opheliaswims

Quantitative vs. Qualitative / You are not a number

Qualitative research involves analysis of data such as words (e.g., from interviews), pictures (e.g., video), or objects (e.g., an artifact). Subjective – individualsâ€™ interpretation of events is important ,e.g., uses participant observation, in-depth interviews etc. Personal involvement and empathic understanding.
“All research ultimately has a qualitative grounding” – Donald Thomas Campbell

Quantitative research involves analysis of numerical data. Objective â€“ seeks precise measurement & analysis of target concepts, e.g., uses surveys, questionnaires etc. Detachment and impartiality.
“There’s no such thing as qualitative data. Everything is either 1 or 0″ – Fred Kerlinger

So what’s my point? I am qualitative. I believe in multiple realities, that the shaping of causal linkages are in a constant state of change, that asking questions is invaluable, that we are not a number, that we change opinion based on surrounding circumstances and environment. I am of the naturalist paradigm.

Image: Â© Ophelia Chong / OC Series
Fred Kerlinger: Foundations of Behavioral Research
Donald Thomas Campbell (November 20, 1916 – May 5, 1996) was an American social scientist. He is noted for his work in methodology. He coined the term “evolutionary epistemology” and developed a selectionist theory of human creativity. He had as a major focus throughout his career the study of false knowledge — the biases and prejudices that poison everything from race relations to academic disciplines where those with vested interests in them perpetuate erroneous theories. – wikipedia

2007 10 30

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In The Dark

Two blackouts since Friday. Crawling around looking for a flashlight and candles. I like the silence. And the hills across from me are all dark, it’s so romantic in a way; harking back to the days when we had only whale oil lamps and lumps of coal. Okay, I am done. Turn the power back on.
Friday Oct. 26 blackout: 3am – 10am
Sunday Oct. 28 blackout: 3- 8pm
Tuesday Oct. 30 blackout: 12pm – 1pm
Image: Â©Ophelia Chong / Canadian Moose

2007 10 28

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Too Much Coffee

Symptoms of too much coffee:

1. I repeat myself at least 3 times. “Ophelia, didn’t you just say that?”

2. I look like an excited Chicken.

3. I watch TV, surf the web, talk on the phone and do my nails all at the same time.

4. I decide to clean my sock drawer and color code it.

5. Bake.

6. Dig up the dead tree trunk in the backyard.

7. Make more coffee.

8. Make Autopsy Kitty, a stuffed doll that you can pull out the guts, heart, liver, etc.
Special Order. Calico, Persian, Tabby and house kitty. Comes with instruction manual with a short intro by Dr. Reggie Mortis.

2007 10 27

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Tagged!

I got tagged by Wendee
Her challenge is for me to tell 10 things about myself. Here goes…

So I am going to tell you 10 things about me:
1. I have a hoard of ephemera.
2. I love TV.
3. I read the National Enquirer while in line at the grocery store.
4. I clean out my closet four times a year.
5. I love cleaning the house at night.
6. I want to eat more than I should.
7. I fly in my dreams.
8. I don’t buy lottery tickets. I don’t gamble in general.
9. My favorite time of day is 10pm.
10. I ran over a squirrel by accident.

Also check out Wendee’s fabulous blog: the fridge door

Image: Â© Ophelia Chong/ Chipmunk

2007 10 25

I’ve Got A Headache

My head hurts. It started yesterday; all the smoke and ashes are collecting in my head. But that’s nothing compared to all the people displaced by the fires, or the uphill battle the firefighters have. My discomfort is minor compared. Tonight I will go to sleep with a prayer for everyone.

Image: Â© Ophelia Chong / Amoeba

2007 10 24

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Happiness is Being In a Line

I was in a check-out line in Quingdao, China; when these two gentlemen started fighting and throwing bad punches. A bag of fruit was used as well. The police came and took them away. And we all went back to our shopping. Such excitement!

I amuse myself when I wait in lines. I look around, I look at the person in front of me, I look at the people behind me. I do the 360Ëš swivel of my neck. “What is she wearing? He’s cute. That’s a big kid.” If I am in a grocery line, I look at what people are buying. “Tsk, that’s just going to make you gassy.” “That’s a lot of bleach, and rubber gloves? Hmmm…crime scene clean-up?”

