Rachel

Blog for OUTD 2511 (Research Design)

[raoutd2511]

#9/10 Final Thoughts

Prompt: 

These three things I know for certain about outdoor recreation Research: These three things I am still confused by: These three things I know for certain about me as an outdoor recreation researcher: These three areas I need to spend time developing/learning in order to feel more confident in my skills: Each of your responses will be unique to you based on your own invisible backpacks, your particular interests, your academic background, etc. Think about how you might present this in an engaging way (Will another form of communication help? Art? Music? Something else?). Integrate whatever material you need in order to make this a strong final post (and do reference at least four chapters of the textbook)

Answer:

I found this a challenging blog to write. I feel like I have attended class this term but struggled to pull out the key ideas and concepts. I really wish I would have been able to take more out of this course than I did. 

These three things I know for certain about outdoor recreation Research:

Ethics Approvals take a long time but are very important. From taking the tutorial we had to take at the beginning of this class to listening to the presentation I watched during research and innovation week and through lengthy class discussions. I have come to the conclusion that ethics is so important in any research that you do. Not only to protect yourself but to protect your participants. This makes me rethink how much time and effort must be put into place to even start research that requires ethics approval. It has also made me think there are more topics than I realized that require you to think about the ethics before you can research them. 

Qualitative and quantitative research. As much as everyone wrote about this topic as something they know for certain, I too agree. I think this idea was really hammer in hard and that many of the other things we talked about came back to this idea based on the type of research you are doing. As we have learned Quantitative research surrounds numbers, quantity and amounts with a study and Qualitative research is the more humanistic side in which personal communications are made with participants and you hear first hand experiences and stories (Neuman, 2018). 

There is a very wide range of research that can be done in outdoor recreation. I feel as though there are many unexplored areas of research in outdoor recreation. I do not have any ideas as to that these areas might be but I feel like when I look as one thing such as representation of women in the outdoors vs portrait in the media through the analysis of the movie WILD (The topic of my English paper) that I have come to see how this stems off into many other topics such as women’s perspective on it or how the impact of a movie like this impacted women who wanted to thru hike. 

These three things I am still confused by: 

How to get ethics approval and how to know if your research topic requires it? Despite all the talk of ethics and how important it is, I feel I have no idea how to go about applying for ethics approval if I needed it for my research. I have a general understanding that research on children, controversial topics and minority groups require ethics approval but how do you know if your topic needs it? 

Why are academic articles written in ways that are so challenging to understand? 

If you spend all that time researching why does the academic world see themselves all high and mighty and want to have their information as something that the general population cannot comprehend. 

What to do with this information from this course. At this time in my life while doing my undergrad I do not see myself doing a thesis or a directed study so I guess I just hold this information in my back pocket until it comes time that I decide I want to do more professional style research. 

These three things I know for certain about me as an outdoor recreation researcher:

I care a lot about the work I submit and I think I would struggle to conduct research as I am a perfectionist and do not like submitting things I am not proud of. I am also very indecisive and I think that I would have trouble committing to a research topic and sticking with it as I know I am not a very resilient person when it comes to work and I give up. So this whole concept of research if I was not 100% interested and motivated, I would probably end up giving up.  I have realized I put a lot of pressure on myself and sometimes I forget to enjoy doing school work or just enjoy life. I do not know if I can say I know anything for certain as I am still figuring myself out. 

I would enjoy both qualitative and quantitative research as I like; conducting surveys, interviews etc. and looking at patterns. I am not a numbers person and I have never been good at math but I really like analyzing patterns and trends. I also really like people watching.

Like Morgan said in her post, I like the field of women’s studies and I didn’t even know it was an option as a double degree until we had that one guest speaker come in. If I was not in education I would do a double degree with women’s studies. I really like looking at women in this field as that is my future and I want to see how I can improve it for myself. 

These three areas I need to spend time developing/learning in order to feel more confident in my skills: 

To not jump on the bandwagon, I notice that often I will be motivated to do something and then I hear all my friends saying “oh this sucks” or talking about how much they dislike something. I feel I need to stay true to how I feel and focus on doing what is best for me. I had the potential to really draw a lot of valuable information out of this course and I should have been a more active participant because I am not here to just get the degree, I should use this opportunity to absorb as much information as I can along the way. 

This course has made me realize I have quite the invisible backpack and I need to be mindful when I am conducting research, or really anything. I am very fortunate to have the experiences I have had that have led me to be here today. I am grateful for this university experience and I should make the most of it. 

I need to be confident in picking a topic I am interested in and sticking with it. I would love to be a more gritty person who does not give up on things. When I was in grade 9, my geography teacher made us take a quiz to see how gritty we are. I did not score on the gritty side and this is something I think about a lot. 

I know this is not the most academic blog and does not reference a whole lot of course material but as much as I feel I struggled with this course, I did take some important lessons and information out of it. 

References: 

Neuman, W. L., & Robson, K. (2018). Chapter 3 Ethics in Social Research. In Basics of Social Research Qualitative and Quantitative Approaches (4th Canadian Edition, pp. 40 - 62). essay, Pearson.

Neuman, W. L., & Robson, K. (2018). Chapter 4 Reviewing the Scholarly Literature and Planning a Study. In Basics of Social Research Qualitative and Quantitative Approaches (4th Canadian Edition, pp. 62 - 79). essay, Pearson.

Neuman, W. L., & Robson, K. (2018). Chapter 5 Designing a Study. In Basics of Social Research Qualitative and Quantitative Approaches (4th Canadian Edition, pp. 79 – 102). essay, Pearson.

Neuman, W. L., & Robson, K. (2018). Chapter 6 Qualitative and Quantitative Measurement. In Basics of Social Research Qualitative and Quantitative Approaches (4th Canadian Edition, pp. 103 - 130). essay, Pearson. 

[sick-not-tired]

Final Response

These Three Things I Know for Certain About Outdoor Recreation Research:

1.       The subjects of your study matter

The subjects of your study form both the experimental and control groups and are the yardstick by which a variable or theory is tested (Neuman & Robson, 2014). Choosing the right subjects for your research means selecting a group that is representative- both statistically and qualitatively- of your group. The group should be large enough to be an accurate sample, small enough to be a possible venture, wide enough to get a big picture of your area of research, and yet specific enough to rule out large outside influences. One must also be on the lookout for power dynamic breaches like abuse of power, abuse of trust, or conflicts of interest (Neuman & Robson, 2014). The entirety of a study can crumble based on only the poor selection or unethical treatment of subjects, making it not only one of the first, but also one of the most important parts of planning an experiment.

2.       Everything is a matter of perspective

Lets explore the hypothetical of two studies being done on the treatment of wilderness trip leaders: one focused on women vs. men leading women, and the other, women vs. men leading men. In the former, the trip leaders are always treated with respect and trust, while in the other, the women were not. The results of the first study could suggest that client sexism did not exist, and that women and men are equally respected by participants, while the latter would suggest the exact opposite. The perspectives and biases from which you design your study has an effect on it, no matter how objective you aim to be. If you do not have the lived experience or knowledge to design a study on a certain topic, your results will not be representative.

3.       Focusing on recreation can leave pieces of research missing

This one is a discovery I have made on my own throughout the semester, rather than being strictly taught to me. For my podcast project, we focused in on identity in the Thunder Bay outdoor recreation space. I found myself enthralled with the topic of identity as it relates to one’s feelings about participating in outdoor recreation, however I found myself frequently having to leave interesting concepts out because they did not meet the hyper-specific criteria for our project. The issue here is that outdoor recreation is so entangled with almost every aspect of social psychology one sees in their day-to-day life, and yet we often don’t take one’s day to day life into account. Outdoor recreation as a concept needs more specific understanding, but this feeling of discovering a stone unturned and being unable to fully turn it leaves me pondering if we narrow things too completely.

These Three Things I am Still Confused By:

1.       The boundaries between protecting your study and protecting your participants:

There is a well known ethical paradox in social and psychological research in which the researcher must find a perfect mid point between the advancement of knowledge and minimizing impacts on participants (Neuman & Robson, 2014). While the code of ethics addresses some hard and fast rules of harm reduction (Neuman & Robson, 2014), it seems to me that there is a large grey not addressed. For example, working with participants with past trauma, specially in recounting those stories, can be incredibly triggering and difficult. How does a researcher manage the likelihood that learning more about those who have experienced trauma, can set participants back in terms of mental and emotional recovery? Is the only option to remain impartial and offer up alternative resources someone can seek? I hope that there is more personal responsibility than that for researchers.

