Questions to self are usually far too general or ambiguous to be asked as written, even if they were in the indigenous language.

Much planning care is needed in wording questions to a local person. To avoid confusion and miscommunication questions must be in the local language. (You should also be sure to list in your field notes the question along with the answer, when you get down to doing the actual interviewing.)

Careful wording of questions is important when interviewing a culture informant. Listed below are some types questions which could be reworded to obtain clear factual answers. Poorly worded questions are usually counterproductive to the culture learner. Improper questions often brings vague, general, or even false answers.

These are general questions, "What if" questions, "Why" questions, leading questions, conclusive questions

1. General: Vague, nonspecific not directed toward a particular person, not about a specific item. Examples:

• "Do the Cherokee people like sweet potatoes?"
• "What are your houses made out of?"

2. Supposition: Presenting a "What if ...?" question. Examples:

• Poor: "If you were to die who would get your house?"
• Better: "When Jose died who inherited his house?"
• Poor: "If you planted a garden what would you plant?"
• Better: "When Jose planted his garden what did he plant?"

3. Why: "Why" type questions should be avoided. They usually rely too much on the ability of the native to explain his own culture. A native will tend to answer a "why" question by the first thing that comes to mind... not usually what is at the heart of "why." They usually leave the interviewer with the faulty impression that progress is being made. Editor's note

Examples

• "Why do men sit behind the women?"
• "Why do you hunt in the morning?"

Instead, ask where and when questions in order to get the why.

4. Leading: Suggesting an answer in the process of asking a question. Usually the questioner has already drawn a conclusion about the topic and believes that he/she understands the situation. Examples:

• "Don't you think Jose should have paid for the basket?"
• "What do you think that Jose should have done in regards to the basket?"
• "Aren't neighbors hard to live with at times?"

5. Conclusive: Questioning in such a way as to prove a pre-drawn conclusion. An answer is suggested and presented in such a way as to encourage the responder to agree.

It is better to word questions in such a way so as to get the person to explain the "who, what, when, and where" about a topic or incident. With that information (and some further investigation) the missionary can arrive at the "why."

Examples

• Poor: "So it's always your mother who teaches you to cook isn't it?"
• Better: "Who taught you to cook isn't it?"
• Poor: "You all have horses, right?"
• Better: "Could you tell me who has horses?"

Here's how to work up "Questions to local:"

1. Select a question to self in an area of the culture that you presently have the language ability to begin to investigate.

2. Select a culture helper that is likely to have knowledge or experience in the area you are investigating.

3. Restate the question to self so you can establish clearly what it is you want to find out. (Restate it in English as clearly as you can.)

4. Carefully, and with a specific culture helper in mind, write out questions in the vernacular that will lead to a complete answer to your question to self.

5. Proceed to the next question that you want to pursue.

Some have found that charting the questions helpful. It is especially good where your answers are predictably routine and the answers are easily correlated... as in charting kinship terms for repeated relationships, or in interviews where several people were asked the same questions.

The repeated areas of information are listed across the top, and the various locals interviewed are listed down the left. Their answers are then written in the proper boxes. When complete, you should be able to read down the columns and draw some kind of conclusion from the information charted.