What really kills time is when a couple argues. You get pieces of what is ticking them off; impatience, missing documents, general malaise. I fight the urge to jump in and say “Hey, it has nothing to do with you…!” But I like my face the way it is. Going in between an arguing couple is like trying to separate fighting dogs. You just know you are going to get your hand bit.

Another one is check-in lines at the airport. First off you are already stressed out by the length of the line. There is an equation; the longer the line, the sooner your departure time is. I always get the guy in front of me who needs to reroute his whole trip to Timbuktu by way of Buffalo, NY. And he has extra carry on and luggage wrapped in duct tape. And families! There should be a rule about families traveling together, there should be a separate check-in for parents and teenagers. The parents will love the fact that the kids are not pulling long faces and the kids will love not being seen with their parents.

I am the happy person in the line with you. I will talk to you. I smile back. You want to know why? Because being in a line means I am doing/getting/going.

Image: Â©Ophelia Chong / Carrefour Shop, Quingdao, China 2007

2007 10 23

china

Responses to When I Was 16

Harassment happens to both men and women. These are responses to a previous blog : When I was 16

Your story gave me a shiver, and reminded me of the restaurant job I had while a sophomore in college. I needed a job to help pay for school, and was hired to wait tables at a fast food mexican restaurant in Harvard Square. The manager was an older man with a waxed moustache who told me that he ‘liked the way my pants fit my ass’ on my first day of work. I was underage and working in an establishment serving alcohol, and he was ‘doing me a big favor’ (and breaking the law) by hiring me. It was clear that there was an expectation that some sort of favor was expected in return. At the end of every evening’s workshift, when I had to sit in the tiny windowless manager’s office and ‘cash out’ (count out my tip money and turn over a percentage for the busboys and table runners) my boss pressured me to go out with him and even go away for a weekend in Provincetown (which loomed like a Gay Soddom and Gomorrah in my teenage imagination). I felt like a bug on a toothpick every time I was alone with this guy and fearful every time I demurred from his increasingly urgent requests. I always came up with some excuse, and worked as diligently as possible to show that I was a competent employee. After a few months he gave up and eventually was fired for drinking on the job. Looking back on it now, I can’t believe how weak I felt, given that the situation he was trying to leverage was one in which I had much more power than I was able to perceive. I’ve learned that when I don’t pay attention to my inner voice, or cover it up, it becomes fainter and more remote. It’s like a compass or some sort of signal, and it’s clarity varies to the degree that it’s acknowledged.
- Daren S.

i just had a creepy experience with my favorite masseuse. my problem comes in being polite – i am the maitre d. not wanting to make the molester feel uncomfortable until he has been on trial with a proper lawyer – then i could tell him where to go. – M.B.

I said “no”, too, when I was young. But got lazy in my thirties and finally strong again only after P was born. – A.H.

I recall a similar situation when I was 17. My driver’s ed teacher had me drive to his house. He said he needed to pick something up. When we got there he invited me in to the house. Stupidly, I went ahead. I later found myself in his living room, with his arms around me and him asking me for a kiss. I said “No”. “Just one” he replied. I again said “no”. At that point he got irritated and commanded me to get back in the car. I did and drove back home as fast as I could, with him sitting next to me, barking orders. I couldn’t even tell my mother what had happened, feeling guilty for something that was completely none of my doing!
You are so right. Saying no is the right thing to say when every fiber in your being is screaming NOOOO!! And we should not have to feel guilty or doubt ourselves for saying no, especially in these kinds of situations.
- J.T.

yes, we all have stories like that, even my mom does. widowed and waitressing, the men thought they could take advantage of her. i waitressed for 11 years on both chicago and new york…..and yes, men just think they can take advantage. what a male friend told me really opened my eyes years ago, if they try it on you you know they have tried it on many. and you know they have succeeded at least once, if not many, many times. thankfully, we are strong women, not all are so lucky. and many get married and stay married to these men. – J.

2007 10 22