2.       How far academic outdoor recreation research can go in the future

Parks Canada and other related businesses have been doing their own independent applied studies for decades (Neuman & Robson, 2014), but research done on the field of outdoor recreation as a whole is just beginning. I wonder exactly how far this more generalized outdoor recreation research can go in the future, because outdoor rec has been shown to have so many similarities to group activity as a whole. At some point, will doing this specific research be seen as merely restating research that has already been done with other group situations, or will the small (yet important) differences continue to expand in coming years?

3.       How many people are working on the same research at once

I found that in this course we talk about research as almost being a solitary affair, however as our guest lecturers have stated, there is almost always other people involved to oversee, contribute, or act as impartial third parties to the study. I think this course could have benefitted from exploring these various relationships and the hierarchy of research teams further. I feel it would have given a more realistic look into what the world of research will really look like once we get there, which could have enticed some students to be more interested in continuing with research.

These Three Things I Know for Sure About Myself as an Outdoor Recreation Researcher:

1.        I like to actually perform research rather than analyzing and writing about it

Throughout the podcast project, I very much enjoyed looking at the social media posts that I did my research on, but I had a lot of trouble scripting my part of the podcast. I very much enjoy writing and speaking, however writing in a scientific or professional manner feels stifling and cold in comparison to more narrative or creative writing tasks. I do not enjoy the rewording and restating of fact, the necessary repetition of scientific writing, or being unable to have any of my own ideas once the writing period has begun. All new or interesting ideas must happen before the research has even begun, and this can feel stifling and highly rooted in the hypothetical. The task of actually writing the paper or script feels sluggish and droning to me.

2.        I do not think I could work on research with highly volatile or controversial topics

During one of our guest lectures, a research project was discussed that involved a participant with a particularly controversial opinion on women in the outdoors. This is not an uncommon thing either. Many researchers, depending on their topic, will end up in a similar situation, faced with opinions that they do not share or respect. I cannot see myself being able to maintain the necessary composure during this circumstance. I am a very sensitive person and I also have been told I do not hide my facial expressions well, so I do not believe I would be able to get through an in-person survey with someone who is rude or bigoted towards me or others in any way.

3.       I am very interested in women’s stories

In many areas, I find I have grown tired of constant reiteration of female struggles. I find that those who have lived experience as a woman already know what the findings will be, and those that do not have that lived experience are often not listening. However, I have found another side of women-centred social research this semester. Through articles I read throughout this course, such as, “Curating a Public Self” (linked below), I have found that studies done by women and for women are incredibly different than studies done about women. The topics that studies about women are still aiming to “definitively” prove over and over again are accepted as fact and as jumping off points for the real research to begin. It does not feel like being nagged about my own experience, but rather like someone finally telling me something about myself I did not already know. I hope to continue to look for studies and articles done by women and for women, not about them, because we are not objects of oppression but rather individuals with stories that are worth hearing.

 These Three Areas I Need to Spend Time Developing/Learning in Order to Feel More Confident in my Skills:

1.       Developing a Longer Attention Span

When selecting research questions, I often pick something I am very interested in in that moment. This allows me to put effort into a project and care deeply about finding the truth. However, it also means for me specifically, that all of these benefits go away once that topic is no longer interesting to me. The research process takes 7 steps (Neuman & Robson, 2014), and my short hyper fixation on the topic can only get me through approximately steps 1-4. Once the data is collected and the personal curiosity satisfied, my interest tanks. Applied research is far quicker than academic (Neuman & Robson, 2014), so this may be better suited to me, but in the future, I hope to learn to pick topics based off of long-standing interest rather than whims, and work on lengthening that attention span.

2.       Deconstruct my own Impostor Syndrome

Throughout the entirety of my outdoor recreation “career”, I have felt like I do not belong in the outdoor space. Objectively, I know that even in childhood I was firmly situated in the community through camping, swimming, canoeing, kayaking, and summer camps, but even now I will often say to myself that these ventures “don’t count” in some way or that “other people do more extreme things”. Impostor syndrome is an incredibly common response to environmental influences like sexism, racism, ableism, and homophobia, but one must be able to look past their feelings of falsehood in order to perform their best in work and scholarly situations.

3.       Taking the time to come up with better quality questions

A huge part of research, and specifically surveys, are the questions you are asking. This brainstorming process can seem easy once you’ve selected a thesis, but between developing your sample group, choosing your intended audience, avoiding confirmation bias, creating falsifiability, and following all ethics rules, the question development process can be lengthy and difficult (Neuman & Robson, 2014). The process requires “skill, practice, patience, and creativity,” (Neuman & Robson, 165, 2014). I would like to think I possess all of these traits, but as previous responses will show, I do lack patience. I hope to get better at this in order to create questions that dive deeper to what the research is looking for.

Reference List:

Gray, T., Norton, C., Breault-Hood, J., Christie, B., & Taylor, N. (2018). Curating a public self: Exploring social media images of women in the outdoors. Journal of Outdoor Recreation, Education, and Leadership, 10(2), 153–170. https://doi.org/10.18666/jorel-2018-v10-i2-8191

Neuman, W. L., & Robson, K. (2014). 1: Doing Social Research. In Basics of Social Research (pp. 2–22). essay, Pearson Canada.

Neuman, W. L., & Robson, K. (2014). 2: Theory and Social Research. In Basics of Social Research (pp. 24–42). essay, Pearson Canada.

Neuman, W. L., & Robson, K. (2014). 3: Ethics in Social Research. In Basics of Social Research (pp. 43–63). essay, Pearson Canada.

Neuman, W. L., & Robson, K. (2014). 8: Survey Research. In Basics of Social Research (pp. 162–192). essay, Pearson Canada.

[raoutd2511]

Hi Morgan. 

I really thoroughly have enjoyed reading your blogs throughout this term. Every week I would read a few blogs to decide who to respond to and I found myself coming back to read your thoughts again and again. I wanted to say I agree this term I have found many of the things I have been researching even for my other class have revolved about women in the outdoors. In both my English and Body Politics classes (I highly recommend if you have found a love for women’s studies to take body politics, the prof is awesome and the content is really interesting) that the connections I made were all about my experiences as a women on the outdoor recreation field or representation of women outdoors in general. It has left me really curious to possibly do more research in the future surrounding women in this field. I have related a lot to your ideas and I think you are a really smart and insightful person. I felt it when you talked about imposter syndrome and I feel it too. I think the outdoor industry is way more challenging than people give it credit for. I also think as a woman I feel I have to prove myself better than a man for a job. I know this response does not relate to the course content super well but I feel you have done a really nice job summing up key ideas from this course. I liked your point about how more than one persons is doing the same research at the same time and when we discussed that in class It was something that made me feel discourages about research because you put so much time and effort into that for someone else to publish the same thing just before you must be incredibly frustrating. Overall I think you have done a great job in this course and you should be proud of yourself. Thank you for all the insightful posts throughout the term. 

Rachel

[etoutd2511]

Blog 9&10

Over the course of research design I have gained an understanding of various methods and practices relating to social science research. I have learned research methods through a lens of outdoor recreation, parks, and tourism. The three concepts that I am certain and confident about relating to outdoor recreation research are the following; identifying and applying quantitative research, identifying and applying qualitative research, and finally, the steps to developing a research question. 

Quantitative research revolves around data and numbers. Quantitative research questions involve both independent and dependent variables. The relationship between both variables must be identified before data is collected. The data will then indicate the degree to which the independent variable affects the dependent variable (Hooykaas, 2022). The numbers found in data collection will form patterns, percentages, and averages. The conclusions found from a quantitative case study can be used to create predictions and generalizations of a larger population of the same demographic. An example of a quantitative question could be the following: How many cups of coffee a day do you drink during exam season? 

Qualitative research on the other hand revolves around soft data such as words and pictures. A qualitative research question is presented like a conversational question using words like “how” and “what”. The question should identify the key topic being studied. (Hooykaas, 2022). Qualitative research data is collected directly by the researcher. An example of a qualitative research question could be the following: How does participating in canoe tripping improve problem solving skills? 

Both qualitative and quantitative research require strong questions. To develop these questions, there are important steps to remember. Firstly the topic should be something you are interested in so that you don’t lose interest. Preliminary research is done at the beginning to determine what has already been published so that your research is focused and possibly new. Next the target of your audience should be considered, this helps with formulating the appropriate language in the question for the desired demographic. Finally, the questions should be reviewed to ensure that language is clear, not leading, and focused on the topic. (Hooykaas, 2022). 

