Markus Boyer
Qualitative Research
Dr. Kubal
12/19/18
Introduction
Qualitative research is a type of research that is both very interesting and very useful in the real world. In this type of research one learns how to observe a group, interact with them through face-to-face interviews, and dissect their group through data and social media. Through these three different platforms I have been able to examine the group that I chose. The group that I chose is a football team that is located in the Central Valley of California. The research that I was able to conduct on this group helped me not only learn much more about the group itself but also different tools that I will be able to talk with me beyond this project.
Literature Review
Symbolic Interactionist Theory is a very interesting topic and was discussed many times in this class and project. In one article Turner was trying to use the theories developed by other sociologists, and combine them to create his own theory so that he might "fill in the gaps" of Symbolic Interactionism. For example, Turner was trying to take the legacy left behind by Mead and combine that with the theories of Goffman to thus create his own theory of interaction. This essay will focus on the Goffman theories that were used and how they apply to the theories talked about on this day. .
In order to try and dissect the interactions of people with one another, Tuner started off by examining how Goffman looked at social situations and the theories he used. He explained that Goffman used 5 different dimensions to understand how social norms emerge. These dimensions include; categorization of persons and situation, use of appropriate forms of talk and body language, keying frames, enacting rituals to open, close, and form the flow of interaction, and the last is meeting expectations for the relevant emotions to be felt and expressed(Turner 332). Turner looked at how these micro level theories of Goffman could be expanded to create a macro level theory of interaction. For example in this article he used Goffman's idea of the 5 dimensions of an interaction to explain how status making and taking occurs. Goffman's theories helped Turner discover a bigger meaning to the interaction between people.
The main focus of these readings was to examine how Turner used theories presented by Goffman in the past to help solidify his own theories that he created. Goffman is being used as the cornerstone in this later researchers findings.
The next topic was based on analyzing and understanding how humans take on roles within society. The authors of the articles examined looked at how role taking and role making affect the lives of people within society, while also taking a closer look at what drives people to either role take or role make. These authors attempted to understand the underlying reasons for these specific actions in society, and in doing so they used many theories from sociologists of the past. One of the researchers they use was Erving Goffman.
In order to understand role taking/making better, the articles used theories of Goffman. They examined how Goffman talked about role embracement vs role distancing. According to Goffman, people engage in certain roles with either a strong conviction or with a detachment from that role. When people embrace their role, they play that specific role with a caring attitude that shows they want to be in that role. When people use role distancing, they play the role but instead of doing it well they instead seperate themselves from that role in order to not completely be associated with it. The reason these two aspects are very important is because they are in relation to role making and how humans react in social roles. Role making is explained as the innovation or adjustment that people use to define the role they are in at a given time. Humans will either decide to embrace the role they are in or distance themselves from that role. This will then show how they defined the situation. The theories that Goffman used to explain how people choose to react to their roles directly correlate to what the authors in this day were attempting to uncover through role making/taking.
The next topic was about the nature and significance of the self and how it affects society. The authors of these articles aimed to discover what the self is and how it affects the decision made by a person within society. Some of the main points made were how the self is a creation that comes from a person's relationship with others. Although the self is its own entity, it is shaped and transformed through the relationships that it comes in contact with in society. What this means is that people change and conform to those around them as well as the situations that they are in.
The authors also talked about how the self is both a social process and a social structure. They stressed the fact that interactionists over time have disagreed on whether or not the self is a process or a structure. The ones who believe it is more of a process are the dramaturgical theorists. They believe that the self actually is something that changes with the situation it is in. They lean towards the side of the self being a reaction to how a person defines a situation. According to these theorists the self is a changing and evolving entity that has no set in stone structure. On the other hand are the theorists who believed the self is a social structure. According to the authors those theorists believe that the self is shaped by your own personal self esteem and what a you truly think of yourself. This structure is what drives a person to act in a certain way, and it is not something that is shaped by society around them.
This day discussed the self and the different theories that pertain to how it is created. The authors of this article do not actually come up with a solid answer themselves, but instead use the ideas of different theorists to expand on the idea of the self.
