Focus groups are complete!
The fieldwork is all over now...almost. I'm headed to Colorado Springs this weekend to visit the US Olympic and Paralympic Museum for a practice review, which will mark the official end of fieldwork - but my staff interviews and focus groups are now complete.
Buenos Aires
On January 3, I met with the director of the Museo Casa de Yrurtia, along with an accessibility and inclusion specialist from the National Museums division of the Ministry of Culture, and a deaf employee from that department. It went very well; I had originally been unsure of the additional staff being invited (I was not expecting them) but they turned out to have really valuable information. I was also exceptionally grateful to the National Museums division for providing two interpreters for me - Spanish to LSA (Argentine Sign Language), and LSA to International Sign (IS). I tried to email and cancel the Zoom interpreter I'd arranged, but my email didn't actually send, so unfortunately they sat in the Zoom waiting room for a bit! But it was especially wonderful to have a live interpreter on site with me - the first time I've had that in my fieldwork, all the rest have been by Zoom.
The focus group on January 4 was brilliant. I did have five participants as I had hoped, thanks to one person who brought three people with him! One of the participants was DeafBlind, too, so I have a little extra information from him. I learned there are some major cultural differences between Argentina and my experience - I think choosing to include a Global South country is going to prove very wise for my research.
I celebrated by getting a three-course meal at Mirutaki. It's extremely popular, but by arriving nearly 45 minutes before they opened, I was the first in the door. My appetizer, entree, dessert, and drink came to just under $20 USD on my credit card - the economy in Argentina makes it extremely cheap for Americans to visit, but I genuinely worry for the residents. The most the Uber app allowed me to tip was under $2, and most Uber rides were under $5. No wonder they offer a preferential exchange rate for foreign credit cards - they really want the infusion of money.
Washington DC
Although I interviewed the curator of Musical Thinking back in October, I became so busy that the focus group hadn't happened yet - and the exhibit is closing this month! So I scheduled it for the 15th, and had the discussion right in the courtyard.
(Psst: I always put information in image tooltips! Check them out!)
As I expected, this was the only group not to mention the cost of attending museums being unfair for audiences that don't get an equitable experience. DC has so many free museums that we just don't think about admission prices as often, except to be startled by them when we travel elsewhere.
I was also very interested in how the participants reacted to the accommodations in Musical Thinking, but more information on that will have to wait for data analysis. Which is the next step...time to learn the next part of my PhD research!
But first - Colorado Springs! Friday is going to be cold, but Saturday will be warmer than at home. I'm looking forward to it! 🏔️