Issues Faced in Collecting Samples and Data for a Multicultural Study - Research Paper Example

? Research Methodology Issues faced in collecting samples and data for a multicultural study Introduction Psychology as a science has been defined asa study of human behavior, thought and emotion. Although this definition is meant to apply to all human beings, the data actually used to develop theories of human functioning has often been restricted to certain communities (Ember & Ember, 2009). Although this was not considered an important issue to begin with, over time it became apparent that these theories were flawed in that they did not take cultural and situational factors into account. The context in which a behavior is observed can play a very important role in the way that behavior is manifest, and many of the earlier theories did not include caveats for these factors (Diller, 1999). In order to rectify these lapses in psychological research, a number of researchers have attempted to collect and use data from persons of diverse backgrounds in order to develop a more comprehensive understanding of human functioning and to understand the role that context and culture play in the way people respond to situations (Nagayama-Hall & Barongan, 2001). While the numbers of research papers in multicultural psychology are on the rise, a number of these researchers are faced with problems in different aspects of conducting research (Mio, Barker, Tumambing, 2011). Some important issues are related to the measurement instruments used and the process of obtaining representative samples from different populations. Problems faced by researchers Instruments used to record responses and collect data for multicultural research often pose significant problems to researchers (Ember & Ember, 2009). In a traditional research context, the concerns related to instruments are most often about the reliability, validity and practicality of the instrument for a given study. Many researchers spend considerable time and effort to develop scales, tests and other instruments that are best suited for the large scale data collection that many studies demand (Nagayama-Hall & Barongan, 2001). But when doing multicultural research, the researcher is faced with fresh problems over and above these. Often, the different communities being studied may speak different languages. Many instruments can lose their psychometric properties when loosely translated into a different language (Mio, Barker, Tumambing, 2011). Researchers have to use techniques like translations and back-translation simply to make the question of the instrument understandable to the participants (Ember & Ember, 2009). Even when this is done, it becomes necessary to reestablish the psychometric properties of the translated instrument. Often, questions can use culturally relevant motifs and phrases that could mean nothing to a person from a different culture. At times, simple translation could dramatically alter the meaning of a question if cultural context is not considered (Ember & Ember, 2009). This would hinder the participants from being able to provide adequate responses. This has been seen with the development of intelligence tests. Children from non white-American families were found to score lower on intelligence tests due to the cultural context in which many items would be delivered. This caused children of African origin to score lower on these tests till material that was culturally relevant to them was used (Mio, Barker, Tumambing, 2011). It is thus evident that an instrument used to collect data from participants of different cultures needs to be either culture free or to be presented in the relevant cultural context to the different participants. Sometimes, the cultural norms can significantly affect the kind of responses a participant will provide. For example, while some cultures encourage frank feedback, others discourage saying anything negative about certain groups of persons. While some cultures encourage the use of facial expressions and hand gestures to aid verbal communication, other cultures emphasize the lack of these mannerisms (Nagayama-Hall & Barongan, 2001). When the variables being studied are such that there can be significant cultural differences between groups on these variables, the data being collected could be affected by these factors (Ember & Ember, 2009). At such times, it is important to factor in the context in which the data is being collected before interpreting it. Thus, a researcher is required to not only understand the particular context in which the data is being collected, but also the way in which this context could affect the data (Ember & Ember, 2009). Collecting samples is another area in which a multicultural researcher faces considerable challenges (Diller, 1999). Even in the most homogenous of circumstances, it can be difficult to practice data collection procedures that allow the researcher to collect a genuinely representative sample. The researcher has to choose a sampling technique that is best suited to the conditions in which the participants are available (Mio, Barker, Tumambing, 2011). Often, the multicultural researcher tries to collect data from different groups that reside in significantly different places. This makes it difficult to gain access to and interact with participants who are representative of their populations (Ember & Ember, 2009). Often, researchers may collect data from a sample they believe to be representative or may not be able to access participants whose responses would make the data truly representative of the group. Sometimes, when the study spans different states of countries, it may be difficult to use a generic technique like postal addresses or unique identification numbers to choose participants (Diller, 1999). Even if this were possible, it can be physically difficult or impracticable to reach out to participants living in remote or difficult to access locations. Participants from different cultures could also be suspicious of the researcher or have reasons for declining from participating. These reasons could range from cultural notions of propriety, ambivalence about the research or the researcher, inability of the researcher to fully communicate the research goals or the participants’ inability to understand them (Ember & Ember, 2009). At such times, using random sampling procedures may not be an option to a researcher with realistic constraints of time, human resources and finances. A researcher may then use less ideal techniques like availability sampling and purposive sampling to draw a sample. Thus, the multicultural researcher may often be faced with a situation in which they are unable to collect truly representative data and have to base their conclusions on data collected using less than ideal sampling procedures. Conclusion Situations like these can truly affect the quality of the research being conducted. Data collected with non-equivalent tools can become difficult to compare and can lead to errors in drawing conclusions. On the other hand, the difficulties inherent in establishing equivalence of instruments used can be a very daunting process that can deter the conduction of multicultural research (Ember & Ember, 2009). Often, using the exact same procedure to collect data may not be applicable to different cultures, and so the researcher has to struggle to establish equivalence of not only the tools, but also the procedure of data collection (Mio, Barker, Tumambing, 2011). The difficulties involved in collecting this data from a truly representative sample can also baulk many persons interested in conducting cross-cultural and multicultural research. In order for quality research to occur across different cultures, it is important to understand the differences and the similarities between these cultures to some extent (Mio, Barker, Tumambing, 2011). Careful examination of the studies conducted by indigenous researchers and thoughtful observation can provide cues to what would be the appropriate tools for collecting data and interacting with potential participants (Diller, 1999). Nevertheless, diligence and patience seem to be valuable attributes for a researcher attempting to study participants from different cultures simultaneously. References Diller, J.V. (1999). Cultural diversity: A primer for the human services. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Publishing Company. Ember, C.R. & Ember, M. (2009). Cross-Cultural Research Methods, (2nd Ed.). Lanham, U.K: Rowman Altamira. Mio, J.S., Barker, L.A. & Tumambing, J.S. (2011). Multicultural psychology: Understanding our diverse communities, (3rd ed.). New York: Oxford University Press. Nagayama-Hall, G.C. & Barongan, C. (2001). Multicultural psychology, (2nd ed.). Pennsylvania: Prentice hall. Read More