Researcher's Story Told and Participants' Story Still Untold: Commentary on Günther

Abstract

Guinther's (1998) study is of complicated interactions among cultures. She had to cope with participants' diverse cultural expectations of interpersonal relationships that differed from her own. Implicit approaches of conducting research and styles of report writing that she had been acquainted with might not be completely the same as those of American dissertation committee members. Therefore it is natural that Gunther had many stories to tell, a few of which were constructed in the present article. In spite of notable cultural variations in the way of effectively gaining access to the participants, a generalizable principle is to secure the appropriate social intermediary who connects the researcher to the target social group. I emphasize the collaborative role of the host researcher as intermediary for the visiting researcher and as interpreter of the psychology of the participants, who have their own story of dealing with the task of participation.