Ao3_–_Research_Methods

AO3 – Research Methods For my research I decided to use two primary and one secondary methods of research. The three methods of research are as follows: o Questionnaires o Interviews o Media – TV Questionnaire I have chosen to use questionnaires as a form of research because my topic can be a sensitive subject for many people, by providing a questionnaire some participants will find it easier to fill in the information as there will be no need to disclose any names. I have also stated at the top of the questionnaire that the information will be kept anonymous and will only be shared with the people needing access to it. This will help make the participant feel more at ease when filling in the questionnaire considering they are sharing their personal information. The questionnaires are my first primary method of research. This is a primary method of research because it is directly asking the person questions on a particular topic I will personally receive answers. There will be a lot of time and effort put into deciding on the appropriate questions to be used as the information that is collected needs to be straight to the point and clearly be focused on the topic. The questions will also consist of a range of answers where I will give examples and then have the option of “if other, please state” This will allow me to get a range of answers from the participants. I will use both open and closed questions throughout my questionnaire which will mean I will get a greater variety of answers but specific as well. Questionnaires however, are reasonably easy to distribute, and collect in and collate. Questionnaires are cost effective as they are not overly expensive to produce compared to interviews. For example for some research it is necessary to get a guest speaker who specialises in the topic and you might have to pay for travel expenses and for accommodation. The questionnaires will be the same and this will prevent any bias or unfair treatment towards the participants. Interviews Interviews are my second source of information and my second primary method of research. These are face to face contact communication. I chose to use interviews because the topic is well known and I feel that I can collect more in depth information to improve my research. The topic I have chosen to study can be sensitive to some people and therefore I feel interviews will be a good way to get the participant to open up. I will aim to use structured questions throughout the interview but in some cases they may be unstructured as I might ask my interviewee to expand on their answers. However, interviews are quite time consuming and having to arrange an interview when the participant and I are free can be a problem. In some cases the participants may become sensitive to the questions and may ask to skip a question and come back to it at the end. In some cases the participant may even ask to leave the room. When carrying out an interview I must remember not to be shocked at any information that has been given and not to show much emotion but just to show an understanding this will allow the participants to feel at ease. I must also remember to assure my interviewee confidentially and at all time employ the care values. Media – TV The TV is my third source of information and my secondary method of research. Programmes are targeted at all age groups and therefore I choose to use TV as my research focuses on a wide age range. There is a variety of programmes that are currently on TV focusing on my topic. There has been an increase in programmes from the year 2000 that are related to dieting, weight loss, weight increase etc. There programmes are o nearly all channels and they focus on weight concerns locally, nationally and globally. Now a days there is more of a channel listing such as Freeview and Sky, as before there was only BBC 1, BBC 2, UTV, Channel 4, and viewing was much more limited. There is a huge variety of programmes on the television that refer to dieting. These programmes nearly always include professional advice and support. The majority of the dieting related programmes are documentaries as they follow families or individuals who want to change their lifestyle. From a research point of view the programs are very beneficial; every household will own one TV which is accessible to everyone in the house, so everyone can receive information. Television is reasonably cheap and easy to watch. The information that is given out on the TV is up to date, and often not complicated to understand. I will now review the information that I collected from my first primary method of research. Questionnaire I decided to produce forty questionnaires, giving twenty each to teenagers and adults, including both males and females. This has allowed me to get a variety of reasons for why people are dieting and how this changes from being a teenager to being an adult. When giving out the questionnaires I decided to give out a random sample of the questionnaires to the staff working in my school, including teachers, caretakers and canteen staff, followed by a random sample to teenagers starting from the age of fourteen to nineteen. When asked if they had dieted 75% came back with a ‘yes’ answer. This is a surprising result as I thought that all the participants would have dieted for some reason whether it was as a child or adult. The chart above shows the different reasons that adults have dieted. In my opinion I thought the result of people that chose to “diet for a special occasion” and “dieting after pregnancy” was surprisingly low because I’m used to hearing that adults are going to lose weight for their holiday or to get rid of the pregnancy weight. The chart above shows the teenager’s results for the reasons that they diet. When comparing both the adult and teenager results I was not surprised when the results were collated and it revealed that the teenagers dieted more for appearance reasons than adults whom dieted for health reasons. I asked the adults if they would contact the doctor when deciding to diet and 50% answered, “Yes” although when the teenagers were asked if they would contact a doctor when deciding to diet 48% answered, “yes”. This is surprising as one assumed that few teenagers would have been aware that