Nature of the Study
A pragmatic qualitative conceptual and theoretical framework with naturalistic phenomenological field methods including case study strategies are used in the proposed study to explore the research questions. The overall research design also could be expressed this way, concurrent emergent participatory transformative design. Social science theory, qualitative and empirical theory, and advocacy worldview, describe the approach used (Creswell, 2003).
Based on the methods proposed and relatively un-researched original area of inquiry tied to a specific sample at a particular location and point in time, an extensive bibliography is not purposeful (Rudestam & Newton, 2015 pg.81) except to help provide the context of the need for research, resulting questions, and to address validity concerns for any instrumentation used and to substantiate methods choices. However, the literature review sources used throughout the research project are presented.
A qualitative design is proposed mainly because of logistical and time considerations for initial research. Also the research question is empirically exploring subjective perspectives on toxins. Uncovering participant beliefs about environmental contaminants is critical to developing a comprehensive threat assessment or arguments for policy or policy reform in an understudied area. Given the complex nature of the toxic problem overall, there is a possibility that an anonymous survey process will solicit useful information to add to the discourse on the topic and better inform future research.
Researchers Approach
Qualitative inquiries study how people and groups construct meaning, [and] qualitative inquiry can illuminate system and systemic issues and potential solutions (Patton, 2015 pg. 5,8). Empirically designed open ended and semi-structured or structured questions will be posed to collect data and the interviews themselves will be conducted online in confidential encrypted and password protected environments where anonymity is built in. Interview surveys may also be completed by subjects in their own homes as directed. Survey Monkey and Dedoose.com are being considered as data collection/management tools in addition to hand coding on Excel or MSword. Those website structures will be evaluated to ensure they adhere with conventions acceptable in the scientific community, prior to use along with a partner agreements, which outlines and clarifies the security of data and responsibility to destroy the data immediately upon my request, if in fact the instrument is verified to be capable or rendering valid data. If it is not found capable to produce valid data, the data collect instrument will not be used and reliance on the mailing and direct emailing and zip code focus will survive as primary procedures in the data collection and the online process will be cancelled.
Since the inquiry aims to produce recommendations on changes in physical systems managing environmental contaminates and personal lifestyle choices, paper based interviews in the form of open, semi-structured, and closed ended survey questions will be used. On top of the estimated 30+ case studies of individuals, not including theoretical research design source materials, over 50 academic scholarly peer reviewed sources and 150 expert credible sources will be reviewed in an immersion process and content analyzed (Borkan, 1999) in an effort to identify themes (Strauss and Corbin, 1998) or anomalies through crystallization process (Wagner, Warren & Moseley, 2010) to add description on the phenomenon under review relevant to the advocacy of improving public safety through Public Policy and Administration efforts. The analysis will be subject to committee review regarding agreement on coherent themes and resulting emergent item measures used in operational definitions, or resulting statements. For the quantitative questions including demographics, Likert-type scales will be used. In phase one, creative synthesis of literature led to research question following qualitative content analysis, peer review, and Walden Universities research committee reviews. In phase two, questionnaire results will analyze factors to identify themes and unique substantive deviations. Narrative summaries will be given in results which will include some basic computations in addition to descriptive narratives.
A pragmatic conceptual framework approach with post- positivist influences is taken in the research design in an effort to achieve results which are reliable and valid. Methods are used in an attempt to limit contamination of the research and achieve greater objectivity in design, collection and analysis stages. Thus, some closed questions with quantitative scales are introduced to accomplish an internal reliability safeguard and to measure other variables which may add value to support or otherwise contradict the observations to ensure the level of validity is adequate to support whatever observations may be made. Holistic and creative synthesis are held to be relevant reporting strategies due to the complex and compounding variables including social and time based contexts which led to the problem under this phenomenology study. In addition to reporting on a series of case studies, the resulting analysis is anticipated to enable the production of an auto-ethnography (the study of one’s own culture) based section which helps observe in an auto-ethnography narrative fashion,
a collection of behaviors and patterns of belief around standards for deciding what can be, how one feels about it, and standards for deciding how to go about doing it (Patton, 2015 pg.100, [whatever it turns out to be].
Hand coding systems will be developed to evaluate collected data. Meta-analysis may also be used in broad searches at Law Libraries and other research databases to gather observational facts on the problems under research or explain the phenomenon or develop operational definitions. A narrative section will feature select case quotes highlighting the conclusions. Additional coding for emerging themes will be developed for items where themes are observed occurring between contrasted case study respondents or between leading researchers works being analyzed for recommended solutions to problems identified or for the drafting of deduced or induce scientific statements. Conceptual values will be assigned and verified with research committee to assure the themes assigned match the data collected in close proximity within the conventional use of the English language to preserve meaning. In instances meaning cannot be determined, that information will not be referenced or calculated in the study. Also, a clear audits trail will be established for procedures consistent with consent, confidentiality, and anonymity of participating subjects to protect validity and competency.
