Conducting a Participatory Situation Analysis of.pdf - Global HIV ...

Example from the Field: Consent
Process
For an assessment of OVC in Zambia, the study
interviewer read the consent statement and the
psychosocial support person witnessed and signed
it in writing. No names were taken to ensure complete
anonymity of participants. Participants were
not given any financial or material incentives to
participate in the survey. Respondents were given
resource lists of organizations that existed in their
compounds or districts.
direct conversation spontaneously from one to another,
stopping to clarify comments or perhaps return to earlier
questions as needed to ensure that participants go as far
as they can with each topic. The topic guide also can
suggest follow-up questions for various possible responses
and examples of probes to elicit more in-depth information.
Stories or other scenarios, included in the topic
guide, can be presented to the group to stimulate ideas.
When probing, an interviewer encourages a respondent
to produce more information on a particular topic
without injecting his or her own ideas into the discussion.
The most common type of probing is to repeat
back to the respondent what she or he has said and ask
for more information or clarification. Another way to
probe is to use a culturally appropriate non-verbal signal
after being given some information, encouraging
the respondent to continue expanding his or her idea.
In some cultures, nodding or saying “uh-huh” are suitable
non-verbal signals.
Note-taking and tape-recording data
How data are documented is directly linked to their
trustworthiness; thus, great care must be taken when creating
and managing data files. An interaction can be
recorded via handwritten notes during or soon after it
happens, but audiotape recordings provide a more complete
account. Tape-recorded interviews (or their transcriptions)
make it possible for them to be reviewed by
others, who can then decide whether they would have
drawn the same conclusions. The comfort level of participants
must be considered when recording data, either by
hand or by tape-recording. To be ethical and to promote
participant involvement, the interviewer or moderator
should obtain agreement from the participants regarding
the use of a tape-recorder.
While tape-recorders are useful they should not be the
only data record for interviews and FGDs. The set of
notes that are generated by interviewers and assistant
moderators are also valuable data, and complement the
records of interviews or FGDs that are transcribed from
audiotapes. The interviewer must take note of key phrases,
major points made by the respondent, and key words
(indicated by quotation marks) that capture the speaker’s
own language. If, for some reason, a tape-recorder cannot
be used or if it malfunctions, detailed notes become even
more critical, especially notes of actual quotes. Capturing
what people say in their own words, along with related
non-verbal responses (especially when those responses
contrast with the verbal responses), are an important
Involving Young People in Data
Collection
When Save the Children/United Kingdom staff
conducted research on street children in
Bangladesh, they trained young people to conduct
the interviews.The findings aimed to generate
national debate among policymakers and stakeholders
regarding the vulnerability experienced by
these children. Lessons learned by engaging young
data collectors included:
• Young people brought fresh categories and
perceptions to the research.
• Data gathered were high quality and the findings
compared well with those of similar
research carried out by adults.
• Young respondents enjoyed being interviewed
by their peers.
• Young researchers were clearly able to raise
issues and ask questions in a way adults
could not.
• It was difficult to determine the right incentives
for the young people to take part.
• Discussion of sensitive issues (e.g., abuse
experienced) was challenging.
• Adult harassment of the children occurred
while carrying out the research.
Techniques such as Participatory Learning for
collecting information from children are presented
in the Save the Children document, Children and
Participation: Research, Monitoring and Evaluation
with Children and Young People, available at
www.savethechildren.org
Conducting a Participatory Situation Analysis of
Orphans and Vulnerable Children Affected by HIV/AIDS
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