Community protocols for researchers: using sketches to communicate interaction guidelines
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Community protocols for researchers: using sketches to communicate interaction guidelines Naska Goagoses1 · Heike Winschiers‑Theophilus2 · Tariq Zaman3 Received: 8 March 2019 / Accepted: 6 September 2019 © Springer-Verlag London Ltd., part of Springer Nature 2019
Abstract Reviews of research and development collaborations with indigenous communities have exhibited numerous challenges related to researcher–community interactions. Based on many accounts of indiscretions, indigenous communities have begun generating conduct guidelines for researchers. However, the effectiveness of their chosen communication methods, guaranteeing appropriate behavior of the researchers, has not been established. This research contributes to an ongoing debate around appropriate ethical conduct of researchers in situ. The aim of this study was to investigate the interpretation accuracy of interaction guidelines produced in the form of sketches by a Malaysian indigenous community. We provided eight interaction sketches to 57 students, in three continents, for interpretation and expression of their intended behavior. We found that most were unable to accurately interpret the sketches and describe intended behavioral responses. A major concern remains with the tendency to fall back on prior practices of “good” behavior, with minimal guidance on contextual practices. In an attempt to provide greater direction, we explored a speech bubble exercise with further 15 students. Our findings directly contribute to current efforts in formulating researcher–community interaction practices that should form the basis of ethical research in situ. Keywords Interaction protocols · Sketches · Indigenous communities · Misinterpretation · Communication · Ethics
1 Introduction Working with communities of a different cultural back‑ ground has shown to be a challenging endeavor, especially concerning the conceptualization and management of the collaboration itself. It has been acknowledged that the interaction with the community during the research process contributes to the success of the entire project. If the rela‑ tionship amongst the stakeholders is compromised, the pro‑ ject and the outcomes are in jeopardy (Vannini et al. 2017). An increasing number of reports confirm that researchers * Naska Goagoses [email protected] Heike Winschiers‑Theophilus [email protected] 1
Carl von Ossietzky University of Oldenburg, Ammerländer Heerstraße 114, 26129 Oldenburg, Germany
2
Namibia University of Science and Technology, 5 Jackson Kaujeua Street, Windhoek, Namibia
3
University College of Technology Sarawak (UCTS), Sibu, Sarawak, Malaysia
engaged with communities regularly find themselves in unfamiliar contexts and awkward situations, as the expected interactions and appropriate behaviors are often unclear to the parties involved. Researchers welcome behavioral guid‑ ance with the hope that these can assist the communication, acceptance, and project collaboration with communities. Yet generic guidelines recommended in the li
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