Sorority Rituals - Reflections On Rites of ... - Mari Ann Callais

After the pilot study, changes were made to the interview questions, as well as the some
modifications as to how I as a researcher needed to conduct the interviews. The only
recommendation that the students from the pilot study suggested that were not incorporated was
the participants should know one another prior to the interview. Due to timing and trying to not
select particular participants, it was difficult to know if they knew one another before the
interviews. The primary way to determine that factor would have been to interview only women
from the same chapter, and that was not the intent of the study. Room dynamics, interviewing
style, tape recording and labeling as well as organization of the demographic information was
improved following the pilot study. Questions on the USMPQ and the Interview Consent Form
were also modified.
Data Analysis
From these transcripts and field notes, I have looked for common themes to compare
similar thoughts to see if a pattern exists in any of the interviews. I conducted my analysis with
cross-case analysis, grouping together answers from the different participants to common
questions and analyzing different perspectives on central issues.
I began category construction following the recording of the first interview transcript and
the field notes collected in the study (Merriam, 1998). I took the field notes and began to make
notes on the date that was interesting and relevant to the study. I reviewed my field notes as well
as the demographic information that I had gathered about the first campus and the sororities on
that campus. I reviewed the university web site, recruitment books and brochures published by
the campus, rush/recruitment information published by the Panhellenic Council, and any
additional information that I could gather to get to know the campus and the sorority structure on
that campus. After working through the data that was collected, various categories emerged.
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