What Is JT A Good Primary Informant?

1. Chp 1 Explain and give a couple examples of the methods the author uses to learn and gather data. Be specific. What are the strengths of these methods and what are some of the weaknesses of these methods? (consider if representative, bias, reliability, generalizability, sample size, what you can know, and detail, accuracy.) Explain why they are strengths or weaknesses.

The author of Gang Leader for a Day uses many resources to learn and gather data. First, He is told to go through surveys used by previous sociologists to find questions he liked. Sociologists use survey questions from their peers in order to create comparable results. The strengths of this method of learning and gathering data is the fact that if gave Sudhir a starting
point for his research. It helped him form a general idea of what he wanted to ask young, black men in the projects of Chicago. The weaknesses are the fact that the survey didn’t work. He tried asking a group of older men and members of a gang. The questions weren’t received very kindly and he received no information from them. Another weakness of the survey method is the fact that it isn’t very reliable. The first question he asked the gang members was how it felt to be black and poor. They didn’t take this question very well. People aren’t very likely to answer honestly to a complete stranger. That very question is also very generalizing. Many people who live in the projects aren’t necessarily broke or homeless. They often have jobs, and education, and a place to live. The next method Sudhir used was to be a part of the group and observe from the inside. As J.T. said, “With people like us, you should hang out, get to know what they do, how they do it. You need to understand how young people live on the streets.” That is exactly what Sudhir did. He decided to just hang out with J.T. and get to know what he does, how he does it, and what everyone else around him does too. This method worked pretty well. The detail of what Sudhir would find out through this method is a huge strength. He found out things he would have never found out about any other way that experiencing it. Another strength is the accuracy. This method was very accurate, since Sudhir basically inserted himself into their lives and documented everything he witnessed. To begin with, Sudhir only followed J.T., but then met more and more people in the community. This is a strength because he got information from a variety of people in the neighborhood making it more representive of Robert Taylor. A few weaknesses are also present in this form of research. For example, it could be very unreliable. To begin with, J.T. only let Sudhir witness and be a part of certain aspects of his life. It made it so his view of J.T. was scewed. Another weakness could be the sample size. He only followed J.T. and the people J.T. was in charge of. A different gang could run things differently in the Robert Taylor housing.

2.
Chp 2 Having a primary informant, like JT, is common in ethnographic research, even as you still have other sources and try to verify information. Give and explain a couple reasons why JT is a good primary informant? What are some of the obstacles that Sudhir faces as he seeks to do his research? Explain
several.

J.T. is a good primary informant for many reasons. First, J.T. loved to talk about black Chicago. As J.T. and Sudhir drove around one day, J.T. told him the hisotyr of the neighborhood, the gangs, and the underground economy. He also told Sudhir stories of great gang leaders and dramatic gang wars. Another prime example was when J.T. merged his drug sales with Curly. Sudhir was present during the exchange but knew nothing about what was going on. Afterwards, J.T. explained what had just happened so Sudhir wasn’t out of the blue. J.T. also told Sudhir about how his drug gang, an affiliation of the Black Kings, operated. On one occasion, J.T. was telling Sudhir how the gang hierarchy worked and about his efforts to rise within it. J.T. is a good informant overall because he let Sudhir into his life in order to get a better understanding of gangs and the poor population in Chicago. Sudhir faced many obstacles doing his research. One of these obstacles was the fact that he couldn’t take notes. He didn’t want J.T. to feel cautious about what he said, so he took his notes after he hung out with J.T. This was an obstacle for Sudhir because it is very hard to remember the events from the day, especially if it was eventful. Another obstacle Sudhir faced was the fact that he was often a source of entertainment for J.T. He was often not taken seriously. People sometimes made fun of the his race, the way he dressed, or even the fact that he was a “professor.” This is an obstacle to overcome because it is very hard to do research when you aren’t respected and being made fun of. One of the biggest obstacles Sudhir faced was the emotional connection he was forming with people. At one point he said that “No one back at the U of C had prepared me to feel such strong emotional connections to the people I studied.” He went on to say that none of the ethnographic studies he’d read had no guidance about the relationships a researcher formed during fieldwork and how to manage them. Another important obstacle Sudhir hadto overcome was the fact that J.T. was very vague about his questions at times. It was very hard for Sudhir to receive an extraordinary amount of information one day, and then almost none the next.

4. Chp 3 How do you assess what Ms. Bailey does for the residents and yet works with the gang, some police and her own interests? Are residents better off because of her presence? Explain your position and why. Explain how the Boys and Girls Club benefits people living in the area?

Ms. Bailey is a woman in her late fifties who is the tenant president of the building where J.T. lives. She is a valuable source for the residents even though she works with the gang, police, and her own interests. For instance, Ms. Bailey helps settle gang disputes in a civilized manner. At the Boys and Girls Club, she worked with other building presidents, a few police officers, and the rival gangs to reach an agreement. This was valuable to the residents of Robert Taylor because it would prevent any more people from getting shot or hurt. She also is a resource to go to get stuff done. For instance, if a family’s door got broken down, Ms. Bailey would make sure that a new door was put up even though her own interests got in the way. Ms. Bailey also cared about the children in her building. She offered 3 rundown apartments that had been converted into playrooms for the children. Even though the apartments have dripping water along with rats and cockroaches, the children play with great enthusiasm due to Ms. Bailey. The Boys and Girls Club also benefits the people living in the area. For example, the club had senior citizens who played cards there, religious folks gathered for fellowship, and social workers and doctors provided free counseling and medical care. The Boys and Girls Club also played the role of mediator in the community. The man in charge, Autry, and other staffs members worked with school authorities, social workers, and police officers to informally mediate all kinds of problems, rather than putting the youth into the criminal-justice system. A way they did this was midnight basketball league. The goal was the get teenage gang members off of the streets at night and into doing something productive. All in all, Ms. Bailey and the Boys and Girls Club benefit the neighborhood.

5. Chp 4 JT has a degree and had a mainstream job that he left to return to the projects and help his community? In what ways does JT benefit the lives of other people? Explain more than one. How does JT compare to a leader of a company? Explain and give examples of more than one.

J.T.
considers himself a philanthropist because he quit his mainstream job in downtown Chicago to return to the projects to use his drug profits to help others. He helps benefits the lives of people in his community in many ways. First, he mandates that all his gang members get a high-school diploma and stay off of drugs. He also gives money to local youth centers for sports equipment and computers. Another such task J.T. does to help the community is to deploy gang members to Robert Taylor residents to help escort the elderly or even beat up a domestic abuser. As J.T. told Sudhir, “A drug economy was useful for the community, since it redistributed the drug addicts’ money back into the community via the gang’s philanthropy.” Because of J.T. being the leader of a gang, he is like a leader of a company. For example, J.T. often talked about how difficult it was to oversee the gang, to keep the drug economy running smoothly, and to deal with law-abiding citizens who saw him as an advisory. This compares to the leader of a company because they would also have to oversee their workers, make sure operations are running smoothly, and deal with people who don’t always agree with what the company is doing. J.T. is also similar to the leader of a company because they have to motivate their workers. For instance, J.T. always talked to his men about having pride in their work and had to motivate the younger dealers to brave the cold and sell as much crack as they could. In a
company, the leader would also want his workers to have pride in their work and have to motivate them to be the best they could be.