The topics covered in the next readings had to do with how society creates these social norms that people follow. When the authors from these readings examined society, they saw how there really are not any set in stone laws that tell people how to react in a certain social situation. Instead, it is the theory of ethnomethodology that controls how people react in society. When someone comes into contact with another person, their are specific rules to follow in order to stay in line with society's norms. For example, when someone says "Hello how are you?", you react by saying "Good" and not giving them a long story about how your day is terrible. These are the "rules" of a societal conversation and they have been created by society itself.
The study of ethnomethodology also brings in a very interesting research technique that was examined on this day. This technique is known to theorists as a breaching experiment. This is when a researcher goes into society and does something that breaks a norm. What is examined is how people react to a societal norm being broken. All of the findings show that people do not react well to broken norms.
The final and one of the most interesting concepts examined thus far in this course is the Looking Glass Self concept which was created by Cooley. This concept is widely known in sociology and is a used to describe why people act the way they do in society. The reason this is such an interesting concept is because it goes against what is commonly believed. Instead of what a lot of people believe to be true which is that you create your own identity, the looking glass self concept states that your identity is actually shaped by the people around you. Cooley stated that people do not actually create their own identity but are instead conformed to the society they live in. According to this theory the persona that one has depends on the people they associate with.
This concept has both been accepted by theorists as well as rejected because of the controversial effect that it can. Either way it is a very interesting theory that has a lot of application to society.
Methods
In order to understand why certain methods are used in this research project, you must first understand the different sections of the project. In this methods section I will discuss the meaning of each section as well as the methods of research I used for that particular section.
Ethnography
The ethnography is one of the most important parts of a research project in qualitative methods. According to the book, what an ethnography accomplishes is being able to gain access into the group that you want to study, and then using specific tools once you are in the group. In order to make sure that the group you choose is suitable for you, the researcher must think about the accessibility, interest and the cost that being in this group will acquire(Warren/Karner 58). According the reading, every institution varies in the way in which it can be accessed. What this is considered is the entree of your group(Warren/Karner 63). The entree of the group you are trying to get in is not just a one time event that either lets you in or does not, on the contrary is is a series of events and specific qualities that end up with you being apart of the group that you chose. For example, in order to properly get into the group you must know how the group dresses, what the group talks about, and even who the groups gatekeepers are. These are all different aspects of this ethnographic experience that can give you access and information to your group. However, some researchers choose a different route in their ethnography. These researchers go with what they "already know" and choose a group that they are already apart of(Warren/Karner 60).. This makes the ethnographic process much easier because it gives the researcher the ability to already be in the group. No matter which way a researcher chooses, the researcher must always make sure their presentation of self is correct. Like what was talked about before, this includes how they dress all the way to how they talk. This can also mean the researcher acting in different ways, such as the mascot, apprentice, or dancing daughter(Warren/Karner 80). These are different example of how researchers choose their roles and status is that group. This then leads to the process of writing fieldnotes which is self explanatory. This is the process of creating the notes that come from your experience with the group that you choose. These are all example of the ethnographic experience that sets up the rest of your research.
Ethnography(Methods)
For my research project I chose to study a college football team in the Central Valley of California. In this research I will be examining both the players and the coaches and how they interact with one another. The reason that I chose the football team is because I already have an in with the team due to the fact that I am on the team myself. In order to conduct this study I had to make sure that I took myself out of the role of a football player and put myself into the strict role of an observationalist. This was very fun for me to do because I was able to seperate myself from the team and instead sit back and examine the team dynamics. The goal of this research project is to analyze how players interact with one another as well as how they interact with the coaches and vice versa.
The place that I conducted my research was in the dining hall of the football team. The reason that I chose this place is because it is an indoor-outdoor facility and it gave me the ability to examine the whole time in decent time period. I spent two separate days here doing this observation, with the total time being about three hours and fifteen minutes. The reason that I chose two separate days is because I wanted to dedicate one day to thick description and one day to strictly theories. The theories that I am using for this project are front stage backstage, definition of a situation, meaningful action, and statuses and roles. In this research I used mostly observation but I also used some participant observation as well.
