Tratamientos de los efluentes líquidos de refinerías.

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Trace data are digital records that humans consciously or unconsciously leave behind as they navigate the digital world (Dubois & Ford, 2015)

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This study is theoretically positioned within the Fraser’s75

ideas of subaltern counter-publics and the metaphor of hidden transcripts (Scott, 1976) (see Chapter Three) which puts the narratives of subordinate groups at the centre of social research. As post-structuralist feminist (see Fraser, 1990) and resistance (see Scott, 1976; 1990) scholars, Fraser and Scott believe in the existence of multiple and situated realities. This belief in multiple realities constitutes one of the philosophical orientations of qualitative research methodology (Lincoln & Guba, 1995). Qualitative methods are oriented towards discovery and process; have high validity; are less concerned with generalisation, and are more concerned with deeper understanding of the research problem in its unique context. As Baxter & Babbie (2003: 61) write, qualitative research moves beyond description of a particular phenomenon to strive for a comprehensive understanding of mean making in a particular setting. The ontological and epistemological foundations of qualitative research makes it the most appropriate methodology for the present study, which is concerned with understanding how and why youth activists use Facebook to mediate political action. Given the predominance of quantitative studies in the field of political communication, Vromen (2007: 52) calls upon scholars to embrace qualitative methods in order to explore both individual attitudes and forms of participation.

Rooted in several disciplines (Lindlof, 1995) as well as the Weberian notion of verstehen76, qualitative research methodology is an assortment of philosophical positions, methodological tactics, and analytical procedures (Babbie & Mouton, 2001). The term “qualitative” implies an emphasis on examination of the processes and meanings, but not measured in terms of quantity, amount, or frequency (Denzin & Lincoln, 1994). Epistemologically, qualitative research is anchored in the phenomenology or the interpretivist paradigm. As Baxter & Babbie (2003) observes, the interpretive paradigm suggests that human /social sciences are concerned with understanding human behaviour, and the primary goal of the interpretive researcher is to embrace the subjective world of the people they are studying and try to see the world through their eyes. This contrasts significantly with the positivist epistemology, which focuses on objective reality knowable through empirical observation associated with quantitative research (Bryman, 2004; Babbie & Mouton, 2001). The reason for this “marriage” between phenomenology and qualitative methodology is based on the insistence on an interpretative understanding of the meanings and self-descriptions of individual, which privileges participant observation, qualitative content analysis and individual in-depth

75 _{Fraser (1990) posits that multiple, subaltern counter-publics spheres unlike a unitary public sphere allow like-minded people to come}

together and articulate their issues, concerns, or identity.

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interviews. In-depth interviews allow me to understand what happens to the technology (Facebook) when it is appropriated and adapted by young people for political purposes. Proponents of qualitative research place particular emphasis on the contextual understanding of perspectives of social actors, to retrieve experiences from the past, to gain expert insight or information, to obtain descriptions of events or scenes that are unavailable for observation, to foster trust or to analyse certain kinds of discourse (Lindlof, 1995; Bryman, 2004; Silverman, 2005; Baxter & Babbie, 2003). The advantage of qualitative research is that it allows one to make sense of, or interpret reality in terms of the meanings that people bring to them and not the meaning imposed by the researcher through the relationship between variables (Silverman, 2005; Taylor & Bogdan, 1984). This study is predominantly qualitative, although I make use of quantitative data, in the sense that it is concerned with digging below the surface to explore how, why or what and to explore relationships and connections (deep data) (Bryman, 1988). In other words, it allows me to access “thick descriptions” of how and why politically engaged youths use Facebook for political purposes in Zimbabwe and South Africa. Qualitative research methodology helps us answer the how and what questions that must be addressed in order to answer the why and so what questions. Qualitative researchers believe that people construct their realities or “subjective meanings” through actions determined by their lived circumstances which structure or constrain the way they construct meanings in the course of everyday life (Denzin & Lincoln, 1998). Such an approach enables me to investigate and understand the underlying contextual factors on why youth activists use Facebook to promote their causes “through the eyes of those being studied” (Bryman, 2004: 280).

The flexible nature of qualitative research enables me “to embark on a mission of discovery rather than one of verification” (Bryman, 2004: 281), in this case how and why Facebook has been integrated into youth activists’ broader activities. Although rooted in qualitative research, this study is situated within the emerging field of small data analysis (Stephansen & Couldry, 2014) which combines basic quantitative metrics (how many people have joined, liked or participated actively on Facebook groups and the gender-disaggregated data of participants), qualitative content analysis of selected Facebook and qualitative interviews. This quantitative meta-data will also yield important information for me about participation levels in Facebook groups and profile pages. Qualitative research is also useful because it is only through an inquiry into the experience of the researched, the meaning they attach to their

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routines that can offer us the possibility of an answer (Scott, 1985: 46). Through the aid of in- depth interviews, it allows me “to probe beneath the surface appearances” (Bryman, 2004:280) of reality to provide the reasons on why youth activists use Facebook to advance their political objectives.

As can be seen from the foregoing discussion, qualitative research is best positioned to access “an insider’s view” (emic perspective) of the social phenomenon under consideration when compared to quantitative research which exhibits a tendency for the researcher to view events from the outside and to impose empirical concerns upon social reality (Bryman, 1988). Gaining an “insider’s view” is very important in this research context because it allows me to understand how youth activists integrate Facebook into their broader activities. Qualitative research is concerned with the contextual understanding of social behaviour and seeks to provide a detailed account of the context within which people’s behaviour takes place (Silverman, 2005). It is important to gain an understanding of the actual habitat or “lifeworld” within which activists’ behaviour takes place because experiences of people are essentially context bound. This is important for this research which uses online participant observation to understand how youth activists use Facebook to facilitate political activism in Zimbabwe and South Africa.

Qualitative research is also concerned with understanding particulars rather than generalising to universals. Guba & Lincoln (1982: 238) suggest that in qualitative research, one can never generalise because phenomena are always studied within a certain context and time frame. The qualitative approach enables the study of many interesting phenomena relating to what people actually do in their day-to-day lives, whether in homes, offices or other public and private places (Silverman, 2005). Through online participant observation, I will seek to examine what youth activists do [Facebook postings] in their day-to-day lives [on Facebook groups and profile pages]. Below I look at the comparative case study research design.