Saturday, November 10, 2007

6.2 Summary of the data

This study aimed to capture information about whakapapa researchers based in different parts of New Zealand but in actuality most of the data was gathered from North Island based researchers. It was also hoped that enough data would be gathered that trends and patterns in use could be determined. Due to the comparatively small number of questionnaires returned, this has been possible in some, but not all instances.

In terms of gender the analysed data from this study tends to reflect the data from earlier studies on genealogists both in North America, by those such as Drake (2001) and Lambert (1998), and New Zealand by Kuglin (2004) in confirming that genealogists, and in this case whakapapa researchers are predominantly female. However there are definite differences in terms of the age of whakapapa researchers with this study showing that they are younger than genealogists in the general population. This may be partly due to Māori being younger generally in the population, having an average life expectancy 7.6 years shorter than that of the total population[1] or it may be that whakapapa research is of a broader interest in the Māori population than it is generally. Possibly it is a combination of these and other unknown factors.

This study confirmed that though the majority of whakapapa researchers have Māori ancestry, there is a minority of researchers who have no Māori ancestry themselves. Due to the relatively low number of completed questionnaires, it is not possible to state whether the percentage of researchers who fit into this category would remain at 9% in a larger sample.

Whakapapa researchers share with New Zealand genealogists generally and North American counterparts a desire to gain a sense of identity or rootedness through their research. Whakapapa researchers, like other genealogists, are also concerned with preserving this information for their descendants and other family members. Litzer (1997) posits the theory that genealogy as a hobby is increasing due to the third generation principle, wherein first and second generation immigrants, such as those in the United States, seek to assimilate themselves within the dominant culture distancing themselves from their roots. In turn a reconnection with these same roots is then sought by the third generation. Kuglin (2004) considers that this principle plays into the genealogical interest of New Zealanders with immigrant backgrounds however, as the indigenous culture, Māori can not be said to be affected by such a motivation. What may factor into Māori interest in whakapapa or genealogy though, is a loss of connectedness with their iwi/tribal roots. Up until the mid twentieth century Māori had lived mainly in rural areas with a strong connection to their tribal roots. Post World War II a dramatic shift occured with large numbers of Māori leaving these rural areas in search of employment in New Zealand’s urban centres. The social changes brought about by this rural-urban shift are discussed in more detail by Barcham (1998) but it is possible that this dis-connectedness may account for an interest in whakapapa and/or for some whakapapa researchers’ reliance on public library sources of information as opposed to traditional sources such as kaumatua/tribal elders.

In terms of research experience, whakapapa researchers seem to be reasonably high users of library services prior to their interest in whakapapa research. A large proportion of whakapapa researchers have used libraries in the past for other kinds of research, more so than the genealogists that Kuglin (2004) surveyed. However, with respect to their research of whakapapa specifically, the researchers surveyed in this study did not tend to have as much experience as the genealogists of Kuglin’s earlier work, having been involved in their research for fewer years, and spending less time per month on this hobby, despite the fact that they reported visiting a public library more frequently for this purpose.

Public libraries are the institutions most likely to be visited by whakapapa researchers. For some they are the only institution they visit for this purpose. Within the public library, it is the Māori reference librarian that whakapapa researchers are most likely to consult on their initial visits and consulting a librarian is considered to be the most useful strategy on the whole. Where the genealogists in Kuglin’s (2004) study rated fiche or CD-ROM indexes the most successful tool in their research toolbelt, for whakapapa researchers the perception is that the librarian is the preferred resource with which to consult.

Specific sources of whakapapa information that the researchers in this study use are often the same ones that the genealogists of Kuglin’s (2004) study used, with broad sources such as indexes to births, deaths and marriages and electoral rolls featuring for many. However sources that are particularly useful for whakapapa research such as Māori Land Court/Te Kooti Whenua Māori records also feature prominently. Whakapapa researchers clearly consult a variety of sources in the public library to help them with their research, though they may not be using these sources as effectively as those in Kuglin’s study. For most whakapapa researchers reading the introduction or instructions of a source is an infrequent activity. Though respondents reported that they used bibliographies and footnotes more frequently, better skills in this area might increase researcher independence.

Whakapapa researchers are reasonably high users of librarian produced materials/finding aids and have a preference for printed lists that group sources geographically rather than by subject. They also utilise introductory brochures on how to conduct whakapapa research, and the whakapapa sources in the collection. The respondents in this study did not limit themselves to only printed materials though as they also take advantage of guided tours of whakapapa resources in the library and consult with online guides on library websites. In addition to these librarian produced resources, librarians themselves are of particular use to whakapapa researchers who are more likely than the respondents in Kuglin’s (2004) study to ask for librarian assistance while visiting the library. When these researchers ask for help it is more likely to be in the context of needing assistance accessing information than with needing help with a piece of technology.

Technology, specifically computers, features in the whakapapa research of respondents in this study with them reporting a similar level of computer experience as those in Kuglin’s (2004) research. Despite research by Parker (2003) that suggests Māori have less experience with and access to IT, this was for the most part not reflected in the level of self-assessed computer experience that whakapapa researchers reported. However their may be some gap in that respondents in Kuglin’s study reported more variation in the ways they used computers in genealogy research than was the case with the respondents in this study. Use of library computer catalogues however seemed to be more popular with the respondents in this study than in Kuglin’s.

In Kuglin’s (2004) study there was a definite preference, and better perceived success rate in shelf-browsing over use of the library catalogue. In this study the difference between the use of these two information seeking strategies was much less pronounced. As a resource, the library catalogue was ranked as the second most useful after asking a librarian. The reasons that respondents had for not using the catalogue were less obvious though, than in Kuglin’s research, though clearly there is some difficulty in using this resource for some whakapapa researchers.

In summary, this piece of research has determined that whakapapa researchers are younger than genealogists previously studied, with most under, rather than over, retirement age. They are predominantly female but to a lesser extent than has been found in other studies on genealogists, and they become involved in their research to more fully develop their sense of identity. Whakapapa researchers are somewhat less experienced in their genealogical research than other genealogists but make use of a variety of institutions and resources in their research. Some of the sources that they most frequently consult specifically contain Māori information but others contain family history information useful to other kinds of genealogists. They are not particularly independent users of public libraries and often ask for librarian assistance, particularly in order to access information. On initial visits to unfamiliar public libraries they are most likely to seek out the Māori reference librarian for help than by using any other strategy. They are reasonably experienced users of computers, often searching for whakapapa information online and they find the library catalogue as useful as shelf-browsing in finding the information they need.
[1] Statistics New Zealand (2005)

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