Okay so starting the IRB proposal seemed like it was going to be a headache. And it kind of was but I was able to get a few things finished up. I still have a lot of holes though. I am a little frustrated because I haven't had success getting with my mentors about the project. I have just been emailing them questions but I think going to their offices will be much more effective. They have a lot of the answers that I need especially concerning the methods that we will use for the project. For now in my proposal I have made up a lot of the procedures according to what I think it will be like, but that might just change. But I'm just trying to think through the process and write it out as logically as possible. There are some places though where I know that I do not understand exactly how it will be so before wasting a lot time, I want to ask them directly.
I have been able to get a hold of Amy. We plan to have a meeting in Salt Lake this Saturday to discuss the project. I have a lot of questions to ask her as well. These questions have more to do with conducting the study in a different culture than they are about the methods. For instance, What went easier than she expected- if anything did. What was a lot harder than she anticipated? How did she find participants? How did she explain the project to the participants and the parents? How was she received? How did she handle any negative feelings that she may have encountered? What was most affective in working with the children? Was she able to effectively instruct them on the exercises? How did the pedometers work out? Did she lose any? (I want to know because my mentors want to give the kids accelerometers this time and they are a lot more expensive.) What advice can she give me for this type of a project? What would she think would differ in Mexico from her project in Ghana?
These are just a few of the questions that I have had in my mind and while I have a few ideas about the responses, it is always better to hear it from someone who has first hand experience. So in conclusion, I have a lot of questions that I need to ask a lot of people before I can move forward with my project.
These are all really good questions. I'm glad you will get the chance to discuss some of these with Amy on Saturday. You may also want to touch base with Annie in the Tonga group - she is thinking of using pedometers also and I'm sure would be interested in the information you learn from Amy's experience. One note on the IRB - you will want to really consider how your overall experience fits into this protocol (and your FS proposal) and, for example, be careful not to limit yourself to the core stability testing methods when there may be a greater context to apply in your methods. It sounds like you are already working on this, as many of the questions you posted are right in line with this. consideration.
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