21 The Dynamic Relationship Between Ethnographers, Gatekeepers, and Participants
Simone Flanigan
Goals
After reading this article, you will be able to do the following:
- Describe a gatekeeper and their importance.
- Define the key differences between a participant and an informant.
- Give concrete examples of building trust and connection with your intended gatekeepers, informants, and participants.
Introduction
Your ethnography’s success often depends on the relationships you build with gatekeepers and participants, also referred to as key informants. These people are puzzle pieces that enable us to access the research site, gather valuable insights, and create a comprehensive and authentic understanding of the cultural context necessary for a comprehensive ethnographic study.
Gatekeepers
Gatekeepers hold the keys to the community or group that you wish to access for your research. They can be individuals, organizations, elders, or community leaders who control entry and protect their community’s interests. Gatekeepers often have the authority to grant or deny permission for research activities, so establishing rapport and trust with them is crucial. Respectfully engaging with gatekeepers builds trust in negotiating access, which ensures a successful and ethical research process.
Example
Olivia is researching homelessness and discovered a nonprofit, Hope for Heroes, which holds free workshops twice a year for homeless veterans. Because there is a workshop coming up, Olivia wants to attend and conduct her ethnographic research during the event. After calling the organization, Olivia is told she must get special permission from the Hope for Heroes founder, Dr. Rodriguez. Dr. Rodriguez is an important gatekeeper who Olivia must now go through, and because of this, she writes the following email.
Dear Dr. Rodriguez,
My name is Olivia McKinnon, and I am writing to express my deep interest in volunteering at the upcoming workshop organized by Hope for Heroes. I’ve learned about the incredible work your organization does in supporting and empowering our brave veterans, and I would love an opportunity to contribute to this powerful cause.
I am currently working on a college project centered on homelessness, and attending the workshop would be an incredible opportunity for me to learn more about how veterans become homeless and what challenges they face after returning from their service.
I would love the opportunity to meet to further discuss the event’s details, the objectives you aim to achieve, and how I can contribute to its success.
Thank you for considering my request, Dr. Rodriguez. I truly admire the work you and your nonprofit are doing. I look forward to meeting with you and being part of this meaningful initiative.
I look forward to hearing from you.
Best,
Olivia
To ensure her email was professional, Olivia checked her grammar and sentence structure on multiple platforms. She also had trusted friends and colleagues read it before she sent it. Because she took her time and wrote a convincing email, Dr. Rodriguez agreed to meet with her. This is a fantastic first step, but Olivia must now earn Dr. Rodriguez’s trust in their face-to-face meeting. To prepare for this, she spends time organizing her research design and looking at the Hope for Heroes website to prove to Dr. Rodriguez that her intentions can be trusted and that she is willing to put in the effort to be there.
Here is an example of what that face-to-face meeting might sound like:
Olivia: Hello, Dr. Rodriguez. Thank you so much for meeting with me. It’s really an honor to meet you and talk more about the work you are doing here at Hope for Heroes.
Dr. Rodriguez: Good to meet you too, Olivia. It’s great to hear you are excited about our workshop, but it’s really important to me that any research conducted is respectful and contributes positively to our mission. Can you provide more details about your research and how it aligns with our goals?
Olivia: Absolutely. I am looking to shed light on the underlying factors contributing to homelessness in our community and identify potential solutions. By understanding the experiences and perspectives of individuals facing homelessness, I hope to generate insights that can inform policy and support initiatives aimed at addressing this social issue.
Dr. Rodriguez: Wow, that sounds great. Still, to protect the privacy and dignity of the people we serve, how can we ensure that you protect the anonymity of the veterans that attend and maintain their trust during the research process?
Olivia: I fully understand and respect the importance of confidentiality, Dr. Rodriguez. I will adhere to strict ethical guidelines, obtain informed consent from participants, and where needed, use pseudonyms to protect their identities. I am committed to maintaining their privacy and ensuring that I represent their voices accurately and respectfully in all my research.
Dr. Rodriguez: I appreciate your commitment to ethical research practices, Olivia. Homelessness is a sensitive issue, and it’s crucial to approach it with compassion and empathy. Let me discuss your proposal with our team, and if they agree and feel comfortable, we can explore how you can attend our workshop while ensuring our attendees’ well-being and consent.
Olivia: Thank you so much, Dr. Rodriguez. I truly appreciate your consideration and the opportunity to be a part of the workshop.
Through this conversation, Olivia engages with Dr. Rodriguez, the gatekeeper, demonstrating an understanding of the community’s concerns, expressing the research focus on homelessness, and outlining a commitment to ethical research practices. By addressing the need for privacy and consent, Olivia shows respect for the community’s values and increases the likelihood of gaining access to the community she wants to work with.