The three areas of this course that still confuse me are: structuring interview questions, wording survey/interview questions, and identifying a target audience for research. I would like to be more comfortable with understanding which interview structures are most appropriate for various situations. In this class I have used the funneling technique of asking more specific questions as the interview progresses but I think it would be helpful for me not to just rely on that structure. When I have worded interview questions in the class I have found that my initial questions have been too leading. I would like to get better at using language that promotes non biased answers, and language that makes respondents feel that they can answer questions openly. This skill would help me in my future because non-leading questions allow respondents to share their full perspective. Finally, I have struggled in this class with determining a target audience, specifically for the podcast project. This is because my group’s research was done on a skating trial which is used by a very large demographic. I am confused by whether the target audience for research always has to be specific or can it be broad? Is it possible to present research findings or present research questions with language and mediums that are accessible to all people? My group ended up targeting our podcast to young families. 

After taking Research Design, there are three things that I know for certain about myself as an outdoor recreation researcher. I prefer qualitative research, having interest in the research topic is important to me, and presenting findings in a medium that is interesting is also important. I prefer qualitative research for a couple of reasons. Naturally I am better at analyzing words, sentences, and conversations as opposed to numerical data. I prefer to do research in the field so that I can interact with subjects and get a first hand feel for the work that I am doing. In class we were lucky enough to have guest speakers on a few occasions. The guest speaker on March 28th gave the class advice to engage in research that we find interesting, as a research project becomes a huge part of the researcher’s life. I related to this on a smaller scale. When doing blog posts that I was interested in, I found it a lot easier to find motivation to complete them. On a similar note, I appreciated the unconventional mediums of completing assignments in this class. Both the podcast and the blogs allowed for more creativity than a conventional essay or report. As a researcher I find it helpful to be excited about how I present information. 

Moving forward in research, there are three areas in which I would like to continue developing my skills. I would like to further understand how my personal background is affecting my research and how I interact with research participants. This will involve unpacking my invisible backpack, delving deeper into understanding ethics, and finally, critical reflexivity. My invisible backpack is my bias and assumptions based on how I engage the world (Hooykaas, 2022). I have to take into account my own privileges when engaging in research and with research participants so that I am respectful and fair. In terms of ethics I need to further understand how ethics approvals are acquired. Furthermore, when working with communities that are underprivileged I need to learn how to gain research data while also helping the community. Finally I would like to break down my critical reflexivity in depth. Critical reflexivity involves examining your own personal engagement with your research. (Hooykaas, 2022). Reflecting on how I engage with my research and findings will help me mitigate my own biases and work with objectivity.  

References:

Hooykaas, A. (2022, January 17). Research Design Lectures Week 2 (PowerPoint slides). Mycourselink. 

Hooykaas, A. (2022, January 24). Research Design Lectures Week 3 (PowerPoint slides). Mycourselink. 

Hooykaas, A. (2022, February 7). Research Design Lectures Week 5 (PowerPoint slides). Mycourselink. 

Hooykaas, A. (2022, February 16). Research Design Lectures Week 6 (PowerPoint slides). Mycourselink. 

[raoutd2511]

Hi Evan, 

I had typed this response to your post but then I accidently clicked the wring button and lost it so I am attempting to rewrite what I had said. 

I have seen a common theme amongst reading blog 9/10 from the class. I agree that everyone seems to understand qualitative and quantitative research and I think it is interesting that many of the things we have talked about in this class circles back to this topic. I agree with you that it is so much easier to do something when you have the motivation because you are actually interested in that topic. I actually find this so often with open ended research papers etc., anything where I have to make that decision and narrow it down to be specific I find incredibly challenging. It is awesome when you see researchers who have passion for their projects. It really shines through when someone is passionate and has that love for something. I am so bad with numbers that I also think I would prefer to talk to people. I love hearing personal stories and experiences. I think that is a good area for you to practice your developing skills of how to write research questions and surveys. I liked your part about the invisible backpack and thinking about this in class has really made me think about this as a researcher. Especially if you are doing research on a area you are unfamiliar with or around a more sensitive topic it could be a challenge if you do not take that time to recognize your privilege and how it may bias your research. 

Rachel

[raoutd2511]

#8 Quiz Time!

Prompt:  Find an online survey/questionnaire/quiz that you can participate in (it does not need to be formal) and complete it – the quality and honesty of your responses is up to you... what we want to hear about is the actual quality of the survey. Do not select a formal, credible questionnaire that will actually lead to a diagnosis as those are often very scrupulous in their wording and have already been vetted extensively. Please critically evaluate the survey/questionnaire/quiz (please provide us with the link to the page where you found it). What is the context? How well are the questions written? Might there be variety/ambiguity in the responses that lead to poor results? What are some strengths and weaknesses? How might it be improved (accessibility, wording, length, promotion, etc.). Please reference the course notes, the textbook, and the article itself. Remember, I expect you to be demonstrating a robust understanding of the course material at this point in time!

Answer: 

For this week's blog post I came across a quiz from my TikTok, and I was curious because it seemed to be a trend that was going around. I decided to take the quiz: Psychopathy Spectrum Test by IDRLABS.com (Individual Differences Research). It is “Based on the work of associate professor Michael R. Levenson, the Psychopath Test is a scientifically-validated instrument for measuring a person’s degree of psychopathy. It is widely used to assess psychopathic traits in non-institutionalized people” (Psychopathy, 2022). It is available in 15 languages and the cite gives a lot of information on how this is used to determine if people have psychopathic tendencies. It is worth the read and it does state that although it is based on the work of professor Levenson, it is not associated with him. I am not entirely sure how credible this test is as it says it is used professionally but I am having a hard time believing this to be true.

The test is made up of 27 questions, each of which you rank on a small scale of Disagree on the left and Agree on the right. You can place the slider at what I assume to be (although not labeled) Disagree, Somewhat Disagree, Neutral, Somewhat agree and Agree. I think the test could have benefited by labeling the options on the slider so they are clearly marked and the individuals who choose to take the quiz are fully informed. The questions are more statement-like and walk you through a series of feelings and prompts that question morals, critical thinking and personal judgment. The quiz takes about 3 minutes maximum to complete as the statements are all reality worded. Some example statements are: I enjoy manipulating other people’s feelings, I have never been in trouble with the law, making a lot of money is one of my most important goals, what’s right is whatever I can get away with, etc. 

I took the quiz a few times with different answers every time. The picture is the results from the first time I took the quiz and I ranked 15.12% more psychopathic than the average population. I found that if you leave the slider in the middle for every question, the dot is placed right in the middle of the graph. 

How could this test have been improved? I think this test has some leading questions, especially if you know going into it that it is about psychopathic tendencies. It would be easy to manipulate the answers you give based on what is seen as morally right by society and not your personal feelings about the statement. I also think using the internet as a mode of delivery for a free quiz like this could lead this to landing in the wrong peoples hands. I think it would be more reliable as a face to face conversation with a psychiatrist (Neuman, 2018). 

Regardless it was a fun survey to take. Whenever I think about a psychopath, I think about the time I watched the Hannibal Lector movie and I think looking at how people’s brains work is incredibly interesting. 

Neuman, W. L., & Robson, K. (2018). Chapter 8 Survey Research. In Basics of Social Research Qualitative and Quantitative Approaches (4th Canadian Edition, pp. 161- 191). Pearson.

Psychopathy spectrum test. IDRlabs. (2022), from https://www.idrlabs.com/psychopathy-spectrum/test.php

[sick-not-tired]

Very Much Wrong

Blog Post 8:

When asked to select a quiz to take online, the first website that came to mind was BuzzFeed. Anyone who was a teen in the 2010s has taken their fair share of BuzzFeed personality quizzes, as they seem to have a wide enough range of quizzes to pique absolutely anyone’s interest. Likely due to the ending of reality series Love is Blind, a trending quiz for this week was ‘Can we Guess Your Relationship Status Solely Based on Which Reality Dating Shows You’d Go On?’, so I decided to give it a go. The answer to the quiz title was, unfortunately, no.

The quiz was written by Syd Robinson, and comprised of 12 yes or no questions, asking if you would consider going on some of the most popular modern dating shows. According to my Buzzfeed, I should be “Very Much Taken”, however I am Very Much Not. Though rudimentary, the test had no spelling errors or interface malfunctions while I took it (which cannot be said for all quizzes of this nature). I wanted to learn more about how the test was designed and how it judged the questions, so I did a few experiments.

