I really enjoyed this research as the topic was relevant to my personal experience. When I planned my research I was aware of the potential challenges in conducting primary research and the risk I would find it difficult to find research participants. This proved to be the case since the number of potential participants was limited to the BCM class. In addition the research focused on the specific topic of difficulties navigating university and seeking disability support, which is not something everyone has experienced. However, the interview I did conduct provided responses that were very effective in communicating the negatives and the positives in using these support services.
Given these challenges I was very pleased with the recommendation from my tutors to include autoethnography as a research method, as my own experience had been a motivator in selecting the topic. I had also planned to conduct secondary research to provide alternative data sources in the event that I didn’t get enough participants. So I was very happy to find some sources that were not only highly relevant but which had also used interview methods.
When I combined my experience with the interview responses and the secondary research I found there were a lot of common themes, and consistent findings. This gave me confidence that the outcomes of my research was valid and helped me reach my conclusions.
When I think about how I planned my research and how it turned out, I think I would have considered the autoethnography method from the start. I would have written this part of the report perhaps as a ‘self interview’ and then spent more time up front on the secondary research. If I had done that I would have identified the sources that had interview responses to questions that were similar to mine. This would have meant I could spend less time on my interview questions and seeking participants, given I had the data available from the secondary sources.
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