Discourse Analysis: Effects on the Researcher

Abstract

Everyone hopes when commencing a research project that there will be no major disruptions.Most methodology texts focus on the practical aspects of conducting research, but gloss over how far from the original path the actual research can take you.While there are anecdotal stories from other higher-degree students about conflicts with supervisors, deaths in the family, and financial problems, there is little in the literature on doing research that prepares you for the possibility of a major disruption. However, as the research period can span a number of years, people’s plans and career paths evolve. The main aspect of this chapter is to look at how one learns theory through doing research. I also wanted to show how by developing a personal understanding of the theories I was reading I was able to piece together a cohesive picture from a mine of data I had collected. I struggled with how to comprehend discourse analysis as a technique and how to integrate its findings into the research from day one until late in the process: the change of supervision forced me to articulate what I understood discourse analysis to be and to come to terms with how to operationalize it. In effect, I (Pol) learned the discourses of discourse analysis through articulating my understandings of the methodology to supervisors. In order to do this, I will first outline the research I conducted, and describe the supervisors who guided me through this process.