The scope of the study is limited only to parents who have a child that attends Greene School in the SBCSC. Any findings from the study might inform further research about parent opinions in other parts of the country, but the results from the current study may be generalizable only to this specific school district and under these particular circumstances.
Another potential limitation might be the existing relationship that may exist between myself, as the interviewer, and the participants of the study. Having been the principal at the school from which the sample is being drawn, there was a strong
the principal of their child’s school. This certainly might be an advantage in this study if participants felt more comfortable with me and were, therefore, more willing to share their honest opinions and feelings. However, a limitation might occur if the participant felt as though they could not be honest with me because of my prior role or if they
wanted to please me by telling me what they thought I might “want” to hear. I attempted to mitigate the issue; I explained clearly that the accuracy of the study depended upon their true opinions.
Perhaps the most significant potential limitation is the fact that the study is an example of cross-cultural research. While the participants in the study are all black, the researcher is white. The relationship between the researcher and the participant can, at times, look much like the relationship between the oppressor and the oppressed. It is the researcher who sets the agenda and who controls the conversation (Ladner, 1987). Even in a case where the researcher’s goal is to present the “voice” of the participants, it is the researcher who decides which voices are heard (Crozier, 2003).
The white researcher must build trust with the black participants, so that the responses are honest and thorough (Crozier, 2003). A qualitative approach is the best choice for “conveying sensitivity” and decreasing suspicion and mistrust (Liamputtong, 2010). Though I did not have a prior relationship with all of the parents who participated in the study, it is my hope that my prior relationship with some of the families in the neighborhood was an advantage in gaining this trust. In any cross-cultural study, the researcher should spend time before the study learning about the culture and spending time to build relationships with the participants (Liamputtong, 2008). The two years that I worked with these families as principal have given me opportunities to do both. In
addition to the relationship building, throughout the research process, I monitored my own cultural sensitivity and was certain to report my findings responsibly so as not to cause any harm to the participant group (Liamputtong, 2010).
Standpoint theory, most commonly used in the context of feminist studies, is the notion that the researcher must be a member of the group in order to effectively study the issues. For example, according to this theory, only a black researcher could study black issues and only a woman could study feminist issues. This theory has most often been refuted by the argument that all people have multiple points of identification, what critical race theorists call “intersectionality.” A single participant could identify as black, female, single, Christian, middle-class, and gay. It is not reasonable to suggest that only a researcher who can identify in all of these exact ways could conduct a legitimate qualitative study with the participant (Crozier, 2003).
Often an outsider perspective is quite advantageous in research. An outsider can “scrutinize certain problems more closely, instead of seeing them as common phenomena or not seeing them at all” (Liamputtong, 2010, p. 115). Specifically, in this study, it is possible that the participants utilized their distinct voice and were more motivated to share their experiences. They understood that their “white counterpart” might not be able to comprehend, and they were willing to use their unique experience to assist the
researcher in the examination of the issue (Delgado & Stefancic, 2012, p. 10). One final potential limitation that should candidly be addressed is the fact that race in America is a sensitive issue. As a person who respects differences and sees diversity as a strength, it is important to me that I not ever be perceived as racist. As a researcher, it is important to me that I faithfully and accurately report my findings from
the data I collect. I feel that I need to acknowledge the discomfort I have had throughout this study. The discomfort and nervousness came from the fact that I did not want to offend anybody with results I report or words I have used. When a researcher presents another’s “voice,” they are presenting their feelings and opinions and their lives to the public to be judged. There is an internal struggle for the researcher -- should they just “tell it like it is,” or do they have some responsibility to protect the participants from this judgment? (Crozier, 2003). This was my struggle, but I feel strongly that by reporting the data accurately, I have done my best to honor my participants’ experiences.
Chapter 4: Results
As discussed, this study was framed around the stories of black parents and their perceptions about the advantages and disadvantages of the involuntary busing program in their community. The results of this study are discussed by theme. The following
themes emerged during the coding of the data: diversity, transportation, impacts on learning, financial impacts, affective parent concerns, and parent wishes.