D.I.Y. Cohousing Research.
From: Harry Pasternak (Harry_Pasternaktvo.org)
Date: 03 Aug 1995 20:33:39 GMT
For those of you who might wonder how to actually study your cohousing
neighborhood or any other neighborhood to gain insight into issues that your
community may face; here, is simple extremely low cost method that anyone,
without any training, can do. 

In addition, it is an "non-obtrusive method", which collects data from
watching what people do rather than questioning people as to what they do. 
Asking tends to be an unreliable method of collecting data; for example,
people often give you the  answer they think you expect etc. etc.

This particular method involves any consumer video camera that has a time
lapse feature built in to the camera. You can set the dial to take a
"picture" at whatever interval you wish. For example, if you set it to take a
"picture" every 20 seconds
---you will then have an hours worth of data, which will take only 3 minutes
of viewing later, 14 hours of data that can be viewed in only 42 minutes. Of
course you play back at regular speed---its very easy to pick patterns of
"social networking". 

I did a study on the 10 "best" playgrounds built in Toronto (chosen by the
various borough's Recreation Directors, one said not too bother, they were
all useless--he was right). Each of these playgrounds were videotaped in a
timelapse fashion, for five days. In addition, I had two field workers
walking each neighborhood for the five days during the video taping---the
camera was mounted on the highest roof in the area.
The 450,000 frames were then analyzed.

Later, I was asked to sponsored a Canadian conference/workshop on children's
play environments. Everyone (architects, planners, landscape architect, play
experts, educators) was invited to bring their research. About seventy folks
attended the four day
workshop.

At the conference, I simultaneously showed all 10 videos at regular speed.
After watching a days worth of taping---there was an obvious problem---only
two or three children were using each of these playgrounds (for a total of
four or five minutes) over the entire day. Each of these neighborhoods had
between 200 to 500 hundred children. At the end of four days of workshopping,
the consensus of the seventy attendees was to stop building
playgrounds---that they simply were little reservations for children and had
nothing to do with play.

As well, the data can be analyzed in a more scientific manner by actually
tracking the social networking taking place. 
For example, if you wished to study the semi-public and public spaces in your
neighborhood.
 After the video taping is completed, volunteers would take turns watching
the videos and mark a large map (plan) of your neighborhood (showing the
homes, roads, pathways, etc. etc.) with a series of symbols. For example, one
symbol for sitting, one for talking,standing, doing something, child, adult,
person on balcony, person on porch, etc. etc. The volunteer would simply mark
the map, in the right palce, each time a specific type of acivity occurred.
Once all the tapes have been viewed, the storey of "social networking" for
the neighborhood would easily envisioned.

Try it! Good luck!

Harry

- sent via an evaluation copy of BulkRate (unregistered).

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