Data Collection in the Field: Lessons from Two Case Studies Conducted in Belize

Authors

Rico Kongsager, University College CopenhagenFollow

Abstract

There is a vast load of literature concerning how data collection can be conducted. This literature provides guidelines and recommendations on how data collection might be done, however, only a very limited part of this literature describes in detail how data actually are collected in the field. This paper is intended to be an example, where the methodology is explained in detail to assist and inspire other researchers, on their way to conduct interesting and important research. The data collection and fieldwork described in this paper were conducted to complete two case studies in Belize, Central America. The core of the paper is data collection methods applied in these case studies, which include selection and arrangement of interviewees, and conducting the interviews, and how secondary information was obtained. It also includes the considerations related to timing and fieldwork locations, and thoughts on positioning, power, and ethics related to the fieldwork conducted.

Keywords

fieldwork, qualitative, interview, Belize, climate

Author Bio(s)

Rico Kongsager is an Associate Professor (PhD) at the Emergency and Risk Management, University College Copenhagen, Denmark. Please direct correspondence to rico@kp.dk.

Publication Date

4-5-2021

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 4.0 International License.

DOI

10.46743/2160-3715/2021.4744

Recommended APA Citation

Kongsager, R. (2021). Data Collection in the Field: Lessons from Two Case Studies Conducted in Belize. The Qualitative Report, 26(4), 1218-1232. https://doi.org/10.46743/2160-3715/2021.4744

ORCID ID

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6143-5396

ResearcherID

ABD-8853-2020