Experiment 1: I retook the quiz once selecting entirely yes, and another time selecting entirely no, just to see what other final results I could get. The first trial turned up the result “Single as a Pringle”, with the second receiving another “Very Much Taken”. I then began to wonder if those were the only two options. I was initially expecting some variation of “It’s Complicated” to be a possible result, so from there I decided to try another experiment.

Experiment 2: I decided to take the test with alternating answers (yes, no, yes, no, and so on) with six of each to try and get a stamp of “It’s Complicated”. This actually got me another result of “Single”. I then ruled out an “It’s Complicated” ruling, and began to wonder how these results were being quantified.

Were answers judged qualitatively, with shows like Too Hot to Handle or Bachelor in Paradise being given different characteristics than ones like Love is Blind or Married at First Sight, and these characteristics factored into the judgement of your singleness or lack thereof? Was it judged purely quantitatively, based on how many yes’ versus nos you were prepared to give? I hypothesized that it was the latter, with “Taken” having less yes’ than nos, so I embarked on my penultimate experiment.

Experiment 3: I tried alternating answers again, in the opposite order (no, yes, no, yes, and so on). I believed this would prove my hypothesis, as most shows are very drastically different from the one before, meaning if there was qualitative judgement, I should get a different result by selecting the opposite shows. The results seemed to prove my hypothesis, as I received another “Single” judgement. To fully test this hypothesis though, I wanted to try one last experiment.

Experiment 4: The last variation I tried had two parts: first, I needed to figure out how many answers would change your result (selecting yes on increasing amounts of questions at the beginning of the test until I receive a “Single” result), then I would select that many yes’ at the back end of the test, once again proving that it was not related to the quality of the shows. My theory could be easily disproved if it takes more than 6 answers to receive a “Single” result, as I got that result with 6 in the last experiment.

Results (1):

One Yes: Taken

Two Yes’: Taken

Three Yes’: Taken

Four Yes’: Taken

Five Yes’: Taken

Six Yes’: Single

Results (2):

One Yes: Taken

Two Yes’: Taken

Three Yes’: Taken

Four Yes’: Taken

Five Yes’: Taken

Six Yes’: Single

The results of my last experiment reasonably show that this quiz is quantitatively judged, rather than qualitatively. What this means is, the quiz is improperly named. The name “Can we Guess You Relationship Status Solely Based on Which Reality Dating Shows You’d Go On?” suggests that picking certain shows over others would change the result, for instance someone who chooses only The Bachelor would get a different result than someone who selected only Too Hot to Handle. This is not the case. As such, this quiz SHOULD be called “Can we Guess Your Relationship Status Based on How Many Reality Dating Shows You’d Go On?”.

This quiz is, at the end of the day, supposed to be just for a laugh, however I feel that they missed an opportunity to not only make this quiz more accurate to the title by including some kind of qualitative analysis, but also to include a wider range of results that would apply to more people in today’s dating scene. The questions are clear, and your answers will always lead you to a result, but it is lacking in creativity and data usage from the actual questions.

Quiz Link:

https://www.buzzfeed.com/sydrobinson1/reality-dating-shows-relationship-status-quiz

[raoutd2511]

Hi Morgan, 

I got a good laugh reading your post. I thought the quiz you picked was funny and interesting. I really like how you did some research by experimentation to test the quiz. It seemed to me like you had some fun writing this one! Or at least I hope you did. I am curious and I might go take the quiz myself. Are you an avid reality/dating show TV watcher? I have watched my fair share of dating shows but I do not particularly like them. I know my Tik Tok is highly populated by 50 Dates 50 States but I see so much wrong with this dating production. It really is a strange concept. I am surprised by your rating of the quality of the questions and that there are no spelling errors. I feel BuzzFeed although the OG more predominant online quiz creator is known for poor quality or lack of proofreading. Have you taken a lot of Buzzfeed quizzes? I used to take so many when I was like 13 and watched Buzzfeed regularly on YouTube. Are there more than 2 answers and you just did not happen to answer the questions in the right way to find them? I honestly don't think so, I think they probably made it simple and how often do people take these quizzes more than once? Actually I think people often too but not enough to notice if there are only 2 answers. I think your post was creative and well written, I liked your choice of quiz and I am curious about it now. I hope that maybe one day the Very much not will no longer be the case. 

- Rachel

[raoutd2511]

#7 Research and Innovation Week

Prompt: Research doesn’t exist inside a bubble, and neither should you. For this assignment you are required to attend at least one event of the Research and Innovation Week Conference. In your blog post, you need to identify the topic being researched, outline the challenges and successes of the methodology, connect it directly to course content, and provide your opinion of the effectiveness of the research approach(es). Note that not all presentations will go into detail on this. 

Answer:

There were a few presentations that I was interested in attending from this week but I was not able to make the time frames they were presented in. (FYI: if you email [email protected] you may potentially be able to get a recording of a presentation) I attended one and asked for the recording so I could better understand the content. As Jill said, I found the presentations quite complex and had difficulty in understanding the world of academic research and jargon. I was also told that all the presentations would be available to watch as recordings by mid-week next week. 

I watched the presentation Strength-Based Strategies for Parents and Educators to Promote Mental Wellness and Resiliencies in Children and Youth by Dr. Ed Rawana. As a teacher candidate it was actually very insightful to listen to what Dr. Rawana had to say about the topic and his comparison of teaching and parenting. 

Identify the research topic: The research topic of this presentation was promoting the development of strengths and resilience in children and youth through parenting and educators. One of the key points he kept coming back to was the idea that adults are role models. As a teacher, parent, caregiver, they have to demonstrate the strength and skills they want these children to grow up to possess. He references it much like an apprenticeship program. Training and preparing children to have the strength based skill they need as an adult. 

Challenges and success of the methodology: Unfortunately this presentation did not go into much depth regarding how this research was done and mostly a research overview. However, I did find a lot of really interesting points of information that were made. I have come up with some challenges and success ideas although not directly discussed in the presentation. Some challenges I saw were in the measure of success, how do you measure if leading (teaching/parenting) with a strength based model is effective? I am having difficulty wrapping my brain around this. I think it is qualitative research as Dr. Rawana said something along the lines of: it is not about the amount of time you spend with the children but the quality of the time spent. I am not sure how you measure the factors that make someone resilient as this could come from a lot of different factors. My grade 9 geography teacher had us take an online survey to see how much grit we had but I do not think online tests and quizzes in these ways are accurate representations or good ways to conduct research. One of the successes of this methodology is it forces people to choose and think about their decisions to make a conscious effort to use their strengths and not just choose randomly. 

Connection to course content: A few areas that I thought connected to course content where in relation to an ethics approval as this research is focused on children and Dr. Rawana even mentioned you are not really supposed to do research on children so this would require a strong, thorough plan to be able to follow these children to see the effects of adults in their lives using strength based approaches to promote resilience.  Additionally, I thought of a literature review and review of sources and planning the research you are talking about. He mentioned a few times the work of Dr. Epstein and personally I have never looked at his research so it could very well be fundamental but the negative connotations around that person himself threw me off into listening to those connections. Lastly, I made a connection to sampling. I do not know the sample size or the demographic of people chosen but I think this would definitely affect the research as these kinds or role models look and appear differently in a low income neighborhood vs a high income neighborhood and geographic location, etc. 

Opinion on effectiveness of the model: I had a hard time pulling out the information to answer these questions from the presentation but I did gain some interesting parenting/teaching tips. Honestly after writing all of this I am not sure what the model of this research was but I think it was effective as there was information that I thought was strong and believable. It was a well done presentation. 

Rawana, E. (2022). Strength-Based Strategies for Parents and Educators to Promote Mental Wellness and Resiliencies in Children and Youth . Lakehead University Research and Innovation Week. Retrieved March 10, 2022, from https://lakeheadu.zoom.us/rec/share/CvEGT2sn108nYfd77T9WjXpsiB3elJmsueO_viqlNVxItts1eHTZY2-WRZZAddkJ.xzD3U6Z7gs_Zcm9a Passcode: 3E6+QYJ+.

[justplainrec]

07. Rehabilitative Exercise in Stroke Recovery in Thunder Bay

I attended a live session during Research and Innovation Week and did not understand a word of it. I decided to review a 3 Minute Research presentation after the fact instead. 

I chose to review Nicole Lee’s presentation entitled: Exploring the rehabilitative and exercise experience in stroke recovery among adults living in Thunder Bay. The research is a pilot project for Lee’s masters thesis and focuses on exercise as a form of rehabilitation for stroke survivors in Thunder Bay. 

