THE LIFE HISTORY APPROACH: FIELDWORK EXPERIENCE (Pendekatan sejarah hidup: Pengalaman di lapangan)

Abstract

Life history approach in qualitative research emphasises on the importance of presenting theindividual‟s subjective evaluation of his experiences and of giving information about his socialexperiences. It is the account of a life, completed or ongoing. This approach combines both writtenand oral evidence. The information gathered offer basic evidence about social interaction and process.There are many problems involved in the use of life history approach such as reliability, validity andinterpretation of information. However, it has certain advantages for studies of social change, asdocumentation on roles, demonstration of socialisation, and as a mean towards understandingvariation within a society. At one time special attention was given to the use of life history approachbut not much recording and analysis had been done. Perhaps because researchers have not been veryclear about what to do with a life history narrative. The researchers‟ effect upon the research processand the analysis seems to be a concern in contemporary qualitative research. The same is also trueabout the individuals, their attitudes and understanding about the subject matter. This article attemptsto highlight these key issues. The focus of discussion are on the attitudes of the researchers andhis/her roles as a communicator in conducting research. Therefore, the objective of this paper is todiscuss the conceptual aspect of life history approach and to identify the strategies used by researchersto effectively communicate with the individual in the process of collecting information.