Interviews
Interviewing is a very fun and interesting part of research that is by far the most interactive part of doing a project. In order to conduct a proper interview there are a few things that need to be done. One of the first things that needs to happens is the researcher must choose a research question(s). This is vital because without this research question the researcher has no backbone to base the interview off of(Warren/Karner 124). After choosing the research question begins the actual process of starting to get ready for a interview. In order to do this the researcher must design interview questions as well as prompts and probes(Warren/Karner 126). The interview cannot happen without well built interview questions that are created before the interview starts. These question can then guide the interviewer as they go along with their interview. This also helps with keeping the interest of the interviewee. The prompts and probes are their to help give the interviewer the ability to build off of the questions that they ask and keep the interviewee engaged. In order to conduct an interview that is appropriate their also must be complete anonymity connected to the interview(Warren/Karner 158). This also means that the interview must happen in a place that is private but where people can also see so that it is not inappropriate. In order to stay out of trouble the interviewer must also keep their emotions out of the interview(Warren/Karner 157). What this means is the interviewer must be able to connect with the interview without actually incorporating any personal opinion of what the respondent is saying. Keeping these personal emotions out of an interview is key to making sure that the interview both runs smoothly and is appropriate. These are all the different aspects of an interview that make it worthwhile and an interview that is done correctly.
Interviews(Methods)
The methods for the interview section of the project required more attention to detail then the previous section did. The reason being is because in order to complete these interviews I had to have both the consent of the interviewee while also finding an appropriate place to conduct the interviews. It also took more preparation to perform the task because of the fact that I had to create an interview guide before each of the personal interviews. The place that I found which was perfect to conduct my interviews was in the athletic meal room that is available for all student athletes. The reason this was a perfect spot to conduct my interviews is because it has a space that is both open because of the glass windows around it while slow being a very quiet set that not to many people come in and out of. This was the perfect spot to do my interviews because it provided appropriate public view while also giving us a quiet space have a clan interview. This was a task that took some time to finish but once I was able to find this perfect place it was easy to conduct the interviews,
The other part of this section was preparing for each interview. In order to do this I created interview guides that were able to smoothly walk me through each interview. Not only did they help me get through the interviews without too many hiccups, but they also created a more serious and professional environment while interviewing which made the respondent feel more important. These guides were vital to my success in doing these interviews. The last part of this project was using the correct device to record the interview. In order to do this I used the app created by my professor. This application was a able to provide me with solid transcript that did not require too much revising.
Content Analysis
Content analysis is probably the most pivotal part of a research project. The reason it is so important is because without the content analysis the data would not make sense and would not go together. The sources that can be used to create a content analysis can be magazines, articles, or even historical documents(Warren/Karner 176). These as well as many others are sources that can help a researcher create this content analysis that can bring together their research. Images are also something that can be used in this section of research. Images are used to help construct a more understandable content analysis and to connect the dots between specific research. According to the reading the next step in content analysis is data analysis and description. This is where the researcher is able to break down the data that they have found and make it something that can be portrayed to the reader(Warren/Karner 219). What this includes is analyzing field notes from the ethnography as well as transcripts from the interviews. The researcher takes these different forms of data and creates the content analysis from them. In order to make this content analysis something that is worthwhile the researcher then needs to find related themes in their research and link them(Warren/Karner 231). This process is what is used to create a good content analysis that is able to take data from the research of a group and put it together to make it something that a reader can understand. The content analysis is the backbone of the research that creates a project that can be put together in a understandable way.
Content Analysis(Methods)
As was already discussed in the previous section, the methods of the content analysis required a few different strategies. The first part of the method of this section was to find the data that was fit to use and had relation to the program that is being studied. In order to do that for my content analysis, I went through many different articles that had to do with my program. I was also able to pull out different information from social media outlets that had to do with the team that I am studying. Finding this information was not difficult because I am studying a program that is very well known in the Central Valley Area. In order to find these documents I used the internet and searched the program. This then gave me the ability to find many different sources that gave me the chance to build a strong analysis off of. The social media platforms were also very useful because they not only provided information on the team that I am studying but they also provided comments from fans and other people that can be used. The information that I gathered was very useful for my content analysis.
Analysis
Ethnography(Analysis)
Thick Description
The thick description that I did was very interesting for this observation. I saw many different things that caught my attention throughout this research. What I was able to see and observe was what was going on in the lunch that I attended. I saw the specific way that the players dressed for this lunch, the decorations and arrangements that were apart of the lunch, and even the quality of the food itself that was being eaten.