Lee used semi-structured interviews and surveys to gather her data. Both of the research techniques that Lee used to acquire her data are qualitative techniques that we have discussed in class. Lee did not go into detail about her survey or interview questions, but I am curious as to how she designed each and whether the type of questions asked and their structure affected the outcomes of her study. 

Results concluded that barriers to rehabilitation revolved around the participants’ own perceived ability and lack of motivation. While they experienced barriers, participants also experienced facilitators. Surveys confirmed these results, but also showed low quality of life scores. More research needs to be done in order to gain a comprehensive summary of one’s rehabilitation experiences; Lee could not conclude why participants were experiencing such barriers and facilitators. She intends to continue the research with semi-structured interviews, giving researchers a more in depth understanding of the experiences of participants. (Lee, 2022)

According to the text, surveys can be beneficial in that they are cost-effective and can be conducted by a single researcher. However, the largest con with surveys is that they often have a low response rate. Surveys are also not filled out under controlled conditions, nor can the researcher clarify responses or probe for more information (Neuman & Robson, 2018). 

While surveys provide a more fixed data set, qualitative interviews allow the researcher to see the world through the interviewee’s eyes: “the types of responses possible in qualitative interviewing are much more varied and allow the ‘voice’ of the interviewee to be heard” (Neuman & Robson, 2018). Interviews provide insights that simply cannot be captured through statistics and graphs. A con of interviewing is that the sample sizes are generally small in comparison to those used in qualitative research, bringing into question the validity and reliability of the research and its application to a wider population beyond those in the interview sample. Since Lee’s research is about stroke survivors in Thunder Bay and the findings aim to help the sample group, I think that semi-structured interviews is an appropriate research method. The findings do not need to extend to groups beyond the sample. 

I think that Lee’s renewed approach of using only semi-structured interviews will certainly provide her with more in-depth perspectives on her participants, although it will lower her sample size.

References

Lee, N. (2022). Exploring the rehabilitative and exercise experience in stroke recovery among adults living in Thunder Bay. Presentation, Lakehead University Research and Innovation Week.

Neuman, L., & Robson, K. (2018). Basics of Social Research (Canadian Edition) (4th ed.). Don Mills, Ontario: Pearson Canada Inc.

[raoutd2511]

Hey Jill, 

This is an amazing post. I also found the presentation hard to understand. I am super impressed with how much information and analysis you pulled out of a 3 minute presentation. She provided more information into her research style and strategies than the whole hour presentation I watched which was mostly just an overview of the research. Coincidentally, I watched the ORSS film festival on Thursday and Nicole had submitted a video, small world. I then also went and watched her 3 minute presentation. I think you did an amazing job bringing in course content and analyzing her choice of research method. This is a well done analysis. I am curious too, the questions she chose and why she chose them. Are there similar experiences among most stroke survivors? I wonder if a small group interview style might act in a way as a support group of people going through the same things and that style would be beneficial to the participants in addition to the researcher. 

I think the interview style would be more effective than a survey because this seems very personal and would need lots of room for elaboration and explanation based upon personal experience. I do not know about you but I would much prefer to talk to someone to share my experiences because I do not feel like typing or writing out my personal story and if I did a lot of details would be missed. Overall, I think this is a great post and I am glad to see Nicole had something for Research and Innovation week! 

Rachel

[demoutd2511]

Who I would Interview...

Blog Prompt #6 (Provided by Dr. Amanda Hooykaas): You have five minutes to interview a key thinker who represents your field of inquiry (for the podcast project). To do this you must:

1) Identify who you are interviewing and why

2) List five clear interview questions (and what insight you hope to get out of each)

3) Provide a brief overview/summary that discusses how you decided on these questions (referencing the textbook would be helpful here!).

In your response to a peer, please provide feedback on how effective these questions might be at addressing the aims of the interviewer. How might they be improved? On what basis?

If I had 5 minutes to interview a key thinker who represents and has experience with the allures of Thunder Bay, I would interview my old Pathfinder/Ranger leader, Richella.

Here is Richella and I skiing at Kamview on this past Reading Week! Photo Credit: Richella

I would interview Richella as not only is she a grad of the ORPT program and knows about tourism, but she has worked with organizations, such as Outward Bound, The Girls and Boys Club of Canada, and at the Girl Guides of Canada's(GGC) Ontario Head Office and multiple GGC camps. Richella is currently back up here in Thunder Bay doing her Education Degree, and that is part of the reason I picked to “interview” her. I think “interviewing” Richella would be beneficial to my podcast group and our topic, as I would have thought she might have picked to do her degree somewhere closer to Toronto, as that is currently where she and her family live; and finding out her reasons for coming up here, what stuck and drew her back up her after so long, would be very beneficial to my podcast group’s project.

The 5 questions I would ask Richella are:

What drew you to come to Lakehead for your undergrad/the ORPT program?

What is one thing you remember about your time in the city? Something that has stuck with you?

Is that what also drew you to come back to LU for your Education Degree? Or was it something else entirely?

Did you consider any other schools for your education degree? Possibly ones closer to your family?

What is one place you have been to that you would recommend for potential and/or current Lakehead University students to check out?

I decided to ask these questions as I feel they would provide more information on the allures of certain places, and what Thunder Bay’s might be, for some people. Most of the questions are open-ended, as I think open-ended questions and the wide range of answers they can have, are better and more beneficial to my group’s podcast project, as we are planning on using more qualitative research methods over quantitative ones.

[raoutd2511]

Hi Drew, 

This is a great post. I am so glad that you have found connection with your guiding community here in Thunder Bay as well. It is really nice when the worlds collide like this. I think it is important to keep these connections. I am so happy that you got to connect with her again. 

I too am curious why she chose to come back here for her education degree. I would caution you because the questions are very specific to your interviewee, not in a bad way. I just think there is a little lack of connection with the recreation side. The questions are open ended and s[ecfic but will provide you with lots of information that would be beneficial to the podcast. I feel like in general for everyone that the 5 minute time line is so short and that there would not be enough time to get through all the questions with the detail you want. 

I think this is a super well targeted set of questions and would be a really neat and effective interview. 

Yours in Guiding, 

Rachel 

[raoutd2511]

#6 Interview Questions

Prompt: You have five minutes to interview a key thinker who represents your field of inquiry (for the podcast project). To do this you must: 1) Identify who you are interviewing and why 2) List five clear interview questions (and what insight you hope to get out of each) 3) Provide a brief overview/summary that discusses how you decided on these questions (referencing the textbook would be helpful here!). In your response to a peer, please provide feedback on how effective these questions might be at addressing the aims of the interviewer. How might they be improved? On what basis?

Answer: 

If I had 5 minutes to interview a key thinker for my podcast, I would interview Charolette Madison, my roommate (Charlotte Marsden’s alter ego) because she is a prime example of the people we want to survey to understand why they came to Thunder Bay for our podcast. Since our podcast encompasses aspects of why people come to Thunder Bay for recreational purposes. Charlotte is from England and she came all the way to Thunder Bay for school. We discussed in our podcast planning that we would have a target audience of high school students and potential individuals who may be interested in coming to Thunder Bay. I have seen Charlotte take on every opportunity to embrace recreating here - including doing 51km of classic Nordic skiing yesterday at the Sleeping Giant Loppet. 

The questions I would like to ask:

1. Before you made the decision to come to Thunder Bay, were you aware of all the recreational opportunities that you can try in this city? 

This question allows for the person being interviewed to expand on if they were aware of different activities you can participate in this city. This analyzes how the city of Thunder Bay adversities different things they offer. It also allows the interviewee to answer if they have looked into some of the things you can do here. 

2. Without meeting people of similar interest.. Do you think you would have embraced so many different activities and opportunities?

Humans are social people and it is really nice to have the confidence of others to encourage you when you are doing something new. I personally do not feel I would have not had so many opportunities or confidence to try something new if I had not met people with the knowledge and same adventure spirit. 

3. How has being in the ORPT program changed your view on the different recreational activities that are available to you in this city?

This is specific to the program because most other programs do not have these same opportunities and people often find rec people to go with when they want to partake in things like rock climbing, canoeing, mountain biking, etc. I have been made aware of so many more things that exist in Thunder Bay because of the program. 

4. What has been your favorite recreational activity you have participated in since coming to Thunder Bay?

From this question you can get insight into what kinds of activities their person has participated in and what their likes and dislikes are. This could be beneficial for recommending activities. This is an interesting question because perhaps they tried something completely new and it has become their favorite. 

