Feedback requested

[Aussie Peregrino]

Hello pilgrim friends,

I walked the camino del norte, Irùn-Finisterra in 2010 and it was a very formative experience. Questions about pilgrim spirituality still present themselves to me.

I am a Churches of Christ minister, Army chaplain, and now a Master of Theology student. Currently I am constructing a research proposal for a project to undertake on the camino. The tentative topic of the research is: The spiritual value of religious practice: why people undertake Christian pilgrimage, an extended case study of the camino de Santiago.

I understand that this forum has had its fair share of people posting to further their own agendas, and I hope to avoid that pitfall.

At this stage, I am only asking for help in proposing my research and not carrying it out. First I want to be sure that it meets certain criteria, including that the research would not be unethical or counterproductive. To this end, could you help me navigate ethical and practical concerns I have about operationalising the spirituality of the camino (i.e. making the camino and pilgrims into research subjects).

Any responses, especially from the poll would be valued greatly. This information will be included with my proposal but not in the research itself.

 

[Aussie Peregrino]

What do you mean by "conduct research OFF the camino because researching it would detract from the experience"?

I was wondering whether it means either a) doing research in a place physically away from the caminos or even Spain or b) doing research, such as interviews or using questionnaires, along the caminos and in the villages and towns around it but not while walking it yourself.

Thanks Kathar1na, I mean a). My concern is that asking people about their spirituality as they experience it might be disruptive. Perhaps I could seek the data after the completion of a person's Camino (see if I could base out of the pilgrim office at Santiago) or even online.

Hope that helps.

 

[Kanga]

@Aussie Peregrino you may not be able to get a representative sample of answers (first question). The responses you get will be skewed towards those who are overtly religious or "spiritual". Others might not want to answer questions.

 

[Deleted member 3000]

It should be an interesting study. Good luck finding the right sampling method. Let us know the results.

 

[Shades of Narnia]

Hello pilgrim friends,

I walked the camino del norte, Irùn-Finisterra in 2010 and it was a very formative experience. Questions about pilgrim spirituality still present themselves to me.

I am a Churches of Christ minister, Army chaplain, and now a Master of Theology student. Currently I am constructing a research proposal for a project to undertake on the camino. The tentative topic of the research is: The spiritual value of religious practice: why people undertake Christian pilgrimage, an extended case study of the camino de Santiago.

I understand that this forum has had its fair share of people posting to further their own agendas, and I hope to avoid that pitfall.

At this stage, I am only asking for help in proposing my research and not carrying it out. First I want to be sure that it meets certain criteria, including that the research would not be unethical or counterproductive. To this end, could you help me navigate ethical and practical concerns I have about operationalising the spirituality of the camino (i.e. making the camino and pilgrims into research subjects).

Any responses, especially from the poll would be valued greatly. This information will be included with my proposal but not in the research itself.

 

[Shades of Narnia]

The site onewordcamino.com is a lovely research outcome you may enjoy............brief, sincere. I loved it!

 

[HeidiL]

Anthro/public health hybrid here, which may colour my reply, but I sincerely believe that your research question might be what mixed methods (including participatory observation) are made for.

Good luck!

 

[Aussie Peregrino]

Thanks all for the valuable feedback, so far. Once I have an approved proposal, I hope to be able to post about any future camino and study plans.

 

[SafariGirl]

Hello pilgrim friends,

I walked the camino del norte, Irùn-Finisterra in 2010 and it was a very formative experience. Questions about pilgrim spirituality still present themselves to me.

I am a Churches of Christ minister, Army chaplain, and now a Master of Theology student. Currently I am constructing a research proposal for a project to undertake on the camino. The tentative topic of the research is: The spiritual value of religious practice: why people undertake Christian pilgrimage, an extended case study of the camino de Santiago.

I understand that this forum has had its fair share of people posting to further their own agendas, and I hope to avoid that pitfall.

At this stage, I am only asking for help in proposing my research and not carrying it out. First I want to be sure that it meets certain criteria, including that the research would not be unethical or counterproductive. To this end, could you help me navigate ethical and practical concerns I have about operationalising the spirituality of the camino (i.e. making the camino and pilgrims into research subjects).

Any responses, especially from the poll would be valued greatly. This information will be included with my proposal but not in the research itself.

Hi Aussie Pilgrim, I guess the question that occurs to me about your research is 'Are you only interested in the views/experiences of those who walk the Camino for religious and/or Christian reasons?' because my sense is that many walk for reasons beyond this scope, which could be termed 'spiritual but not religious'.