to have a long-term engagement with the identified community (this will lead that particular community to benefit over and above neighbouring villages and others in the country and in other countries. To what extent should life history researchers emphasise using the results from their life histories work to feed into pro-poor policy change - indirectly, through policy engagement?) To what extent should researchers identify a route through which they will feed emerging policy issues (Govt, LG, NGO, civil soc)? How will they do this in difficult/ contested policy areas, particularly where findings are not robust, but an issue has clearly been identified? 8

9 Will life histories be compiled and turned into a (key word) searchable data bank? If so, the locations and identities of individuals will need to be masked and we will need to work out access rules. Are life histories extractive or empowering? When designing research it is important to remember that not everyone has a story ready made. People s willingness and ability to talk about themselves can vary culturally (India versus Uganda, where people tend to be very fluent in India and need a great deal of prompting in Uganda). This may influence the number of interviews you can conduct in a given amount of time and the skill needed in collecting them. Also, it is important to remember that not everyone enjoys telling their story. This will depend partly on the nature of the community and on what the process of recalling and recounting uncovers or resurrects. This means that a process that may be empowering for some is exploitative or at least unpleasant for others. Other issues Should interviews be only conducted in the interviewee s mother tongue? Should the interviewer take notes? Should the interviewer record the interview and have it transcribed? Should interviews be recorded, translated and transcribed Are there arguments for or against having two interviewers instead of one? Should all life history interviews be conducted by specialist researchers? This is likely to imply that they have post-graduate qualifications in social sciences? Alternatively should they be undertaken by local non-specialist and fairly inexperienced research officers/ trained community members? (I would argue strongly for specialist researchers, because the interviewer strongly determines the quality and depth of the information gained. However, where the specialist is non-local and has to work through a translator, there may be difficulties in building rapport). Research using life history methods is incredibly resource hungry. It needs a relatively large amount of (expensive, experienced) researcher time, and at each stage (design, data collection, data analysis and write up). It is not a form of research that can be successfully delegated to enumerators or even well trained but relatively inexperienced colleagues. This is partly because a great deal of analysis takes place during the interview (deciding what issues to drop and where to probe). 9

10 Core reading Davis, P. (2006) Poverty in time: Exploring poverty dynamics from life history interviews in Bangladesh. CPRC Working Paper Roberts, B. (2002) Introduction: Biographical Research in Biographical Research. Open University Press, Buckingham and Philadelphia. Other references and resources Agar, Michael (1980) Stories, background knowledge and themes: problems in the analysis of life history narrative, American Ethnologist, Vol. 7, No. 2, pp Atkinson, R. (1998) The Life Story Interview, London, Sage. Baulch, B., & Scott, L. (eds.) (2006) Panel Surveys and life history methods: Workshop Report. London: Chronic Poverty Research Centre. Workshop_Report.pdf Behar, R. (1990) Rage and Redemption: Reading the Life Story of a Mexican Marketing Woman in Feminist Studies, vol. 16, no. 2, pp Bertaux, D. and M. Kohli (1984) The life story approach: A continental view in Annual Review of Sociology, vol. 10, pp Bertaux, D. ed. (1981) Biography and Society: The Life History Approach in the Social Sciences, Sage Publications, CA. Bird, K. and Shinyekwa (2003) Multiple Shocks and Downward Mobility: learning from life histories of rural Ugandans. Overseas Development Institute, CPRC Working Paper No. 36. da Corta, L. (2007a) (forthcoming) Concepts and methods to understand the intergenerational transmission of poverty. CPRC Working Paper. London: Chronic Poverty Research Centre. da Corta, L. (2007b) (forthcoming) Concepts and methods to understand the link between the intergenerational transmission of poverty and escapes and political economy. CPRC Working Paper. London: Chronic Poverty Research Centre. du Toit, A. (2005) Poverty Measurement Blues: some reflections on the space for understanding chronic and structural poverty in South Africa. CPRC Working Paper Hulme, David (2003) "Thinking 'Small' and the Understanding of Poverty: Maymana and Mofizul's Story", CPRC, Working Paper no

11 Miles, M., and J. Crush (1993) Personal narratives as interactive texts: collecting and interpreting migrant life-histories in Professional Geographer, no. 45, pp Miller, R. L. (2000) Researching Life Stories and Family Histories, Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications. Miller, R. L. (2000) Researching Life Stories and Family Histories, Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications. Roberts, B. (2002) Biographical Research. Open University Press, Buckingham and Philadelphia. Rogaly, B, and D. Coppard (2003) They Used to Eat, Now They go to Earn : The Changing Meanings of Seasonal Migration from Puruliya District in West Bengal, India in Journal of Agrarian Change, vol. 3, no. 3, pp Thompson, P. and H. Slim (1993) Listening for a Change: Oral Testimony and Development, Panos, London. Van Onselen, C. (1993) The reconstruction of a rural life from oral testimony: Critical notes on the methodology employed in the study of a black South African sharecropper in Journal of Peasant Studies, no. 20, pp

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