Posted by TJResearcher on December 12, 2000 at 06:45:19:
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I’d like to be as direct and up front about my intentions so as to invite as much criticism, support, or questions as you can muster. First off, I’m a scholar, not a consumer. I discovered this and the few related sites about the sex trade in Tijuana while beginning research for my doctoral dissertation on the topic. I’m an anthropologist, and (hopefully) in a few years, I’ll be publishing a book about this topic in some (hopefully not too) obscure academic press. An anthropologist is someone who studies human beings and human behaviors. I’m a medical and a cultural anthropologist, and I study culture, gender, sexuality, poverty, and public health issues. I use a qualitative rather than a quantitative approach. This means I’m trained to collect my data through open-ended questions and “hanging out”, rather than collecting statistics and numbers. Initially, I designed this project to include perspectives and experiences primarily from female service providers (“las chicas”). However, after reading thousands of posts from the male/consumers perspectives, I’ve decided that my research will really not be complete without them. There is a serious lack of information on “clients”, “novios de las chicas”, etc. I’m not here to judge your behavior or ideas, or even to make comments on this board. I am interested in recruiting you as possible anonymous participants in my research project. Many of you are aware of, and explicitly reflective on, what you do, how and why you do it, and who you do it with. Reading about your practices, expectations, hopes, fulfillment, and even your disappointments and confusion has been invaluable to me. I’ve been able to get at a lot of that just from reading your message boards. What you say may not be what you actually do, but, realistically, its as close as any researcher is going to get considering the personal, and controversial, nature of your hobby. I’m still struggling with the ethical and practical issues involved with using web-based data - it would be a HUGE help to me if some of you would be willing to start up a sort-of “on the record” e-mail correspondence. This would have the advantage of allowing me to ask a standard set of questions, while maintaining your privacy. All correspondence is both anonymous (you may use any pseudonym you wish) as well as confidential. My project went through a lengthy legal and ethical review process before it was approved. This means that I have “Human Subjects” approval through my university (Yale University), which in layman’s terms basically means there is there is a Human Subjects office which you can contact (www.yale.edu/hsc) to handle any questions, concerns, or complaints. The Official Title of the Project, for reference with the Human Subjects Committee office, is “Anthropology and Public Health: An Ethnographic Analysis of Risk for HIV/AIDS Among Women in Tijuana, Mexico.” A more up to date and unofficial title, would be: “Harm Reduction in the Zona Roja: Survival Strategies in the Tijuana Sex Trade”. Though my project was funded, I only have enough money to support my basic needs while doing my research. The only compensation I can offer you for your time is the opportunity to participate an innovative research project that will hopefully have a positive influence on policies in Tijuana. I can also offer you a free summarized report of my findings (web-based), or information on how to purchase the book or obtain articles once they come out. I’ve set up a free email account specifically for our correspondence. I’d be happy to answer any questions or concerns you might have. I will also provide you with a copy of my confidentiality agreement at that time. I look forward to hearing from you. |
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