Stress

Stress

I have been at BYU for 4 years now, I am involved in various extracurriculars; I am taking 14.5 credits, I work 20 hours a week, I volunteer, I do research, I am in the presidency of an academic club, and I constantly find myself engaging in new causes. You only live once, and I definitely don't want to miss out on any opportunities--hence why I've decided to go to Italy for three months this summer. I have already been accepted to my graduate program, and I always want to make sure that my priorities are in order. My favorite quote (the one I mention every 3 posts) is to "never let a problem to be solved become more important than a person to be loved." I think I've done a great job at that, but the problem is that there still seem to be a million problems that need solving. Here are a few:

• Where I am going to live in Italy
• Who I am going to live with in Italy
• Where I am going to live in Provo once I get back from Italy
• Who I am going to live with in Provo
• How I am going to handle all my finances for Italy
• Finishing up my insurance claim for my car accident that happened over a year ago
• How I am going to get caught up in school and confident in all my classes, having dedicated the majority of my time the last two weeks with helping out with BYUSA campaigns
• What teachers I am going to work with for my field study, I know I'm working with Dr. Coyne for one class, but I still have to talk with her about the course contract; and I have no idea who I'm going to take the 3rd class with--I still have one more class to finish up for my graduation requirements, which brings up other things I have to worry about
• Getting my 20 hours of work in this week
• Finding time to meet with Collins, who graciously offered to help me with my Italian class
• Finishing up applying for graduation
• Buying my cap and gown materials
• Paying for my cap and gown materials
• Buying a car for next year
• Paying for a car for next year
• Figuring out where to store my things while I'm in Italy
• Deciding what to take to Italy

I could go on, but I think it might have an adverse affect on my already high stress level. I know I can only do one thing at a time--writing it all out, while stressful, does at least put everything a little bit into perspective. The truth is that I have A LOT to do in NOT A LOT of time. I'm not sure exactly how it's already March, but basically what that means for me is that I will be on a plane to Italy in a month and a half! Snap, so I can't let myself get overwhelmed by stress, I have to, as Nike says, "Just Do It." So, I guess rather than spending more time elaborating on how I'm going to do it, I'm just just going to make a check list right now, and start making phone calls. So, until next time--Ciao!

Methods Practice 2: Interviewing

For my seconds method practice, I got to conduct an interview which will (hopefully) be somewhat similar to the interviews that I will conduct while I'm in Italy. To prepare for this interview, I read a article called Interviewing an Informant by Spradley. I thought this article was very interesting and extremely informative. Spradley mentions that the three most important elements of ethnographic interviewing are explicit purpose, ethnographic explanations, and ethnographic questions.

Explicit Purpose: meaning that both the interviewer and the interviewee know that there is a purpose to the conversation and that the interviewer is looking for somewhat specific information. Having a purpose makes an interview more formal than a friendly conversation and it is expected that the interviewer will guide and direct the conversation.

Ethnographic Explanations:

• Project Explanations: general statements about what the project is about; making sure the interviewee knows what you are looking to learn about
• Recording explanations: Letting the interviewee know that you're taking notes or asking them if you can interview them
• Native Language Explanations: The purpose of ethonography is to describe a culture in its own terms; so it is important to encourage the interviewee to speak in their native language and speak in the way that they normally would in their culture
• Interview Explanation: If you are repeatedly interviewing, it's important to let the interviewee know what will be the purpose of each interview.
• Question Explanations: Make sure to explain the purpose of the question and what kind of information you want from the question

Ethnographic Questions

1. Descriptive Questions: enables a person to collect an ongoing sample of an informant's language. Easiest to ask in interviews (i.e. Could you tell me what you do on a regular basis? Could you describe the conference you attended?)
2. Structural Questions: enable the ethnographer to discover information about domains-the basic unit of the interviewee's cultural knowledge. Answer how informants organize their life (i.e. what are the stages of being transferred in this company). These types of questions may be repeated so that interviewee identifies several different activities/examples.
3. Contrast Questions: Interviewer wants to find out what the interviewee means by the various terms they use in their native language

So, now that you have a pretty detailed background of what I was trying to accomplish for my interview, I will share a little bit about my experience with you. For my part-time job, I work mentoring Freshman and am constantly meeting new students who I interview. I find myself using descriptive most often, structural questions at times, and some variation of a contrast question--I'm usually not trying to decipher what a term means in a different language, but I definitely still have to figure out what certain students mean by various comments, and even specific words, that they say.

