One of the methods I want to use throughout the project is participant observation. In essence, watching. But with some very important ingredients thrown in. Firstly, as Charles Darwin notes at the very beginning of The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals, it’s more than just noticing what’s going on. It’s about observing things carefully. Secondly, participation. This is the key element. I’ve already decided on a participatory approach, hence why I will be pursuing some intensely qualitative methods, and participant observation can provide very insightful data. So how to participate in a garment factory in Sri Lanka?
Work there.
Initially I was led to believe that I would only be allowed to ‘cut thread’. Now, however, it would seem that the packing team are always enthusiastic for more people. Feeling chuffed at having been promoted!
On a serious note, there are considerations, such as language barriers and how I will be received by the other employees. I am hoping that by joining the women in the factory, some of whom will (hopefully) be participants in later research such as focus groups and participatory diagramming, I will be able to start building up a positive rapport with them and diminishing any constrictive power relations between us.
It will also provide me with an introduction to factory employment as they see it – the tasks performed during the day, the social interactions within the workplace, the attitudes towards one another and so on.
I hope that also, once it gets to holding participatory groups activities such as focus groups and participatory diagramming, there will be fewer barriers to communication, less uncertainty among the participants about who I am and what I am doing, and a more relaxed and familiar atmosphere.
Sri Lanka: A Research Project 