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Working on this summer research I improved not only my interviewing skills but I also learned different techniques for setting up interviews. It was almost impossible for me to talk to the owner on the phone which led me to personally visiting the businesses. Having to conduct the interviews in Spanish was a very interesting aspect for me because it created a connection with the owners that they might not have had with someone who could not speak Spanish. This summer research allowed me to open up more and taught me to be more insistent when trying to get potential participants especially business owners. All the research conducted in Trenton by other teams allowed me to learn and better understand my town, Trenton.
The bulk of our research consisted on setting up interviews with business owners which took a greater amount of time then previously planned. In order to set up interviews we called the businesses and asked for the owner after introducing our research. Unfortunately, our method of using the telephone was not very successful. Many people were hesitant to put the owner on the telephone and usually asked us to call at a later time or a different day. The major problem I encountered with the telephone is the lack of trust Latino businesses had when I called. These Latino businesses did not know me and could not trust that I in fact was a TCNJ student doing research. With the history of raids in Trenton, it was understandable for Latino businesses to distrust me. As Dan relied on the personal contacts of Dr. Adler to confirm interviews with Italian business owners, I took a different approach. I took a trip to Chambersburg and visited the local Latino businesses. After introducing myself and the research, people were more eager to find the owner and confirm interviews.
Johanna Soto
Sociology Major, Public Policy Minor
TCNJ Class of '09