"What I see is a lot of young men that are tired and seem like they did not have much energy left. I can see that some players have showered after practice and some have not. This is probably the first thing that I noticed while doing my observation. The reason it was easy to notice is because when a player would walk by me I would either smell them and it would be bad or it would not it would be good and many of them did not smell too good."
This here is a snippet of the thick description that I did. In this section I am describing how the players are dressed while I was doing my observation. What I saw was that some of the players had showered for the meal, while some had not, and this was something that was very easy to tell. During this observation and my thick description I was also able to come to some other findings as well. I was able to see how the tables were decorated and aligned with specific condiments and things to make the meal better. I was also able to analyze and see how there were coaches and players at the lunch but how they were usually at separate tables and not with one another. Another thing that I found in my thick description was how there were academic staff at the lunch that seemed to be helping the players with academic stuff while they were eating their lunch. It was very interesting to see how this lunch was not only used to feed the players but also to help them with their academic success. I was also able to use this thick description to describe how the players and coaches interacted with one another.
"Another thing that I noticed from the players is that many of them sit on their phones while they eat lunch. I tried to examine how they interact with one another as they are together with their friends and much of the time they are on their phones staring at something such as Instagram or some other type of social media. As I am sitting here there are four players next to me eating their lunch and all four of them are on their phones not talking to each other as if they are not even there."
This quote shows how during my thick description I was able to analyse how and why the players in the room were and sometimes were not interacting with one another. The thick description that I was able to do during this observation was very in depth and a great way to provide a backbone to my research.
FrontStage-BackStage
The first theory that I used to analyze the Fresno State football team was frontstage and backstage. This was a very important theory studied in class and was one that I wanted to use for my project. This theory was very apparent on the football team and did not take my long to see.
"Sitting next to me was a group of running backs eating with each other and talking about life. They were discussing some things that I cannot say in my essay but as they were discussing these things their coach came in the front door to get some lunch. They were discussing some things that were not the most appropriate and as soon as their coach came in and saw them they changed what they were talking about."
As can be seen from this quote it was very easy to spot the frontstage and backstage during my observation. The players acted much different when the coaches were around compare to when they were not. This clearly shows that the theory is alive and well on the football team.
"When the coaches were around their players they seemed to be more professional and talk to their players with more Authority. When their players left the facilities after eating their lunch they acted much differently. When I saw two coaches talking to each other versus a coach talking to a player the conversations were dramatically different."
This quote shows another very clear idea of the theory of frontage and backstage. While I was there even the coaches acted different among each other then they did with the players. This proved that even the leaders are putting on a face in order to keep the organization running the way it is.
" I also saw how some of the players made sure to thank the cook's when in front of their coaches. This could have been to make themselves look more thankful in front of their coaches or just because they were genuinely thankful but either way I saw many of the players do it in front of their coaches."
This quote again shows how the players and coaches alike put on a certain face while they are around each other. This face might not be completely true or pure but it is one that they must use in order to keep a certain appearance up while they are around one another.
Statuses and Roles
The second theory that I used to analyze my group was that of the roles and statues of the individuals apart of this group. What I found was that the coaches held the status and role of being the leaders, while the players were the followers.
"Coaches on this team had the role and status of being in the authority while the players on this team had the role and status of being underneath the coaches. This could be seen by the way the coaches spoke to the players and by the players talked about the coaches. When coaches spoke to players I saw that they spoke to them with authority and Leadership."
The coaches automatically earned the right to hold the status of being in charge in this group. The players seemed to compete respect that and go along with it like it was completely natural.
"When the players talked about their coaches they talk about them as if they were above them and higher than the status that they carried. This proves that the statuses and roles on this team are predetermined and very existence. Coaches, like I said are in authority over the players."
This is yet another quote that shows how these statuses and roles were held up while I observed the group. What I saw was that these were held u as the standard of the group and that they were not going to change at all. These statuses and roles seemed to be set in stone and not something that would change.
"There are also statuses and roles that I saw among the players themselves. I saw how some players acted as if they had more authority than others. This could have been because those players got more playing time than the others or just because they thought they were better but each player that I saw seemed to have their own status that they thought they controlled. Whether it be the captains or the people that did not play every one of the players seem to hold a certain role and status."
