As part of our proposal deliberation, today we had to present to each other and supervisors the direction of our PhDs. Although it was only a five minute presentation followed by Q&As, it felt stressful for all of us who aren’t really sure what we are going to do. I also realised when I was thinking about what I wanted to present that I really do need more than 5 minutes.
The researchers made comments and asked questions of us, some of them difficult, but I don’t think that is a bad thing. I ended up really enjoying it (if that is the right word) because this was the first time that I felt that I had to defend my research. Besides, it’s all part of the process and I am thankful that I am doing it with a bunch of other [awesome] people so we can keep each other motivated and pumped – I’m pretty sure that I was scaring some people with motivational high fives today.
So after I have some more formal feedback, I’ve got to knuckle down and write it up into a formal proposal, eeep! 🙂
Comments and things to think about:
- The ethical considerations/societal benefits of company access to online community support data (i.e. when medicine/benefits are being abused etc)
- What participatory action research might look like, what will be an appropriate method to understanding the whole picture from the participants
- Whether identity plays a role in online communities: are there movers and shakers who might influence particular kinds of sharing practices etc.
- What the digital interventions might look like