Analysing my tools of professional inquiry...

After studying reader 6 - Tools of Professional Inquiry, and piloting each method within my own inquiry, I have been able to establish which 'tool' is most effective when put into practice to acquire the most profound form of data and knowledge, essential in furthering my own investigation. I previously posted about the general positives and negatives with regards to each method, but upon analysis I found where each factor was relative to me and my inquiry.

Interview and Focus Group
Both of these provided me with a more in depth, qualitative explanation. The relaxed and informative nature of these processes allowed for the participants to really explore their own ideas and opinions on the topics being questioned. Though structure can be lost during the interview, it allowed for a more personal discovery. By nature of my inquiry, the learning and discovery process is very much reliant on learning from others experience, the more specialised knowledge that can be gained the better. Piloting the focus group particularly, has shown me that the answers you get are very much dependant on the group that you interview, as well as the technique in which the questions are asked. To avoid bias you very much have to make the entire process about the participant, avoiding the chance of posing an influential tone. Establishing this technique is also something I think, that if I can put into practice, will help me personally as I move from using my 'feet' to 'voice' for employment prospects. In terms of authenticity and validity in information and data collection between the differing tools, I couldn't place one above the other. The only advantage interviewing has over using a focus group is its practicality and convenience, arranging a time and a place for one person is far easier than organising three or four people in comparison.

Survey
The less personal and formal nature of this tool really doesn't suite the type of information I am looking to gather to further my own inquiry. The structured nature of this method doesn't allow for participant elaboration, and I found resulted in a lax approach to completing the document. It very much provides you with quantitive information, appropriate for calculating statistical data, but as my inquiry is very much based on experience and different directions, it is not something I can produce a formula for. I am not completely discarding my findings from this method, as all information is invaluable, but it is not tool I will be carrying forward within my professional inquiry.

Observation
I found this tool very difficult to evaluate as I feel the benefits, given the right situation for the method to be applied, would be invaluable. I have been observing videos on youtube with relevance to 'on' and 'off' screen television processes, but I feel without physically being within the atmosphere itself, you can portray a very biased point of view. I am hoping to gain some 'hands on' experience at the end of this year, at which time I will truly put the use of this tool into practice. Until then I will leave my full analysis open ended, as at this time it shows very little use to the direction of my inquiry in my given situation.