This was the last and probably most interesting thing I found about the status and roles. I saw that the players had their own hierarchy of roles within themselves. It looked as if the captains and people that played viewed themselves as higher than those that did not, and the others seemed to believe it. It was almost as if the general statuses and roles that the cpchaes had seeped their way into the way the players thought of each other as well. This was very interesting to find.
Definition of a Situation
The theory of defining a situation was on that was also not hard to see during my time observing the football Program. What I found was that coaches and players alike seemed to define the situation in a very similar way.
"I saw was that coaches and players alike defined the situation as a stress-free environment although sometimes the coaches brought in slightly more stress and authority. Most of the time they talked and acted as if the situation was easy going."
What I saw here was that the people in the group defined the lunch I was at as a very laid back and relaxed environment. It was not seen as the stressful environment that practice might have been but instead a much more chill mood.
"The players very much so defined the situation as a relaxed environment where they could be themselves and hang with their friends while they ate. This definition of a situation seem to carry over for mostly everyone that entered the room to eat their lunch."
As I said before the situation was defined by most in the same way. Because it was a time to eat goghet players and coaches saw it as a time also to mingle with one another and interact in a non football related way.
"Some coaches when seeing certain players would change their mood and define the situation as one that was more important. This was the time in which the player would listen to them. This then resulted in the player being more attentive to the coach. This was another example of how defining a situation can change the way people act."
This was the most interesting part of the observation. Seeing the way that people changed their definition of a situation was remarkable. When a coach would come in and act more stern or authoritative, players would immediately re-define their situation and act in a completely different matter. This was very cool to see how people change the way they define a situation based on how other act.
Meaningful Action
This was by far the hardest theory for me to observe while doing my research. The reason was that with the situation I was in their weren't very many instances of people using meaningful action.
"Some of the times that I did see this was when players or coaches made sure to thank the people that cooked the meal they were eating. This showed me meaningful action because the players and coaches were trying to be thankful and kind to the people that prepare their food."
This was one of the cases where I saw meanogul action being used. Players and coaches went out of their way to show gratitude to the people that made their food and this showed a use of meaningful action.
"I also saw meaningful action when looking at how people interacted with one another. I saw meaningful action when certain players went out of their way to go say hi or sit with another player or one of their coaches."
This was another instance where I saw meangul action. Some of the players would go out of their way to say hello or greet another one or maybe even their coach. This to me showed meaningful action. Other than that I did not find much meant action in the observing that I did. This will definitely be a theory that I will need to continue to dig into to dine more evidence within my group.
Interviews(Analysis)
FrontStage/Backstage
The first topic that I dove into during my interviews was that of frontstage and backstage. This is a theory that was discussed in class and was very interesting to learn about within this program.
"Yes the coaches are very influential in the sense that when they are present the players trying to gain the approval of the coach. When the players are not around the coaches they will be more immature and say things that are not as proper."
One of the main facts that I learned about this program is that the coaches have a major influence on how the players act. According to the respondents, players act much differently when around coaches versus when they are not. The respondent described how the players will clean up their act and act more proper when the coaches are present. This clearly shows how front stage and backstage work on the team.
"I would say it's a little bit of both. Typically I like to show more respect to older people but it is just part of sports and sports require you to respect the coaches that you have.
There's definitely that aspect of wanting to impress them and make yourself look good when you are around you want to be respectful and be smart."
Another thing that I found is that the plays seem to want to impress the coaches when they are around. According to the respondents when the coaches are not around everyone is relaxed and is themselves, however when they are around the guys seem to try and impress the coaches in any way they can. This again shows the aspect of frontstage and backstage very clearly. There is a very clearly defined difference between players acts in front of and when they are not around the coaches.
"Yes all the time guys who are on scholarship will have different relationships with those that are not on scholarship. The Walk-Ons get treated like crap by a players compared to those that are on scholarship. Because those are on scholarship have this entitlement they feel the need to weed out the walk-on players on behalf of the coaches."