5. Are there anything you have yet to participate in and how do you plan to find a way to participate in it?

Thunder Bay can be a hard city for a student as it is spread out and has a poorly functioning transit system that does not reach out to some of the coolest places for recreation. How do students get around without vehicles etc. 

6. Anything you find challenging about living here and participating in recreational activities?

This can share some of the challenges an individual might face living in this city for recreation purposes and how access to some of these activities is limited for those who want to try them but do know the right people etc. 

Summary: 

I decided on these questions because it allows Charlotte to elaborate on her answers with open ended questions that allow for explanation. This format has questions that ask for specific details regarding experiences with recreational activities. This allows them to share why they do what they do and what they are getting out of it. 

[mloutd2511]

Ontario to Lift the Vaccine Passport Mandate

*DISCLAIMER: THIS BLOG WAS CREATED FOR OUTD 2511, LAKEHEAD UNIVERSITY. THE OPTIONS EXPRESSED HERE ARE MY OWN IDEAS AND NOT THOSE OF LAKEHEAD UNIVERSITY. LAKEHEAD UNIVERSITY IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR THE ACCURACY OF ANY INFORMATION SUPPLIED BY THIS BLOG.*

Prompt: “Find a written article (newspaper, magazine, etc.) from this past week and critically evaluate it (please provide us with the link – topic is yours to choose). What was the key message? What might their sources have been? (Suggest sources if there aren’t any provided.) How might they have been evaluated? How were they validated/verified (which techniques were used/could have been used)? What expectations/responsibilities might the consumer have in reviewing this article? Please reference the course notes, the textbook, and the article itself. Remember, we expect you to be demonstrating a robust understanding of the course material at this point in time!” (Provided by: Dr. Amanda Hooykaas)

Answer: 

When searching for an article to read this week, I stumbled upon an article about Doug Ford lifting the mandate in Ontario stating you no longer need to provide proof of vaccination as of March 1st 2022 (Ontario to Lift Vaccine Passport in March). Granted this decision came from the Chief of Medicine Dr. Kieran Moore, I still don’t trust that it has served its purpose just yet, especially since the mandate for the QR Codes has only been in place a little over a month. Yes, 92% of the population has been double vaccinated in Ontario but right now with the current state of the world I don’t believe it is the best decision. The article goes on to state that the booster shot will be officially available to those 12-17 on Friday, which is a reason to keep the Vaccine Passport mandate open because the whole population of Vaccinated Ontarians haven’t been boosted yet. The booster shot is important because just like every vaccine that you receive you’ll need multiple doses to keep yourself and others protected from those ailments. For example, you need to get a different flu shot every year because there are different variants of the flu every year, just like how covid has different variants. Proving that you are vaccinated, provides a certain level of safety for customers especially since over a million people have died from this illness. The Vaccine Passport allows customers solace in a very scary time, but not just for them, for the people that work in those facilities as well. The article goes on to state that this will only happen provided that the numbers of covid cases improve. It also states that it is not in response to the “freedom” convoy, but with it’s timing of when this announcement came out, how can it not be? People are entitled to any opinion that they want about the convoy, but at the end of the day it’s just about an excuse for people to wave their white nationalist flag. 

The key message here is to provide Ontario Citizens with updates of the covid phases we are going through and what may be in our Provinces future. The source that CTV is using is Doug Ford’s conference and Dr. Kieran Moore, as well as other articles listed in this article. Including one where Trudeau was in talks with provinces about instating emergency powers, which as we know now has happened. The additional articles I believe were provided to allow easy access to more of what is going on in our country. These sources were evaluated using quotes from the Premier and Moore, additionally they made sure that the information was condensed down so that it is easy to read and understand. They made sure they had qualitative research over quantitative so that it is not overwhelming to any reader. Readers of this article can expect that the Passport mandate might be lifted if the numbers are improving, it is also the readers responsibility to stay informed on what changes apply to their province. The writer of this article, Katherine DeClerq, verified this information through the Premiers conference on Monday, February 14th, 2022. We know this because the conference is live and accessible to the whole country. 

Reference:

DeClerq, K. (2022, February 14). Ontario to Lift Vaccine Passports in March, Next Phase of COVID-19 Reopening. CTV News. Retrieved February 14, 2022, from https://toronto.ctvnews.ca/ontario-to-lift-vaccine-passport-in-march-next-phase-of-covid-19-reopening-to-begin-early-1.5780257 

[raoutd2511]

Hi Meg, 

I think you did a great job analyzing this article and have an interesting take on it. I feel the same way that it almost feels redundant since the QR vaccine code feels like it was just put in place and now to take it away all together? I think it is interesting how different provincial governments are handling this situation, I went to Banff, Alberta for part of my reading week and they have lifted all mandates as of March 1st, so masks, vaccine passports etc. I think employees still have to wear them and in some circumstances but mostly they are lifting them. It is rather scary that a high volume of the unvaccinated population is the youth who are in classrooms that break all the guidelines regarding covid safety. They are crammed together, eat close together without masks, no social distancing, sharing and touching the same objects etc. I think your incorporated and evaluation of the research styles was much more in depth then mine and really brought in the class content. This article seems reliable and trustworthy unlike many news sources. I have it linked in my post about sources but there is a really cool media bias chart that helps you determine where on a scale that news networks are and how unbiased the info will be. You are right about the responsibility of the consumer because it is our job to stay informed and know about the rules and regulations. I am curious when Ontario might drop the mask mandate. This is all such an interesting but scary time. 

Rachel

[raoutd2511]

#5

Prompt: Find a written article (newspaper, magazine, etc.) from this past week and critically evaluate it (please provide us with the link – topic is yours to choose). What was the key message? What might their sources have been? (Suggest sources if there aren't any provided.) How might they have been evaluated?  How were they validated/verified (which techniques were used/could have been used)?  What expectations/responsibilities might the consumer have in reviewing this article? Please reference the course notes, the textbook, and the article itself.  Remember, we expect you to be demonstrating a robust understanding of the course material at this point in time!

ARTICLE: 

75% of surgeons at southern Manitoba hospital, clinic are women, bucking national trend

The Key Message:

The key message from this article is celebrating the fact that a hospital and medical center in Winkler - Southern Manitoba has a very high percentage of female surgeons. Three quarters of their surgical team in this community are female and also the most qualified candidate for the job. This is an unusual trend in surgical programs. The C.W. Wiebe medical center has 5 female orthopedic surgeons and across Canada - just over one tenth of orthopedic surgeons are women. This medical center is doing well for themselves in terms of representation of women practicing medicine and in STEM. Another key area of this article discussed how this is great for young women and youth in high schools or entering into post secondary education to see females in the position they may strive to achieve one day. The one surgeon said she did not have any role models to look up to and she is so happy that the percentage of female surgeons is increasing. It is an interesting point of view because the writer decided to look at 2 surgeons - Alexis Marshall and Elizabeth Thompson - from the clinic to discuss their personal experiences and work life in addition to stating facts and making comparisons to other medical centers. I also thought it was neat that Dr. Marshall did some of her schooling in Thunder Bay.

Sources:

The sources in this article come from first hand interviewing some of the female surgeons who work at the C.W. Wiebe medical center in Winkler. The writer of the article also talked to the executive director of the medical center - Jim Neufeld - about the team of surgeons and the amount of female surgeons on the staff team in comparison to many other medical centers across the country.  In addition to personal communications with the staff and individuals at the clinic there was also data from the Canadian Medical Association regarding the statistics for numbers of female surgeons and surgeons in general across the country. 

Evaluation and Validation - research techniques

The techniques of interviews and using facts and statistics from the Canadian Medical Association were strong, reliable ways to source the information. I think the sources might have been evaluated by choosing the most effective way to receive first hand information and experience based information from those who work in the field. I am sure it would have been very different if they interviewed women who work with predominantly male coworkers in comparison to this strong female led team. Interviews are a great technique and strongly reliable. The statistics and facts seem reasonable and believable and come from a reputable source. This is a well written article with nothing that seems biased or out of place. 

Expectations 

As a viewer of this article there are some responsibilities, personally for me as I want to go into teaching. Their article briefly discusses encouraging young people to do what they are passionate about and encourages them to not become discouraged if they do not see a role model of someone like them in that field. There is a responsibility to help increase the number of female surgeons in the field. It also mentions international women’s day coming up on Tuesday so there may be a responsibility to participate or at least think about that.

