Minds are Hard to Read
People are complicated. The
conflict between our real self and our ideal self creates dissonance in our
minds. Our words and actions are often shaped by how we want others to perceive
us. We do not always say what we mean or mean what we say.
The reluctance to say what we really think stems
from the fear that our thoughts might not be politically, socially or
intellectually correct. To avoid embarrassment, and preserve our self-esteem,
we use defence mechanisms, and become experts in making ourselves sound
rational.
Driven by the need to preserve our image, our responses are
mostly stereotypic; they are shaped by how we want others to perceive us. Only
occasionally do we express our heartfelt desires and feelings.
And while people function on both rational and emotional levels,
emotions emanating from core values, drive commitment and motivation. For instance,
if we ask a motorcyclist why he bought an expensive racy motorbike, he might cite
rational reasons such as speed, style and performance. However emotive reasons
such as the desire to project a cool, macho image may be of far greater
significance. Similarly, emotive reasons such as status and prestige may have greater
bearing than rational ones such as performance, on why people choose to buy
expensive cars.
There are also times when people find it difficult to verbalize
their thoughts and feelings, and they are unable to express their emotions in words.
For instance, they may find it hard to articulate their feelings for a product such
as a motorcycle or express their relationship with a brand like Harley Davidson.
Projective and Enabling Techniques Unlock People’s Minds
Due to the barriers cited earlier,
asking direct questions in qualitative research might not elicit the complete answer
nor reveal the underlying issues. To circumvent these barriers,
researchers employ a wide range of projective and enabling techniques that
reduce the gravity of the subject, by viewing the topic from another
perspective. They facilitate a deeper exploration of a person’s feelings and
bring forth emotions into the open in a way that she feels comfortable with;
enabling researchers to understand in greater detail how consumers relate to a
subject.
Enabling techniques facilitate the process by
making respondents feel more comfortable in expressing their feelings.
Projective techniques on the other hand, are indirect interviewing methods
which enable participants to project their thoughts, beliefs and feelings onto
a third party or into some task situation.
Enabling exercises have no interpretive value;
they purely act as facilitators. Projective exercises, on the other hand, can
reveal participants’ thoughts, feelings and motives.
The projective techniques involve individual/group
exercises, followed by discussion and reflection. The moderator probes to
decipher the inner thoughts of the respondents. She links individual responses
with the group, to gauge whether the views that are expressed have broader
appeal. Her aim is to keep the participants talking in an effort to expand and
further explore the thoughts, beliefs and feelings that are expressed by the
participants.
She also pays attention to body language. From an analytical
standpoint, in addition to the verbal responses, the participants’ body language reveals
their states of mind, as well as their attitudes, feelings and intentions.
Some commonly used projective techniques are
described in the following sections.
