Who will analyze the data?
What strategies will be used to analyze it?

A range of scenarios are possible when trying to make sense of data. In some cases, researchers analyze and write up the data alone and submit it for feedback from community stakeholders. In other cases, community members themselves are trained to analyze data. Trust between the researcher and the community, which should be cultivated in small ways even before the project begins, is especially important during the analysis phase of the research.

Nobody likes to hear 'uncomfortable truths'; care should be taken so data are given sufficient attention during analysis, whether or not the community and the researcher "like" the results. For example, when CCUC worked with a community organization to find ways to better engage with community residents, researchers found that their organizational strategy wasn't focused adequately on the social and cultural assets of the area's growing Latino population-a critique that was difficult to present to the organization, which prided itself on being inclusive of all ethnic groups. Similarly, the community should speak up if the researcher's analysis seems to overlook something of major importance to the community.

Care should be taken to make sure research protocol is followed through every step of the process. Departure from procedure can invalidate conclusions, just as conflict of interest can undermine credibility.

If you want research done in your community, you should be open to learning something new and possibly unpleasant about the issue being researched.



Quick Tips PDF

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