Hoye, B. (2022, March 6). 75% of surgeons at Southern Manitoba Hospital, clinic are women, bucking national trend | CBC news. CBCnews. Retrieved March 6, 2022, from https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/winkler-women-surgeons-cw-wiebe-boundary-trails-1.6373033

[zhoutd2511]

What I am thinking about

Basically for the past three weeks I have been thinking about ranches. The reason I am thinking about ranches is because of Yellowstone the tv show on Amazon Prime Video. Basically, without spoiling anything the show follows the Dutton family, who are owners of the largest ranch in Montana called the Yellowstone. The show revolves around the drama at the ranch and surrounding areas such as the reservation, national park and new city folks. If you like cows or cowboys I would recommend watching the show as each episode is like a drug to me I can not get enough of it. I have been thinking a lot about the Yellowstone ranch because of the landscape and the vast amount of land. It is such a beautiful place and I think it would be a pretty rad job to have; I mean heck you get to play with cows and horses.

Moreover, another reason why I have been thinking about ranches is because in private land stewardship we had a guest speaker come in who used to be a reccer. He graduated from the program around 2010 and now owns a couple of ranches in Thunder Bay. One of his ranches is called the Sleeping G Farm. The farm contains about 10 fields for vegetable crops. He used to have about 30 sheep on his ranch until he sold them to buy cattle for the ranch. Sleepy G Farm has around 20 cattle, and around 50 chickens that they use to lay eggs. The cool thing about the chickens is that they are free roam so they aren't forced into what we see on documentaries about chickens being treated poorly. The chickens have a very large area that is fenced off with coups they can go in and out of at any time.

With all the consumption of ranches I started to look online in Canada to buy a ranch and it is actually pretty cool. I found places with 500 arcs that are a decent price and affordable if I was not a student. That being said, I think when I am older I would like to live out on a ranch or a farm and have some cattle but I am more interested in the land. The reason why I care so much about the land is because I will have the chance to take care of the land and habits so that animals and other creatures have a safe place to live. I guess I would want a hobby farm in the near future.

[raoutd2511]

Hi Zach, 

I had no idea you were so into the idea of farming and ranches. This was a really neat post to read. I am looking for a new show to watch and this seems like an interesting one. I might just have to check it out. I really know nothing about farm life or ranches. I have never ridden a horse and I am a city kid so I have little experience with farms in general. When I was about 5 or 6 I think I did go to farm camp but I do not know or remember why I stopped going (Maybe I will have to ask my parents about that one) so I think it would be super neat to have a hobby farm and it would be a great learning experience too. I really love the name Sleepy G farm! It has a really nice ring to it. I also really love cows even though I have no experience with them, they just seem so cool and cute! For a while my sister really wanted to get backyard chickens but there was a bylaw in Waterloo that you could not have them unless they were grandfathered in. I think that bylaw is lifted now but I have no idea why my sister even wanted chickens because she despises eggs. This was a great post this week and I learned a lot about you and new things in general from it! Thank you for sharing!

Rachel 

[raoutd2511]

#4 Doing your own research

Prompt: Free write about whatever you are thinking about

Answer:

In leu of recent events in my life I would like to use this prompt to discuss why primary research is more important than secondary research? I do not believe this to be true for all cases but for many I do believe this to be true. I think it does depend on what the research topic is or what the research is for in addition to the amount of information already collected about the topic. For this example I would like to think about this in the context of teaching or any profession where it may be better to ask someone who is an expert in the field and has tried the strategies for themselves to determine what works best. It may also be a matter of testing these strategies yourself and gathering your own research to determine what strategies would work best for that situation. 

Primary research by definition is “any research you collect yourself” (Purdue Writing Lab, n.d.). This type of research allows you to gather specific information to answer your question exactly as you have designed and sourced the questionnaires, interviews, surveys etc. yourself with your specific research question in mind. This type of research is especially useful if there is limited research on the topic you are conducting the study on or if the articles found are not supporting the argument you are trying to make. These articles can be used in a counter argument manner however it still may not be the route you want to take with your research. 

Secondary research (aka desk research) is research that has been conducted, collected and organized by other researchers and authors. This includes reports, government studies, and other business documents. In secondary research someone has already done all the interpretation of the data. Where in primary you can make your own interpretations of the data. Although secondary is less costly especially for small businesses and it can still be relevant and useful I think primary research is more effective, although it can be more time consuming you can ensure a more tailored approach to your research. Primary research is more focused - talking to experts in the field can be better than going and reading someone else's work because you can see for yourself what works and what doesn’t. Additionally, in being in a hands-on program like outdoor recreation, being able to go to the field and see things in action is what research is all about. 

Lastly, I would like to think that secondary research is the easy way out as it is all done for you and you have to just find it, it requires no in depth analysis and does not require finding the people one would need to talk to or making those connections and networking to further your research. A benefit of primary research. 

Ps. After reading other people’s posts I feel I took this a little too seriously. I just happen to be really passionate about this at this moment in time and am fueling this post with anger due to a recent stressor in my life. So I apologize it is not as funny as if Griff could beat a Kangaroo in an MMA fight. You have my support buddy, but I still do not think it would be worth it, Griff, to challenge a Kangaroo to a fight at all! 

Purdue Writing Lab. (n.d.). What is primary research? // Purdue Writing Lab. Purdue Writing Lab. Retrieved February 7, 2022, from https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/conducting_research/conducting_primary_research/index.html 

Types of market research: Primary vs secondary | the Hartford. (n.d.). Retrieved February 7, 2022, from https://www.thehartford.com/business-insurance/strategy/market-research/primary-second-research 

[raoutd2511]

#3.5 A mashup

There is no prompt for this post as this is a bit of a mash up and I intend to make 2 post for this week on a few different things. This is a partial use of prompt 4: a free write prompt to come up with a partial write of prompt 3.  

I have a few things on my mind this week. One being I would like to rewrite my post about the blog #3 prompt as I feel I did not do it justice and I was generally unhappy with my post. Despite having an extremely stressful week on top of having to attend about 20 zoom presentations this weekend as the coordinator and host of the ORPT ORSS Career Fair I am exhausted and I did not have time to remake my blog 3 post so although it it is not a full post I would like to attach it here because I think it is actually a really interesting topic. 

(Sidenote: if you are looking for summer employment or any outdoor Rec employers many of the presentations were recorded and are posted in the ORSS D2L page as well as various job postings!).

Anyways here goes nothing: 

After writing my first answer to this prompt I came across another idea credit of my friend Reid and I thought it was a pretty good idea and tourism related. This is a reworked answer to prompt #3. (This is not a completed research idea answer to prompt 3 - just a more interesting idea). 

If I could research anything I would like to design a research project regarding whether the artificial sinking of ships or various other things (Ie planes etc) near coral reefs for the purpose of aiding in the regrowth of the coral reef is beneficial to the coral reefs or if it really just a tourist attraction and provides additional entertainment for scuba divers. 

This could be turned into a long term study regarding the health of coral reefs and if these artificial reefs actually do grow in a similar fashion to support the ocean life or if they are just a ploy and scheme to make scuba diving companies who use them look good. I feel this would benefit those who actually partake in research about the growth and decline of coral reefs. 

Megan Denny mentions in her blog Diving Artificial reefs on PADI that “In addition to providing a home for algae, barnacles, corals, and other marine life, an artificial reef can help control erosion, improve surfing conditions, and attract tons of divers with selfie sticks. Over time, the artificial reef becomes a feeding area for small fish, and later large fish that prey on the small ones. Artificial reefs also benefit areas with a healthy, natural reef. At Tamar reef in Eliat, Israel scientists found more divers visited the artificial reef than the two natural reefs nearby. Fewer divers means less stress on the corals and other marine inhabitants of the natural reef.” (Denny, 2018.) This is a really interesting take and I did not consider it this way. 

These kinds of artificial dive sites are popping up all over the world in partnership with organizations who want to protect oceans and coral reefs. I think my view of myself as a researcher in 10 years would stay the same as I wrote about in prompt 3. I just thought this was a really cool idea and not something that is even relevant to my world because I have never been scuba diving although I really want to. 

Diving artificial reefs. PADI Blog - Scuba Diving and Freediving Tips, Dive Travel Insights & More. (2018, June 26). Retrieved February 7, 2022, from https://blog.padi.com/artificial-reefs/#:~:text=Artificial%20reefs%20also%20benefit%20areas,inhabitants%20of%20the%20natural%20reef.

[raoutd2511]

#3 - Women’s based organizations

Prompt:  If you were to conduct research as a graduated student with limitless resources (but you still require ethics approval!), describe your ultimate research project. What would be the focus (it could be anything!)? How might you propose it? Who might it benefit? Shine a light on "you" as a researcher a decade from now.

