Relación de la economía del municipio en el proyecto de vida

“An important part of conducting fieldwork is having access to informants who can serve as ‘guides’, to provide information concerning the research site” (Nagy Hess- Biber and Leavy, 2006, p.71). The means by which an appropriate sample of stakeholders is identified and engaged is thus a vital component of the research process.

Although as a general principle the research frame was restricted to individuals with at least some connection to the cases in focus, the desire to obtain the widest possible range of views called for a sampling method or selection criteria broad enough to capture a variety of perspectives. Rice and Ezzy (1999) point to a variety of sampling strategies, but suggest that sampling in qualitative research is characteristically purposive in nature in that potential respondents are selected for their knowledge, experience or relevance to a particular setting. Such a process is often, but not always, predicated on the researcher’s knowledge of the individuals concerned, yet the researcher was not sufficiently familiar with the key ‘players’ to make such critical decisions.

4.9.1 Identification of research subjects

As a result, the research adopted a ‘snowballing’ technique, whereby an initial respondent was asked to identify other people with the requisite knowledge and experience and a willingness to participate in the research. By virtue of the differing nature of the two case studies it became necessary to adopt a slightly different approach in each instance.

In the case of Swan Hill Pioneer Settlement, initial approaches revealed a quite distinct polarity of views as to the mission and strategic direction of the site, requiring the researcher to exercise some personal judgment in the selection of respondents. In order to achieve a comprehensive view of the situation, it was necessary to make independent approaches to individuals representing various stakeholder categories broadly divided between local government [Swan Hill Rural City Council]; current and past management and staff of the site; and community stakeholders past and present. The process of enquiry identified one subject in each category who, in turn, identified other potential respondents. Although the resultant sample was smaller than originally intended, due mainly to inconstancy of management and control, a total of twelve interviews were conducted, which on the basis of initial analysis provided eight useable transcripts . This was, however, more than offset by the diversity of views on the critical issues.

With respect to Sovereign Hill the identification procedure began with a senior member of current management who was provided with a research brief and was able to identify a list of ten individuals covering a variety of roles and tenures who were deemed appropriate to the research. Some emphasis was placed on achieving both retrospective and current coverage and the inclusion of both internal and external stakeholders. A number of preliminary interviews were conducted during April 2005 both to refine the interview framework and to identify additional participants. From the additional contacts generated a number of further interviews were conducted in May and June of 2005 resulting in a total of fifteen interviews. In the process of initial data analysis and interpretatation saturation was reached after examining nine interviews with the data yielding no new information.

Coverage included past and present staff/management, past and present members of the governing board, and outside stakeholders representing local government, Tourism Victoria, and the History Council of Victoria. Internal coverage was likewise diverse covering individuals involved in management, marketing and curatorial operations.

4.9.2 Interview Structure and Process

Recognising the diversity of the respondents and the breadth of the information sought it was necessary to construct an interview format that would guide rather than be

of an open-ended nature in which you ask key respondents about the facts of the matter as well as their opinions about events”.

An interview schedule was developed [See Appendix A] which sought to elicit individual perspectives in a number of key areas including aspects of the organisational culture; key management decisions over time ; key success factors; organisational direction; operational impediments, and visions as to future directions. The framing of these broad areas of potential discussion was based both on the researcher’s knowledge of the operational domain; perspectives gained from the literature; and the stated objectives of the research

The potential respondents identified by means of the snowballing technique were contacted, the purpose and aims of the research explained; and appointments scheduled. Where possible interviews were conducted within the confines of the attraction although given the potential sensitivity of some of the discussions a number were completed elsewhere. In the interests of obtaining some consistency attempts were made to follow the interview schedule as closely as possible but the researcher was cognisant of the need to be flexible and to reformulate the questions depending on individual responses. Such an approach was consistent with the methodological stances mentioned earlier.

Balancing the need for depth with focus ninety to one hundred and twenty minutes was allowed for each interview. In total seventeen interviews were conducted across the two case study sites, all of which were recorded and transcribed in full. Mandatory requirements with respect to participant permission were completed in each case.

The process was augmented by the maintenance of a journal which recorded anecdotal information gleaned outside the structure of the interview. This included such information as personal history and involvement with the site under examination, associations with bodies and individuals in the immediate location

This was useful not only in terms of developing an understanding of the individual concerned but guided both the interview process and to some extent the ultimate analysis of the data by placing responses into context.