This interview practice was similar in many ways to the ways I conduct my interviews with students, with the main difference being the purpose of my interview, which was learning more about their ideas about gender roles. At the time of my interview, my project wasn't nearly as developed as it is now, and I didn't have the  background knowledge that I now realize will be SO INCREDIBLY useful as I decide upon, and ask, my  questions. I tried to ask some structural questions, but feel like I didn't truly understand how to ask those questions. The descriptive, and (semi-)contrast questions, however, went very well.

Before conducting the interview, I gave my participant a good idea of what the purpose of the interview would be--to gain a deeper understanding of her views on gender roles. I think this helped establish the formality level of the interview and I asked her if she would mind if I took notes while I interviewed her so that I would be able to remember what she was saying--I feel like that set up a good platform for the interview. I think I did a fairly good job at directing the conversation, but definitely went off on some side tangents; while I think there are definitely benefits to staying 'on topic' I feel that sometimes tangents may lead to richer information, so I don't totally regret that decision. At one point, my participant felt that she had adequately answered the question, and looked at me as if saying 'okay...are we done or are you going to ask me more.' Whereas I felt like I wanted more information on that question. I did end up asking some prodding questions which were helpful and, for the most part, was able to keep the conversation flowing smoothly. I tried to make sure that she was speaking about 80% of the time, and tried to limit what I had to say to about 20% of the time.

In retrospect, I think that the hardest part of the interview was the conclusion; I wasn't quite sure how to end it or where to end it. I kept it within the time limit that I was planning, which was good, but I think in the field, I will need to have a better set up for this. I am only planning on interviewing each participant once, but I think it would be a good idea to ask them if it would be okay if I contacted them at a later point in case I had any questions. So, my 2nd methods practice was definitely more of a learning experience than anything; I think I did well, but I do think that there is much room for improvement.

Parli itliano?

Italy is a relatively young country; it was previously made up of city states (now called regions) and each region is quite distinct--with its own personality, dialect and cuisine. I was reading about how what I think is Italian food isn't even served in all regions of Italy. I feel like in Rome, I will definitely get more of the typical Italian Food given that it is a big city and a tourist attraction, but it's good to be prepared when I take a day trip, or look into another part of Italy, to not go to Italy as a complete uninformed tourist who thinks that the stereotypes I've learned about in America hold true everywhere in Italy.

Another thing I was reading about was how things are purchased in Italy--just about everywhere except train stations and hotels prefer..or moreso EXPECT to be paid in cash. It's often viewed at an inconvenience to use your visa to pay for dinner at a restaurant. I definitely use my credit card for EVERYTHING I buy here, so it will be a huge change for me to carry around cash. I'm definitely a bit of a forgetful person, so I'll definitely have to look into ways to keep my cash safe, without looking like a total tourist with a fanny pack...

The last thing I was reading about, that I felt like was really interesting about Italy, is how everyone is late for just about everything, and that's  not only acceptable, it's expected. Even the trains run late! Not that I would ever show up late for a train ride (because I wouldn't to risk missing it), but it will definitely be a transition for me to purposely show up late, and not feel guilty about it. 


I still think my best bet for  everything Italy is to learn as much as I can about it now, and then--as the old quote says--"Do what the Romans do." I'll watch, listen, learn and do. :)

Am I Excited to Go on a Field Study?

Am I excited to go on a field study?

While there has been some recent debate, the final answer is........Yes!

Honestly, I have been having a lot of doubts lately. I was loosing sight of my purpose as a field study student. I signed up to go on a field study for several reasons, but among those reasons was definitely to be able to go with a group of students. Not that I am at all a dependent person, on the contrary, I have had numerous people comment on the my independence, BUT I guess my concern (for lack of a better word) was that I was paying BYU money, and all I was getting in return: RESTRICTION. Maybe I'll want to travel all around Europe instead of just staying in once place, maybe I'll to live with a member family where I felt safer, maybe I'll not be able to speak the language well enough to complete a quality project. I think the hardest part for me is I'm planning the next three months of my life based on what I THINK I'll want. It's a tough position to be in--I've been out of the country once (To London & Amsterdam) in high school, and I went with a sports team, where our days were planned out and organized. While it was a great experience, it wasn't the kind of travel experience that really gave me a good idea of what I'll want to do this summer. So, how do I make a decision?