they should contact a doctor before beginning a diet. So are teenagers more educated about their weight, health than the public assume' Through frequent workshops in school regarding personal development the teenagers clearly know the importance to contacting a doctor. I will now review the information that I collected through my second primary method of research. Interviews Interviews are a good idea. The amount of information that is collected is often very focused. Interviews can either be structured or unstructured. I chose to do three interviews in total with two females and a male. My first interview was with Mrs Black* When asked to state “Why are you/have you been dieting'” she said it was to lose weight to fit into clothes again, and to feel good about herself and mainly to improve her appearance. This disproves my rationale as I am trying to prove that more people diet solely for health reasons. When asked to state “did you attend any weight loss groups'” she said she is currently undergoing the ‘weight watchers’ diet. This is a global weight loss group where there are many group meetings that are placed throughout world. More adults are said to join there weight watchers weight loss group than teenagers. My second interview was with Mr Green* When asked to state “Why are you/have you been dieting'” He stated that he has been dieting due to medical reasons. “I was overweight, had high blood pressure and was eating a load of junk food with high calorie and fat intake. Also I was not doing any exercise”. This proves my rationale as this shows that Mr. Green dieted solely for health reasons. When asked to state “do you think the doctor needs to be consulted before starting a diet' If yes why' If no, why'” Mr Green said yes I do. If the person has a weight problem the doctor will tell them but they should consult a doctor in case they don’t need to lose weight and they just think they do. When a person has anorexia then they think they need to diet so a doctor should be consulted to let them know that they don’t need to. This is a positive response and I believe completely with this statement as I feel it is very important that people consult their doctor when starting a diet as they can tell what would best benefit an individual. My third interview was with Mrs Yellow* When asked to state “Why are you/have you been dieting'” She said that she has been dieting for appearance benefits and to improve her personal confidence. This disproves the rationale as Mrs Yellow diets for appearance reasons and not health reasons. When asked to state “What is the main advantage of your diet'” Mrs Yellow said her main advantage from dieting is having more energy and feeling brilliant with herself due to losing four dress sizes. This links in with health and appearance reasons. When asked to state “do you think diets are a good idea'” the interviewee said that she would encourage diets only if they are done in a healthy way and done following proper professional advice. I will now review the information that I collected through my secondary method of research. TV – Media The first programme that I will focus on is “The Biggest Loser Uk”. This programme aims to help thirteen determined contestants change their life for the better. Throughout the show there are professionals who give advice about dietary and fitness needs. There is also advice on illness and health issues that can develop by being overweight. The trainer’s advise the contestants with suitable dietary requirements while undergoing a strict exercising regime. This programme shows the reality of dieting as it shows the contestants having difficulty with dieting and how hard it is to be strict with yourself while dieting. There were over four million viewers who tuned in every week of January 2011. From the public reviews of the programme one person said that the “programme was inspirational and the biggest loser websites and training programme was full of support and seemed sensible”. Although some viewers are concerned about the meal replacement supplements that are available from supermarkets and online, as they feel that snacks can be considered as a crash diet. The second TV programme I studied was “Supersize Me”. ‘Supersize Me’ is a U.S.A programme that follows a man through his journey of eating McDonalds for as month. Although this is a U.S.A programme it was shown on the British TV. America is known as the fattest nation in the world with the rate of the obesity level raising. Throughout the ‘Supersize Me’ programme there is constant advice from medical professionals. This programme highlights damage done by eating fast food take outs every day for a month. At some stages the doctors were very concerned about the man, even though he was being very clearly monitored by experts. This programme was made for health reasons as it shows the damage and danger that eating unhealthy food can have on the body. This programme links perfectly to my rationale. My hometown links in very closely with the fast food industry. There are twelve fast food, or convenience outlets within a five minute walk from three secondary schools. How tempting is this on teenagers on there way to and from school! The third TV programme I studied was “Jamie Oliver 30 Minute Meals”. This TV programme is relatively new to the British TV and is on Channel 4 every week night. This is aimed to show viewers how to cook a starter, main course and desert from scratch in all under 30 minutes, and to keep the three courses as healthily as possible. TV adverts are also another way of making people more aware of dieting or eating healthy. For example, some of the adverts that are related to healty dieting are the, Sainsbury’s campaign – “buy one get one free” on fruit with mix and match. “Deep Riverock” advert for water as it shows lovely fresh water going down the waterfall and an image of how water refreshes the body. Then there are the advertisements for healthy slimming programs such as the weight watchers pro points. Overall TV raises awareness in dieting and healthy eating campaign, everyone can access it the TV advice easily by the push of a button. TV can also make differences by shocking the viewer into seeing the damage that they are doing to their body from eating unhealthy foods.