i Parkia biglobosa - School of Forest Resources & Environmental ...

Chapter 4 Methods
The approach I used to study P. biglobosa could be classified as an ethnobotanical
investigation. My interests and focus of study evolved as my 27-month service in
northern Ghana progressed. I began as a cultural and linguistic outsider, and as I
progressed in my language skills and assimilation into the village society, my cultural and
local knowledge increased. Casual observations and information gathered during my first
year in Kandiga were the basis for concentrating on local trees and how people use them,
or as Martin (1995) defines ethnobotany as the study of interactions between people and
plants.
My interests for this study concentrated on the traditional and economic values of
one specific tree, P. biglobosa. I sought to assess the local perception of this tree. I
employed several research methods including participant observation, informal
interviews, formal interviews, group interviews and simulations. These methods are not
independent and exclusive of each other. I used these methods concurrently and
throughout the study. The information I gathered from observations and informal
interviews progressively narrowed my focus to dawadawa production. However I did
not abandon these methods as I carried out formal interviews and simulations. The
following descriptions are details of the research methods I used.
Participant Observation
My personal observations were a major source for the data I collected. I lived in
Kandiga over a span of two years. I was the fourth and final Peace Corps volunteer in
Kandiga, and villagers were accustomed to solemia, the Nankani word for white man,
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