Part A

Field experience can be good or bad, but it always gives a memorable lesson to the person. I

have personal experience with fieldwork on projects and it is usually fun, but I made some

mistakes in the process. But as a result, I learned valuable lessons. During my fieldwork, I

became increasingly aware of the importance of including key research data in my research,

but due to the lack of data on the subject, I conducted investigations using other qualitative

data sources. I designed interviews for two groups to investigate the concept of urban politics

developed by political elites and their impact on marginalized urban poor people.

The first group I interviewed included government officials, and the second group included

people living in slums. Elite interviews were mostly semi-structured, consists of formal

communication with open and closed questions. Interviews with elite groups always raise

formal questions but confirm that they are familiar with the subject, so they can naturally

connect with interviewees. Interviews range from 30 minutes to 2 hours. Respondents usually

provide some data sets for review and then some discussion. Due to more formal

communication, I can't get the information I needed for my project.

Some interviews have shown that some of the issues raised are politically subtle, and lack of

trust has led political elites to evade responses. Communication with the elite was boring due

to official interrogations. Sometimes I miss being able to communicate informally. The elites

were also bored with formal interrogations, but due to some of their limitations, I was

reluctant to communicate informally with them. I collected the data using notes. I tried to find

a balance between taking notes and interviewing but found it difficult. I was angry during the

interview due to the communication gap and couldn't do it perfectly. When I don't get enough

information from the interviewer, I feel angry and disappointed and want to complete the

interview as soon as possible. I was able to reach more political elites than originally thought,
but often to no avail, because of the lack of contact with them, I was unable to obtain the

necessary information from the group. I prefer to transfer the interview to the slum people to

overcome these restrictions because there were some problems. Relatively speaking, the

second sample group was more cooperative, and I immediately realized that I spent a lot of

time focusing on the political elite.

As mentioned earlier, the slum dwellers gained confidence and provided many nuances to

understand my understanding of urban renewal. This was very helpful for my project. In

many cases, the data collection process was very stressful and sometimes unstable, but it was

very flexible and I learned how to focus on achieving my goals. At the same time, I know

when to change our approach in this area, especially when some research methods fail.

Looking back, I need to change methods early to save a lot of time. In retrospect, I would not

pay too much attention to the elite sample group, because key data is not needed to solve my

research questions related to public policy. I saved time and effort by finding this information

from secondary resources such as government reports and books. I also want to hire local

researchers early in the process as they pave the way for the trust of the respondents. At the

same time, I realized that I needed to provide more field-related training for translation

researchers.

The assistant researcher was very confident and also he imposed his political views on the

opinions of respondents. I told him in a better way that why the respondent's answer should

not be overestimated. In some cases, I found that the translation process was not as effective

as on the site. After becoming familiar with the local dialect, I was able to determine when

the translator did not provide a complete picture of the respondent's response. I think this

showed a lack of training for translators and I have not only learned to believe that the

position is obvious, especially in this case. If the omissions are obvious, I would request a
translation for more detailed information. At the beginning of the fieldwork, I was too self-

sufficient and, in some cases, did not follow up on the interview questions I asked.

Part B

Overall, the experience was complicated and tough. This process just introduces me to the

repetitive nature of field investigations. It is becoming clearer that in this area there are no

plans on paper and cleaning can never be done by recognizing the importance of local

flexibility and sustainability the communication. Backup options are needed to be prepared

for all aspects of the study. If I properly manage both groups by understanding the gap

between communications I was able to save my precious days to get expected results. In

interviews with elite groups, I prefer to do formal communication but I don't get a positive

response. I understand through my experience that if I want to interview or communicate

with someone for one hour I should be entertaining and informal for some time to get the

trust and attention of the respondents. One of my main weaknesses was the anger in

interviews with elite groups. I was angry when I put in a lot of effort but I didn't get a positive

response. From my experience, I learned that communication should be always in a polite

way and always focus on goals and try to achieve them. Anger is a very negative

interpersonal ability. I was happy that the job went well, but I didn't get the data I wanted

from the elite class due to poor communication with them, the interview did not produce any

results. But I got the more rich data from official sites. Interview with poor slum people was

enjoyable. I don't choose a formal way of interview by taking notes all the time. I got their

trust then interviewed them. A better understanding of cultural and communication

differences can help to raise the better results. I think my fieldwork project was a great

success, mainly due to great experience with the slum people. And I learned a lot of things

through my experience that can help me in the future.