CHAPTER SIX, PART II PARTICIPANT RECURITMENT AND THE INTERVIEW PROCESS

Part II of this chapter describes how participants are recruited and an overview of the interview process. This dissertation differs from traditional anthropological research because there is no one setting where data is collected. This aspect of data collection presents some challenges and some benefits. The research design uses snowball sampling to recruit research participants. Similarly, the sampling techniques utilized in this dissertation create challenges and benefits. Both the challenges and benefits regarding interview settings and participant recruitment are discussed in Part II.

Participant Recruitment

The following section examines the recruitment of African American women who participated in the dissertation research project. During the proposal stage of this research project I anticipated that it might be difficult to recruit African American women to participate in this study because vaginal hygiene is associated with sexual activity.

Many African American women (especially women over fifty) are reluctant to discuss topics related to their sexual activity (Harris-Perry 2011; Hine 1989a; Hine 1989b). I discuss the arenas related to participant recruitment in the following order (1) starting the snowball, (2) challenges to recruitment, and (3) benefits to recruitment.

Starting the Snowball

Snowball sampling is used to recruit research participants. The challenging aspect of this sampling technique is getting the snowball started. A woman that I know from a prior job told me about an administrative assistant that retired earlier in the year. As it happens, the woman I know is still in touch with the retiree; she offers to ask the retiree if she will consider talking to me about my dissertation research. My ex-colleague sets up a meeting and Ivilla is my first interview.

During the proposal phrase of this dissertation research, I decide that instead of giving the research participants pseudonyms after the consent process is completed I will ask the participants to select a name that they liked. I find this method works well. The women take ownership in the names that they select and seem to like selecting names that mean something to them. Some chose names of women that they are close to and some selected names that they like. My initial fear is that more than one woman will select the same name but it never happens. After the women select their pseudonyms, their new names are used when I addressed them during their interviews and in the dissertation.

Challenges to Recruitment

After, I interview Ivilla, I ask her if she knows of any women that might be interested in participating in my research project. She says that most of the women that she knows

live out of state. Since I only interview women in person; Ivilla’s potential connections are unable to assist my recruitment efforts. It isn’t until my third interview that I can recruit new participants based on leads of woman that I have interviewed. The challenge is that the recruitment process is slow. Sometimes I will go months without recruiting a new participant. Additionally, because I use snowball sampling, my sample population is not as diverse. All the participants graduated from high school and are employed (or previously employed). I did not interview any women that had college educated parents. Six of my research participants know each other and my sample includes sisters, cousins, a mother, and a daughter.

Benefits to Snowball Sampling

The primary benefit to snowball sampling is interviewing women that have some familial connections so I can explore how certain beliefs, values, and practices are reproduced amongst family members. The mother and daughter that I interviewed illustrated similar beliefs, values, and practices regarding general hygiene and feminine hygiene practices. The sisters I interviewed are the oldest participants involved in this dissertation research project. Like the mother and daughter, the sisters provide similar responses regarding general hygiene and feminine hygiene practices, especially as they relate to moral personhood.

Interview Process: Benefits and Challenges

As previously discussed, this dissertation utilizes a qualitative research design. The locations of the interviews are always guided by the research participants. Some of the interviews are conducted at homes, in restaurants, and coffee shops. Other women prefer to be interviewed in their offices at work. The interviews are conducted all over the

state except for the upper peninsula. I do not offer financial compensation for participating in this dissertation research project so I always offer to bring or pay for food consumed during the interview. I want to show the women that I appreciate their time and willingness to share their experiences with me. Food is easy to offer and most people like to eat. If interviews are conducted at coffee shops or restaurants I offer to pay for the women’s food. When I conduct interviews in homes I offer to bring food or coffee. Similarly, when interviews are conducted in the women’s offices I offer to bring food and/or coffee. Most of the women decline the offers of food. Later in the dissertation I offer an interview vignette that involves cake.

The benefits of conducting interviews wherever it is convenient for the research participants is that the women are able select locations that are comfortable for them. No interviews are canceled during the dissertation process. Interviews conducted in restaurants or coffee shops are challenged by background noise. Some of the women want to be interviewed in restaurants in the evening during the dinner rush. Coffee shops in the morning are also difficult locations due to noise. The benefit of conducting interviews in public locations is that we are not interrupted by family members or other obligations. However, sometimes it is difficult to keep the interviews focused on the topic at hand. If the interviewee want to talk for hours I did not stop them.

Interview Process

After potential research participants agree upon a time and place to conduct the interview; we meet at the agreed upon location and begin the consent process. During the consent process, the HIC approved consent form is given to the research participant to review while I read the consent form out loud. At the end of each page, the research

participant initials the bottom of the page; I ask if they have any questions. After, the final page of the consent form is signed by the research participant and I, a copy of the consent form is given to the research participant to keep. Signed consent forms are stored in a locked office (in a locked file cabinet) in the anthropology department at Wayne State University as directed by Human Investigation Committee.

The interviews are divided into two parts. The first part of the interview focuses on cleanliness narratives, general demographic questions, familial and community level talk about cleanliness, and household cleanliness questions. The second part of the interview focuses on vaginal hygiene narratives, questions that focus on general hygiene practices, menstruation, and hygiene practices related to sexual activity. The order of questions is intentional. The first part of the interview is intended to focus on less personal questions and to build rapport between the interviewee and me. The second part of the interview is intended to elicit responses about feminine hygiene and issues potentially related to sexuality. Some of the respondents prefer to complete the interview in one meeting others divided the interview into two parts. Interviews that are completed in two meetings are conducted with three weeks of each other.

Chapter Six Summary

The preceding chapter offers an overview of the design, sample, methods, and analysis. The chapter also provides a description of the recruitment and interview process. Challenges and benefits of sampling techniques, interviewing process, and participant recruitment are also described in this chapter. The next chapter provides an overview of research and scholarship that focuses on different aspects of the vagina.