As we deepen our understanding of the social context of the Williams Lake area, we are also refining our choice of research methodologies. To begin with, a talk with Leo has made us realize that a huge portion of our work will be preliminary research on the many existing types of carpool programs and how they work to address particular community needs. This will involve analysis of program outlines and speaking with leaders within this domain.
The next crucial aspect is developing a deep understanding of the group we are seeking to help develop a solution with (youth in transition seeking employment). This will happen through background research about the cultural context of the area and working with representatives of the community we hope to serve such as Dave Preepers and Matt Neufeld. Further research will take place in person when we arrive in Williams Lake. Some of the methods that we hope to incorporate include:
- Preliminary Research: Including census data, mapping, and theoretical framework (academic articles). Prior to our departure to Williams Lake, we will be employing all of these methods in order to better understand the benefits and challenges facing youth employment, and shared transportation in the theoretic sense. Regarding census data, we are currently working on finding census information on how many youth are in Williams Lake, and what the youth unemployment rate is. Similar census data surrounding average work commute times, could also shape our understanding of the current transport situation on a whole. Moreover, we have found various academic articles which provide us with context on why providing transportation for youth is beneficial for communities. This includes information on the socioeconomic impacts of youth unemployment, as well the socioeconomic impacts of shared transportation. One article we found, features research on marginalized youth in B.C., and states that the top cited barrier to employment is transportation. This article not only will help enhance our research (which will be shaped in terms of a grant application), but will provide a basis to say that it is not just us and the community of Williams Lake who see youth transportation as a need, but other well-established academics as well. Nonetheless, we do recognize that theoretical frameworks are just that – theoretical. Hence, we realize we must not rely too much on the theory, if it does not support research gathered from community members. Rather, we should draw on theory to enhance our research.
- Focus Groups: Considering that this project would be shaped by by and for the community, we are expecting focus groups to be our primary method of research about the ways in which a carpool system could be successful. Based on Skop’s article about focus groups and Emily Rosenman’s notes on their process, we would work to segment the groups into relevant categories in order to understand the needs of various interest groups. Depending on the response from the youth, we may need to group youth into cultural groups or age groups to improve the level of comfort of participants. We will communicate a preliminary survey that will invite participants to reflect on their experiences as youth in transition and imagine how a job shuttle could benefit their ability to access employment. It would also surround what various challenges they may anticipate being associated with a shuttle, and where they tend to seek employment in the first place.
One aspect to consider is how our position as youth in university will shape our interaction with the youth from around Williams Lake. We may need to ask a community partner to facilitate the discussion in order to have the youth be more at ease. By encouraging discussion and listening closely to youth concerns, we will hopefully uncover important issues that we have not yet considered ourselves and foster conversations that will strengthen the community in various ways.
- Participant Mapping: We were very inspired by Norris’ article on the benefits of participant mapping for the way it can bring power back into the hands of a community by providing a venue to define a place based on the peoples’ interpretations. We hope to incorporate it into the later steps of the project research, when determining the logistics of the job bus system. Participant mapping would allow us to determine, with the community, where are the most desired destinations, and where are the potential meeting locations. This process could potentially be incorporated into the focus groups in order for us to be more efficient with our research. We would want to use this method to map where the youth in the community are from and where they think they could potentially be employed.
- Interviews: We expect that interviews could be useful in our process when we need specialists’ information about a specific area, whether talking to a police officer about safety concerns, or a city planner for transportation logistics. We hope to incorporate this into our project before and/or during our trip to Williams Lake. We also anticipate conducting various phone interviews while we’re there, in addition to the phone interviews we have been conducting now. Currently, we have gained various insights through interviews with people such as Dave Preeper of the Child Development Centre, Matt Neufeld with the Boys and Girls Club, and Carrie Sundahl with the “Better at Home” group. Through these preliminary interviews, we have been able to gather valuable information on various facets of the implementing a shuttle bus, and for whom. Carrie for instance, gave us information on where seniors are going, where there are gaps in transit and why it’s not very feasible to merge youth and senior transport options. Meanwhile, Matt and Dave have been telling us more about the situation surrounding youth transport barriers in the area, including details about currently existing infrastructure in the area (such as a shuttle bus which is currently being unused), and issues that may arise when trying to reach out to youth. We anticipate that such discussions will continue, both with contacts we have already reached out to, as well as representatives from other organizations we may want to incorporate into the job bus system. These representatives may include Chris, a city planner with Williams Lake, as well as employers and employment services such as “CCATECH”. Once arriving in Williams Lake, we will likely follow up with these representatives, and conduct more formal interviews to finalize our reports. This method seems like the best option for reaching out to professionals/organizations, as they each bring their own niche expertise. Meanwhile, focus groups are likely better options for youth, as they will feel more comfortable in a group and their experiences may be best understood when in dialogue with others.