Since Williams and Best 1990, there have been a limited number of studies that included the measurement of gender stereotypes on the African continent. Can anyone advise on how to gather data in Africa or collaborators for a large study?
Try breaking it down to countries rather than the whole continent. Remember Africa has 54 countries. I would look at existing research from your larger countries (i.e. Nigeria, Ethiopia, Kenya, etc), to determine where those researchers obtained their data. Follow up with those organizations to see if they have the data you need. Good luck!
Hi Faith Obioma ,
Your question starts by acknowledging a research gap in literature related to measurement of gender stereotypes on the African continent since Williams & Best (1990). From that statement, I'll assume that your "data collection" question refers to (1) "the data collection instrument" (i.e., a suitable measurement scale for gender stereotype to be included in your questionnaire), rather than (2) the logistics associated with sampling. I'll however try to provide some advice on both:
(1) The data collection instrument
If there is a gap in literature regarding a suitable measurement scale, you may either "develop" a new one, or "adapt" an existing one. Please note that the instrument you cited (Williams & Best, 1990) is nearly 30 years old. Hence, some dimensions might be outdated (e.g., the gender binary male-female classification is not considered inclusive today). In that case, I wouldn't recommend scale "adoption". Also, bear in mind that you need to validate the construct in the study area/context where you wish to apply it. [Please note: if you have a multidimensional scale, test for internal consistency (i.e., Cronbach alpha) at sub-scale level]. Since Africa is a culturally diverse continent, language alone might imply translations which don't distort the original meaning of the item.
(2) Sampling issues
I agree with the advice provided by Dennis Alvarez . I'll also add that you might want to pick a country whose perceptions may be generalized over an entire region. For instance, if you select Gabon as a country, you should know that the ethnic group (Fang) predominantly residing in the northern part of Gabon is also found in Cameroon and Equatorial Guinea. They share the same culture and may be hypothesized to to share similar perceptions as far as gender stereotyping is concerned. The same scenario can take place with the Shangane ethnic group found in South Africa, Mozambic, and Zimbabwe; or even the Hausa people who are the second largest ethnic group in Africa. They can be found in about 14 African countries. The point is ethnicity is a trans-frontier construct which might improve your odds in generalizing your results.
Finally, if you seek a data collection company in South Africa, I would recommend the Inter African Research Consultancy (IARC). Search for it on LinkedIn. It's a flexible and cost effective option. I used them for 3 rounds of data collection for my ongoing PhD dissertation.
I hope my answer will be helpful.
All the best,
Kimo
Cory Cobb Thank you for your suggestions. I had the same thoughts with my last study in Nigeria. Unfortunately, that did not work out so well, as of the three research companies I could find, two never responded or returned my calls and the last was outrageously expensive for the service they were willing to provide. We did end up contacting organizations who were very happy to share the survey, however, the response rate was slow. It stalled the research for a while. Do you have suggestions for companies or researchers in a similar research area on the continent who may like to be a co-author?
Dennis Alvarez Thanks for your suggestion. I stated Africa and not specific countries so that researchers who may be interested in collaborations won't be discouraged to comment or send me a direct message. Like I stated in my response to Cory Cobb above, my experience with non-academic organizations so far has not been promising. Related papers are also quite old, that corresponding authors' emails bounce back (they may have retired now, changed jobs/universities or something).
H. Kimo Boukamba I appreciate your very detailed response! I was in fact referring to the second part (sampling logistics). I also agree with generalization based on ethnicity, especially when it comes to countries that share a border. I will definitely contact the South African company. Thanks again!
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