I also found that one of the interviewers believed that some players treat the walk one much different than the guys that are on scholarship. This would go to show another very interesting area of frontage and backstage on the team, but this time it has to do with how the players interact with one another. This program appears to be full of frontage and backstage aspects that really impact how the team works.
Statuses and Roles
The next theory that I researched during these interviews is that of statuses and roles. This was another theory that showed up a lot during the interviews.
"I think that the other players believe there is a hierarchy and that the coaches believe that they have more power and ability to say something to a player without having the player being able to say anything back. However in retrospect I think the players do not like the hierarchy because they want to be on the same playing field as the coaches and be treated the same way."
As can be seen from this quote there is a very striking example of statuses and roles in this program. according to this interviewee the coaches are seen as being much more powerful than the players and this hierarchy plays itself out on the team. This seems to be the opinion of one of the respondent but not all of them.
"That's a really good question and I think that I had to do with the individual coach himself. I like to believe that our program here and that they really care for us and Believe in Us.
I think they really care for the program and they are there for every step of the way. They're on the field with us every day and they do all the stuff to help prepare us. I definitely think that most of the coaches and our program lead by example and have a lot of leadership qualities to them. I would say it's more of that aspect than it is."
According to this respondent there seems to be a more healthy relationship between the two. This shows that the statues and roles are more even and not as one sided as the other respondent was stating. This can really depend on the opinion of the person talking.
"Ya I would say that the players have their own statuses and roles as well. The players that start are the guys that seem to have more leadership and so on, while the captions chosen by the coaches are the ones who run the team"
This quote shows that not only is there a relationship of statuses and roles with the players and coaches but also with just the players as well. The players have their own form of a hierarchy that plays out on the team. this was very interesting to learn about as well. These statuses and roles play out in all sorts of ways in this program.
Definition of a Situation
This was another theory that I was able to look into while doing my interviews. What I found was also very interesting.
"It seems like a lot of the situations that we are in are very dependent on how the coaches are acting. I feel like days are defined by how the coaches choose to define them. If they are hoary it will be a good day and if they are not then it won't."
This quote shows that the definition of situations in this program are very dependent on what the coaches are doing. What this respondent told me was that the days are defined by how the coaches choose to define them.
"I think that is far as an ideal situation and what you want is you want the players to be the ones that are defining the situation. You want the players to have high energy and help each other get better. It's not going to be like that every day but you hope it to be.
Sometimes the coaches do have to be the ones that get a little pep in the player step and get the practice going. I think the coaches hope that the players are the ones defining the situation rather than them having to do it but there are days when you are in the middle of the Season there is wear and tear and sometimes you do not get that energy and the coaches have to take over."
However, according to this respondent, the situation is something that should be defined by the players but is not always. These situations are supposed to be defend by the players themselves but instead the coaches end up doing it most of the time.
"I would say it is on the positive end and is a very playful thing. I would not say that anybody has a negative outlook or tries to get anybody mad. It is a locker room though and some debates may get a little heated. Other than that it is more of a positive vibe that is very chill most of the time."
Another very interesting fact that I learned was how the locker room situation is defined. What I found was that it is defined as a place that is very relaxed and used as more of a hangout than anything. This was another great thing to learn about how the situations are defined on the team.
Meaningful action
This was a tougher topic to try and dig into during my interviews. However I did find some good information on this theory. I also found some polar opposite opinions on the meaningful action within this program.
"It is definitely more building up because the coaches are there to teach and critique two players and I do not see many coaches in our program that break players down a lot. But the coaches will tell you what you need to hear. But I would say that the relationship is much more positive."
According to this respondent the coaches are ones that show a lot of very positive meaningful action. They seem to be ones that build the players up and help create a positive environment. Their meaningful actions are to help the players in any way they can. This goes against what another respondent said.
"The coaches are very negative and they want to critique everything at an abnormal rate. They are being pressured beyond our understanding so they react in a very pressuring way."
This respondent said that the coaches are very negative. This would show that their actions are meaning negative things rather than positive. This was very interesting to see.
"I think that when it comes to the coaches actions, they are humans. Sometimes they act in positive ways to help the players while other times they can be more negative. This is how anyone is though it is human nature."
This respondent was more of a middle man when it came to meaningful action. They believed that the coaches could be either or and this was very interesting to see. All in all this theory showed up in a few different way during these interviews.