Well, I decided to talk to my field director, Sarah--bless her heart for her patience with me. I told her EVERYTHING I was thinking, my thoughts, concerns, frustrations, and worries. She listened and talked with me for about an hour, and I feel like I was able to rediscover my focus and purpose. A big reason I chose to go to Italy, and not to 7 countries, was because I wanted to really learn about another culture and--now that I think about it--I still do. As far as my project goes, I feel like I will really be able to complete a good project (potentially a bit different than I initially imagined) and not waste my time and energy on something that will flop. I'm not just doing research as an excuse to go, I'm doing the kind of research that I love to do--I get to talk to people, and learn more about their lives! For some reason, I got caught up in the work load I could have, rather than the knowledge I can gain. Yes, I do want to have fun, BUT Yes I also do want to learn. I really feel like a field study gives me a purpose, and I'm glad I've refocused and decided to stick with the program. And hey, I can always travel a bit at the end of my trip :)

Ciao Bella!

Italian Economy

I recently decided that beyond what I have learned in my humanities classes, and the specific things for my research, I really don't know all that much about Italy. So, I decided to read up on some Italian news.

Economy
Italy used to be one of the biggest economies in Europe, but is currently experiencing a lot of trouble. Turmoil started in the 1990s, when Asia took over a lot of the countries manufacturing. In 2007, the global financial crisis hit Italy's economy hard; although things were looking up in 2010, it appears that Italy's economy is not going to pull back near top anytime soon. Italy has the second highest debt of all European countries (just following Greece). Italy is the 7th largest economy in the world and now has a "stagnant economy." Most of the debt in Italy is to its own citizens. An article I read was talking about how so much of the problems in business was rooted in the fact that, outside of one's immediate family, there is a huge distrust between individuals, family, and groups. There isn't really any upward mobility in the business world in Italy, so some of the 'best and brightest' citizens are moving to other countries with better opportunities, and immigrants of the same caliber and not moving in or replacing them. Taxes are being raised and cuts to local governments is becoming increasingly more common.

I'd heard a lot of things here and there about the Italian economy, but I would have to say that I didn't know the extent of it until I read this article. I wonder how this affects day to day life for Italian citizens, and even for tourists...?

Top 10 Rome Rome Blogs
http://www.blogs.com/topten/top-10-rome-blogs/

Inquiry Conference

I went to an inquiry conference this week where I listened to a few presentations by students who had recently gone on a field study. Everyone had great and interesting presentations, but there were a couple of girls who spoke that said some things that really stuck out to me.

One girl, Robyn, went to India to interview women about the social and physical effects that HIV has on them and their families. She interviewed 10 women and also facilitated a focus group. I was actually surprised by the small number of women she was able to interview--having majored in psychology, we always put so much emphasis on a large quantity of participants in research. That said, I feel like she still had a lot of informative and good things to say from the data she did gather. I don't know, I guess it's just giving me a better/different feel for what a field study entails... The other thing that I thought was interesting was when she, talking about mothers in India, said "women want to make sure that their children are taken care of." I feel like although her statement was referring to mothers in India, it actually described most mothers around the world--including Italy. I think a potential reason that you adults continue to live at home in Italy is because their mothers want the best for them, and if that means supporting them for a few more years, that's what they do.

The other girl that spoke, Hailey, talked about how it was hard to understand a different culture from the perspective of someone in that culture because they treat you differently based on the fact that you are a foreigner. I'm excited, but I guess the more I learn, the less sure I am of what to expect...

When in Rome...

"When in Rome, do as the Romans do." Sounds easy enough, but it would definitely help to know what exactly the Romans do... While I think I'll definitely learn most when I'm actually living in Rome, submerged in the culture, I figured it wouldn't help to figure out some of the basic tips right now.


I think my Italian language class has been quite helpful, while I wish I'd been taking Italian since my freshman year, I figure that it's better late than never. At least I'll have a semi-solid language base to jump from when I get to Italy. I'm learning the basics and the grammar now, and hope that when I'm in a country where I'm forced to use them, I'll learn quickly. So, the language, I'm working on. But there are still some other things that I want to get down so that I'm not THAT tourist who sticks out like a sore thumb.


Things to know about Rome/Italy
1. Italians are typically loud, enthusiastic people and they speak with their hands; the idea of a person bubble in Italy is a foreign concept. They love talking to people, and aren't afraid to stare..

Luckily my personal bubble is
already fairly small :)

2. Style is extremely important to Romans, and it's important to follow their dress code. Your best bet is to dress conservatively and to always be classy--wearing shorts and a T-shirt to a restaurant is unacceptable.

Italian Street Fashion

3. Public transportation is excellent in large cities and the country is served by a vast network of trains and buses. Passes for both municipal transport and cross-country trips can be purchased online before you leave.

4. Meals are a important in Italy; lunch is a leisurely activity and dinner (which is never served before 8pm) is an important time where you can enjoy time with friends and family. The check comes when you ask for it, so feel free to linger.