Participants and Informants
Once the gatekeepers grant us access, we can engage with participants within the community to gain firsthand insights and experiences. Participants are the primary data source and play a vital role in shaping the research findings. They share their perspectives, narratives, and cultural practices, allowing us to gain a deep understanding of the social phenomena being studied. Their involvement and contributions are fundamental to capturing the complexity, nuances, and diversity within the community and to shedding light on the cultural dynamics at play.
When Olivia attends the workshop and speaks with the homeless veterans attending, she gathers powerful information from the participants at the workshop.
“An ethnographer seeks out ordinary people with ordinary knowledge and builds on their common experience” (Spradley, 1980, p. #). Those people can be either participants or informants. But what is the difference? Informants typically act as knowledgeable sources who offer insights and cultural knowledge to the researcher, while participants actively engage in the social activities under investigation.
Let’s return to Olivia’s ethnographic research to help us understand the differences.
Because of his expertise in homelessness, Dr. Rodriguez can be considered both a gatekeeper and an informant. He offers a broader perspective on homelessness based on his professional knowledge and experience working with the homeless population.
In contrast, a participant named John is a homeless veteran who shares his personal experiences of living on the streets, the struggles he faces, and the social dynamics within the homeless community. He provides insights into the daily realities, survival strategies, and the barriers he encounters when seeking assistance.
“Informants play a crucial role in ethnographic research as they provide access to the cultural meanings, practices, and perspectives of the community under study” (Emerson, Fretz, & Shaw, 2011. p. #). So, while Olivia watches the participant, John, Dr. Rodriguez, acting as an informant, may be able to help deepen Olivia’s knowledge about what she is observing. That said, “informants are not mere data sources but are co-constructors of knowledge in ethnographic research, actively engaging in the interpretation and representation of their own culture” (Denzin & Lincoln, 2005, p. #). What our informants have to offer us as researchers can be just as valuable as observing and interviewing our participants.
Conclusion
Recognizing the gatekeepers and participants’ role in ethnography is essential for establishing meaningful connections, gaining access, and producing research that accurately reflects the community’s realities. It demonstrates respect for the community, promotes ethical research practices, and enhances the ethnographic work’s validity and significance.
In our research, participants, informants, and gatekeepers play special, individual roles in shaping the research process and in enriching the findings. The participants’ collaboration, the informants’ expertise, and the gatekeepers’ support foster mutual learning, ethical research practices, and a comprehensive understanding of the cultural dynamics being explored. Together, they contribute to ethnographic research’s validity, richness, and significance, ensuring that the community’s voices and experiences are accurately represented.
Practice
As you set out to write your ethnography, try these practice exercises to help you enhance your skills in building relationships with gatekeepers, informants, and participants.
- Reflect on personal biases and assumptions: Take time to reflect on your own biases, assumptions, and preconceived notions that may influence your interactions. Cultivate self-awareness and be open to challenge your perspectives.
- Practice cultural competence: Familiarize yourself with the cultural norms, customs, and traditions of the community or group you will be studying. Learn basic greetings, etiquette, or any specific protocols that are important in their cultural context. Don’t be afraid to ask what the appropriate behavior is. People are generally willing to help if you show some humility and ask direct questions about what is expected of your behavior.
- Role-play: Enlist fellow students or friends to take on the gatekeepers, informants, or participants’ roles. Practice initiating conversations, establishing rapport, and addressing potential challenges that may arise during interactions.
- Conduct mock interviews: Create a list of questions based on your research objectives, and practice conducting interviews with friends who can act as possible informants. Pay attention to active listening, asking follow-up questions and maintaining a respectful and engaging interview atmosphere.
- Attend community events: Look for local events or gatherings related to your research area. Attend these events with the intention of meeting and engaging with individuals who can provide valuable insights. Practice initiating conversations, actively listening, and building connections within a limited time frame.
- Explore online platforms: Join online communities, forums, or social media groups related to your research topic. Engage in discussions, ask questions, and connect with individuals who can potentially become informants or who can provide access to participants. Practice effective online communication and virtual relationship-building skills.
References
Denzin, N. K., & Lincoln, Y. S. (2011). The SAGE Handbook of Qualitative Research (4th ed.). Sage Publications.
Emerson, R. M., Fretz, R. I., & Shaw, L. L. (2011). Writing Ethnographic Fieldnotes (2nd ed.). The University of Chicago Press.
Spradley, J. P. (1980). Participant observation. Harcourt Brace Jovanovich College.