Reliability Trustworthy Issues:
Qualitative studies typically are regarded to produce results specific to the researched group and are not generalizable due to mathematical limitations in the design. However, since the problem is specific to the values of the researched group and the purposive sample method has an advocacy component, what is more important in the internal validity and the trustworthiness of the information produced. Since steps to control bias are taken from the beginning concerning problem formulation, survey design, and many steps of validity controls, the issue of trustworthiness should be considered addressed. Since analysis in qualitative studies relies heavily on the analysts expertise experience in the subject and with methods applied and subjectivity and ability to be objective, perhaps the greatest threat to the inquiry is that it is a higher risk for not producing substantive contributions to the field since the results are somewhat unpredictable by the very design of emergent naturalistic qualitative studies- especially in early research stages where the questions being posed are critical to the direction of inquiry. To protect this interest, the inclusion of sweeping meta-analysis using secondary data and the use of extensive literature reviews over large periods of time have helped prepare the researcher as an expert in the field. Likewise, the trade-off regarding the objectivity used to initiate the inquiry, lends evidence of an objective scientific approach where the evident data will be the driving force, not the opinion of a researcher, or poorly formulated conclusions drawn from error prone designs which are common in both quantitative and qualitative designs.
Possible Types and Sources of Data
Sample Population – Single Subject Case Studies
A qualitative design was adopted leading to the use of purposive sampling of 18 year olds and over U.S. English literate population that has internet access and respondents within specific CA zip codes subject to bulk mail solicitation to conduct case studies to get more insights about the phenomenon of Environmental Contamination. The design of a questionnaire include one focus group and the review of a research committee to refine the questions prior to Walden Universities IRB review and approval. The study is not considered a mixed methods project because technically only qualitative analysis will result. The design is non-probability, meaning it lacks generalizability, but can serve as an indicator and pre-cursor for future research.
It was decided that since the internet narrows the pool of participants drastically, that including populations most intimately connected to the research problem and types of data being collected that populations potentially more familiar with the topic (either by work i.e. Military Personnel, Medical Doctors, Biologists, Chemists, Handlers of Toxins, or people living in residences near known toxic sites) would be a good population to sample for several reasons. One, they have more clear experience or knowledge with the questions in the survey, and secondly since questions are formulated to be familiar and to have likely present content which has impacted their lives in the past, it may increase their interest in participating and or perhaps inspire them further regarding broader participation in solutions after participation, although this will not be measured or tracked to preserve and control for anonymity and limit bias inherent with advocacy styled approaches generally.
In addition to the primary survey data collected, a synthesis of recent (last five years) scholarly abstracts, peer reviewed academic articles, academic books, and select quantitative indicator only data from Government and popular culture are used in illustrative samples where it adds to the understanding of the phenomenon under study framed here as the exploration of attitudes concerning environmental contamination, policy, and global security.
Conclusions: TBD
Additional Questions:
Tentative hypothesis for further research.
- Correlations between cancer and environmental pollutants or known carcinogens are related to activation of NF-kB.
References
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Also inspired by:. Non-profits- GreenPeace, Earthsave Foundation, Rainforest Action Network, Toxic Links, Nuclear Information and Resource Service, Worldwatch Institute, Project Censor, Population Institute, Planned Parenthood, United Nations Population Fund, Friends Of the Earth International., Natural Step Foundation (Sweden), National Institute of Health and countless watchdogs and whistleblowers.
Mentions: Grossman, K., Philips, P., Mendez, C., Beversluis, J. Ravitch, D., Kripalani, K., Gandhi ,M., Brown, L., Zinn, H., Lawerence,C.T, McHenry, K., Suzuki, S., Smoker, P., McConnell, J., Brody, J., MLK, JFK, Peterson R., Caplan, R. Berthold-Bond, A, and Jackson, D.
Exhibit A:
Annotated Bibliography for materials selected for greater analysis/ recommendations and definitions formation. Note this is an evolving document.
Piyapong J, and Tsunemi Watanabe (2014). Evaluating determinants of environmental risk perception for risk management in contaminated sites. Environmental Research and Public Health. 2014,11,6291-6313;doi10.3390/ijerph110606291.
Methods and findings assessment: Qualitative design. The sample size is too small to generalize. Criteria to support sample selection was inadequate representation. Researcher suggests
high risk perception may be correlated with situations that have poor communication and higher public anxiety. The hypothesis that confusion and fear lead to higher interpretations in risk, may be valid, but it not ethical to test on human subjects. Fight or flight theory may already have concluded this observation. Researcher suggests collaborative communication is recommended between groups to improve reception, this observations is reduced to an observation in social science theory regarding influence models of peer to peer enhanced outcomes and is also not a novel finding, but supports earlier findings. Levels of interest vary depending of perceived impact, this is again a confirmation of existing theory regarding selective attention. Author recommends tailoring environmental risk communications based on publics risk perception. Here, on this point I disagree. The communication should be tailored not on perceived risk, but actual risk. Therefore, materials for high risk populations based on GIS data of known gas exposure would differ from materials given to low risk residents based on factual relevance- not perceptions. Researchers identification of lay cognitive models is a falsehood invention, not supported by empirical evidence. Experience informing risk perception is hardly novel. Researcher acknowledges people may make gut decisions rather than scientific based ones in judging risks. This observation supports earlier research in the field. They added useful threat risk perception definition however which showed some deductive analysis as resulted in once original contribution, that I am aware of.
Statement of value: Helps show how laypeople in one culture in the far-east perceived environmental contamination risks. This could be useful for recommendations of testing to see if this applies to U.S. culture in terms of learning if risk is also found to be determined in similar manners here in the U.S. Since moderterate to low impacted communities showed not to be largely motivated by benefits of risk activities when making judgments
This study is critical because it contributes a framework for threat definitions which can contribute to draft recommendations.