Answer: 

In 10 years, If I could conduct research on any topic with limitless resources I would be interested in looking at women's based organizations and the platform they provide for girls and women to thrive. I would be curious to look into the benefits and drawbacks of women’s only organizations and compare them to see if women’s only organizations are beneficial. I have been a member of Girl Guides of Canada since I was 5 and being a part of this organization has literally changed my life and it is where my passion lies. I think it would be interesting to compare this organization and the benefits it has on skill development and social interaction etc to a co-ed organization like Scouts Canada. (I have nothing against Scouts.) I would be interested to know why a parent might choose to put a daughter into a Women’s only organization vs. a co-ed organization. 

How might you propose it? This would definitely be qualitative research as it would look at women in their 20’s who were a part of various organizations as youth and it would analyze their personal experiences, thoughts and opinions. I am not 100% sure how to address this topic in an academic fashion without creating a lengthy study like the example we discussed in class where the same people were checked on every 7 years or so. This could either be done following youth into adulthood and they describe their different experiences and what they were exposed to and it could be followed and track what they got out of that organization. Or it could be approached to just go and ask people once they are adults what extracurricular activities they participated in as youth and they think whether it was co-ed or female only made a difference. 

Who might it benefit? This research might benefit the organizations themselves as it may provide feedback and ideas on how they can better their organization and the impacts individuals are getting out of being a part of them. It may benefit parents as they could clearly see the pros and cons of different types of organizations to choose to enroll their children into. This could potentially lead into research regarding gender equality and opportunities for children of different genders. 

My thought process behind this topic was regarding what different types of skills or social interactions are learned specifically for girls from a co-ed situation (ie like a classroom) to a girls only organization (like a girls only ballet class etc.) Does an adult supervising and mentoring a program like this change the way they teach or lead depending on the demographic - most often yes, so how does this change with all women vs all men vs. coed. 

This is a broad topic and I know I did not specifically narrow it down within this post and it has evolved as I have written, which I think is what is supposed to happen when you are writing a research paper as you find more resources you narrow your topic.

[tcoutd2511]

Im not good at titles

If I were to conduct research on any topic I would choose to research the health stats and differences of those who eat meat and those who are vegan. I’m interested in this topic because I have found that there is always a huge debate on who is the so-called “healthiest” and both parties tend to have strong opinions supporting their side which also comes off as defensive. There really is no definition on what makes someone “healthy”. People may seem to have similar body structures but medical reports are not the same, so who’s to say what makes an individual healthier than another. The sole purpose of this research would genuinely be out of curiosity as to who is more satisfied with their choice of lifestyle.  

I have seen through the media the ever changing standards as to what we should be putting into our bodies. It changes so frequently and everyone thinks they know everything which is what makes this an interesting topic to me.  When conducting this research topic I would focus on how the foods we eat affect our mood and activity levels and how that plays out in day to day lives. Do those who eat meat feel more sluggish throughout the day? Do those who are vegan have better habits embedded in their routines? These are just 2 examples of questions I could ask while researching this topic. There are many ways to conduct research on this, long term or short term. Since it’s in my hands I would make this a long term project, starting from age 16 maybe, and spanning it to 3-5 years later. I would choose this timeframe because I find it an appropriate age where individuals start making changes to their lives that they feel would benefit them and ultimately start coming to terms with how they want to live their lives. Participants would be asked to complete weekly surveys and partake in check ups like checking heart rate, blood pressure etc. They would be asked to keep track of how many calories they have taken in throughout the week, grams of protein etc. As well as keeping track of how much physical activity they had in the week, how they felt after eating a meal, how sustainable is their lifestyle financially, was the choice of eating habits easy to maintain and if they found they were faced with any barriers. The participants themselves would preferably have close to the same body structure and same stats in attempt for the research to be done on an even playing field. For research to be completed at the end of the term there would have to be set standards in order to define which participant benefitted the most from their lifestyle.

[raoutd2511]

Hi Taylor, 

I really like your idea for a research topic. When I was in high school I wrote a paper with a similar content asking why people choose to be vegetarian and how it affected their life. I think it is also important to look at other factors that are just health benefits like religious rules and beliefs that cause people to choose different dietary options. This is a strong topic around what people believe to be “the healthiest diet” and way to live. I have heard a few people discuss how when they made the change to being plant based/vegan/vegetarian it truly did make a difference in their everyday life. I would be curious to know if this is actually true. I also think it is unfortunate that alternatives to regular products are more expensive and sometimes inaccessible. Financially is also a barrier to look at if people can afford this lifestyle as it seems more expensive. I think the age demographic you are choosing to look at is interesting because I feel like around 16 people start to make their own decisions around what they might consume. 16-30 is a big range and I think it makes a lot of sense for this study because it is when people start making their own decisions because they are no longer living at home, want to try something new or are influenced by peers, media etc to try something else. Personally wanted to be a vegetarian when I was in high school but my parents would not cater to that opinion unless I wanted to cook all my own meals and grocery shop for myself. Overall, I really like your topic and it is a really interesting area of study especially since health food is so much of a current event. 

Rachel 

[mrpoutd2511]

Agafia Lykov and the Siberian Wilderness

Case Study 

“Surviving in the Siberian Wilderness for 70 Years” is a short documentary created by VICE in 2013 for their Far Out series sponsored by North Face. It follows the Lykovs, most specifically Agafia Lykov, in her life in the Siberian Sayan mountains. In this documentary: we learn about her family’s past, her everyday life, and the “encroaching influence of the outside world.”

Research Techniques 

In this documentary, qualitative research techniques have been used. The idea of searching for meaning and rejecting science is present throughout Agafia’s story in the same way it is in qualitative research. The researchers spend most of the time interviewing Agafia, but she also gives an oral history of her family and how they wound up in the Siberian wilderness.

Invisible Backpack 

The researcher’s invisible backpack is not something that is directly referred to in this documentary. However, things that may have gone into it include: 

Financing through North Face 

Ability to have air transport to fly in and out

The researcher and crew are men

Ethical Considerations 

Ethical considerations in this documentary include:

Physical harm (caused to the participant through disease)

Emotional Harm

How does this benefit Agafia?

What is the benefit of this research?

The researchers address the benefit to Agafia issue by bringing her livestock animals from the city. Not much thought is given to Agafias emotional health; she recounts potentially traumatic experiences a few different times, e.x., upsetting experiences with her neighbour and the death of her family members. It is not clear to the audience what has been done to protect Agafia from physical harm caused by potential disease (if anything has been done).

My Approach 

I would have approached this research assignment by focusing more on Agafias day-to-day lifestyle and less on events that may have been traumatic for her, like the death of her family and her bad experiences with her neighbour.

Ethical considerations I would have taken note of in this situation include:

Physical harm

Emotional harm

How does this benefit Agafia?

To address the potential physical harm caused to Agafia, I would maintain physical distance from her and employ health protocols (like masks) to ensure the crew doesn’t compromise her health. To address the emotional harm that may be caused to Agafia by discussing traumatic event’s I would ask questions regarding positive aspects of her life. 

During the documentary, I felt like I didn’t quite understand what the point of it was supposed to be this may have been due to the short amount of time the crew was with Agafia. To fix this, I would have tried to focus on a more specific aspect of Agafias life instead of talking about many different things in a vague surface-level way.

Reference

VICE. 2013. Surviving in the Siberian Wilderness for 70 Years. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tt2AYafET68

[raoutd2511]

Hi Molly, 

I really liked your post this week. I liked how it is short and to the point but still included all the key details. I think your post is very well laid out and easy to read. It was super convenient for me to understand your key points! 

I really liked the point you made in the purpose of the video of  “encroaching influence of the outside world” because this is true. Especially as this becomes more and more popular I fear more people will want to go and see Agafia’s lifestyle or it could potentially become a fad to go live in the Siberian Wilderness, etc. I agree with many of the points you made and I wonder about the ethical considerations of the film team being all men and how much this impacted the overall outcome of the documentary. I also agree that there were many times I did not understand the point of the documentary because they were there for such a short period of time, what did they accomplish?. 

I really like that you would choose to focus on more positive aspects of her life because I felt much of that documentary was doom and gloom or that was the way it was made out to look. I think it would be more important to focus on the positive part of her life because obviously she has lived a hard and challenging life filled with trauma that we have absolutely no idea how she is processing. 

Overall, I really enjoyed this post and the points you made, I kind of feel bad for Agafia and I still have so many questions.

-Rachel