"The coaches are very negative and they want to critique everything at an abnormal rate. They are being pressured beyond our understanding so they react in a very pressuring way. Interviewer: Okay well that makes a lot of sense. We're wrapping up here last thing I want to ask you is are you excited about your next year here your senior year."
This shows the total opposite view of meaningful action on the team. This respondent talked about how negative the coaches are and how they do nothing but break the players down. This goes against what the other two respondents talked about. That is why meaningful action was both a difficult and yet very intriguing topic to discuss with my respondents.
Feelings Towards Team
This was actually the first topic that I touched on in my interviews was to get a feeling of how the person felt about their team in general. I wanted to ask this because it would give me more insight into why they answer certain questions they way they would. I thought this would be a good way to get a overall feeling of the person before I actually had to hear what they wanted to say.
"Yes I do I get along with most of my teammates however there are some I do not tend to see eye-to-eye with."
This was one of the respondents reaction to the question that I asked. Although they did not talk much at all in the interview I could get a feeling by this first answer that they might be slightly more negative towards their team then the others. This could then affect some of their other answers.
"I definitely enjoy my team and the comrodority that we have. Although you do not always get along with everyone which is apart of of life, I enjoy most of my teammates most of the time. It is a good team filled with many good guys and coaches."
As you can see from this respondent the seem to enjoy their team more than the other. Even though they aren't always getting along with their teammates they seemed to have good things to say about them.
"Well I definitely get along with most of my team. They are mostly all good guys that really care about each other. With the sport that we play and how it can be kind of rough at times it can be stressful. The guys I have on my team have a lot of character and integrity. The experiences that we share with each other and all the things we go through together definitely bring us together as teammates. I do not feel like I need to impress anybody but instead I feel like I can be myself with my teammates and just hang out."
This was the most positive respondent that I had to this question. They seemed like they really enjoyed their teammates and got along with all of them. This was by far the most positive person when it came to this topic and the questions that I asked.
Content Analysis(Analysis)
Frontstage/Backstage
This was the first topic that I wanted to dive into for my content analysis paper. After working with data and looking at subjects such as framing and controlling images, I felt as if a lot of that information fit into the topics that I have already been discussing throughout this whole research project.
"This team has done nothing but work hard. We know that from day one it is all wabbit us and what we do behind closed doors. I could not be any more proud of my ******** because I know that we have put the work in when nobody's looking and because of that we are reaping the rewards."
What this quote shows was a very strong representation of this idea of front stage and backstage. The person that said this quote was stating that this team works hard when no one is looking, and this shows that the idea of frontstage and backstage apparent on the team.
"The ****** ***** football team is a team that knows how to work. When we did our video report on the team in the summer, we filmed the team during their summer workouts. This is when the coaches are not around and all we saw was a group of young that werk hard no matter who is looking. This is something that stood out to us as a staff and really made a mark on how we viewed this team."
This is another quote that shows the power of frontstage and backstage in the program I am studying. What we can see here is that the team is full of people that do not care about when the coaches are around, instead they work hard no matter what. This was a very interesting thing to read especially after some of my personal interviews said the opposite.
"I love the guys on my team. What we have accomplished so much this year and I am so thankful. We always have worked hard no matter what and I just think we have outworked our opponents, that is the bottom line."
It was slightly harder to see frontstage and backstage from this quote, but what I saw that that the team is always working hard and it does not matter who is around. Just like the other quotes, this one had to do with work ethic and related to the idea of frontstage and backstage within the program.
Statuses and Roles
This was a very easy topic to find in the research that I did. It was easy because in may interviews the players and coaches are talking about each other and the roles that guys have on the team. The first quote that I found did just that.
""He's been literally everything we've needed in a quarterback-a strong leader on this team," said *** *******. But his journey to the top was anything but a sure thing."
This quote shows one of the players talking about his teammates. This was interesting because he is talking about his teammates being a leader on the team. What this showed me is that someone on the team that is highly touted such as the quarterback, is one of the guys that is a leader in the program. This gave a glimpse to where the roles of players might be.
"It kind just-yeah that's me, so it's a great feeling knowing that people are watching me and I have a chance to be a role model,"
This was another quote that showed the statuses and roles of the players on the team. This players is talking about the role that he has in the community. This showed that not only are their these roles within the program, but the players also have these specific roles outside in the moral community.
"What I have seen from Coach ******* is a man that is not only a leader but also a father figure. He is always there for us and he loves us like sons. This just makes us want to work even harder for the guy."
This final quote was very interesting and showed the status and role of a coach in this program. What is showed was that the players view their coach as someone who cares for them and their wellbeing. This may not always be the case but was very interesting to read about.
Meaningful Action
This was a topic that was not that easy to discover when doing my observations and interviews, but I was able to find some very interesting things when uncovering the data for the content analysis.
"Ya there is not many like him, **** **** said. Coach ******* is a man that gives his time and effort and puts it into these kids. He gives all he can for them and that is why they have the success that they do."
This quote clearly shows meaningful action within this program. It shows that the coaches have the goal to make sure they take care of their players, and their actions reflect it. This was a very strong representation of how meaningful action plays out on this team and within this program. It was very interesting to see this so clearly through a quote from an interview, and it was not the only one.
"******* ******** stated that he knows the team has his back, he said "These guys have always got me and I got them, there is really no way around it. Nothing will ever change that." It can be seen that the bod is strong on this team."
This quote was very intriguing. What is showed si that not only do the coaches have positive meaningful actions towards their players, but so do the players among themselves. The positive ,eaninguk action is very strong on this team.
"It was great being able to see the way this team influences their community. From going to the children's hospital to doing food drives, the will to help the less fortunate around them is very apparent on this ****** ***** football team."
This was another quote that proves this positive meaningful action on this team. It showed how this team is willing to help the people around them as well and not just each other. They are spurring meaningful action within their community and that was very cool to read about.
Framing
Framing was a new topic that I used for this section of my research. The reason that I used it is because I found a lot of it within the data that I came across.
"This is a team full of incredible young men, said heach coach **** ******, and they have a strong bond among one another that the coaches have nothing to do with."
This quote shows one of the coaches framing the team as a god group of people. He is framing this team as a solid program that is full of young men that are standup people as well.
"What we have seen from this ****** ***** program is that they are willing to do the hard work in order to get the correct reward. I have met with some of them myself and this mentality really is around the whole team."
This is an example of the team being framed as both hard working and relatedness. This positive frame is created by what this person has to say about this program.
"Opposing Coach **** ******* said that he is ready to play this team, but that he told his team to get ready because the ****** ***** football team is not one to back down."
This quote shows another positive frame about this program, but this one comes from an opposing coach. So what can be seen is that even the teams that they are playing have these same positive frames about this program. This was a reoccuring theme when it came to digging into this topic.
Feelings Towards Team
The last topic that I used to complete this content analysis was the feelings that the players and coaches had towards their team. This was one of the topics that I used for my interview section and it was a very interesting topic. What I found was all positive feelings that the people had for each other.
"I love these guys so much. What we have accomplished is nothing short of extraordinary, and there is no one that I would rather do it with then these guys next to me."
This quote shows a player with very positive feelings towards his teammates. He has nothing bad to say about them.
"I am so damn proud of these young men. Going through what they did and still being able to rise up. I am honored to be a coach on this team."
This is another example of someone that had positive feelings towards the people around them at this program. This time it is a coach speaking and he feels very strongly about his team in a positive manner.
"Athletic Director ***** ****** said "What a program ***** ***** is. They deserve the success that they have had. Being able to be apart of it has been so much fun. I could not be more proud to be a *******."
This is a leader of the actual school, and he also had very positive things to say about this program. What I found was that their everyone is putting on a very convincing face of liking each other, or this is actually a program that is well bonded and stands strong together.
Conclusion
This was a very interesting project to be able to conduct. It was incredible to see how a program worked and to really dissect the ins and outs of this program. Learning all the things I did about the program as well as how to conduct proper qualitative research was something that will stay with me forever. What I found by doing this research was that I love qualitative research and the processes that come along with it. I hope I am able to do another research project like this again someday.
References
Warren, Professor Emeritus Car. 2014. Discovering Qualitative Methods. New York: OXFORD
University Press INC.
No comments:
Post a Comment