Week 6 @ Detroit 300 — So you think you can research: audience demographics version

This summer has undeniably been a time for growth/learning for me on how to conduct community-based research. I learned a lot about working with other organizations and syncing research needs (it can be difficult to balance the mutual benefit of sharing data between organizations with individual needs of the researcher/the organization they represent). I learned some great data collection tools from our friends at Project for Public Spaces e.g. behavior mapping: mapping where people congregate in parks and correlating that with information on what activities they are involved in etc. and counting: counting every single person in a park and counting other pertinent issues related to demographics e.g. ages, what they’re doing in the park etc. (my poster will probably discuss this, you guys only 4 weeks till the symposium!).

Anyways the biggest challenge I’m currently facing is not really related to research per say but is probably a concern for anyone doing audience demographic research in person (alone). This challenge isss (drum-roll please) being hit on by random strangers, particularly old men. I’d like to think of myself as reasonably capable of being able to deal with this in normal circumstances, however the nature of our research/parks means that I’m sometimes at parks when very few people are there (we’re trying to see how events change the parks/whether people linger after events are over). I am usually alone in these parks and don’t have any way to leave our parks except via walking (I guess I could run if I reeaally felt the need but then again in business casual? that’s not such a great idea…).

Sooo old men especially (but anyone really) seem to take the fact that a woman is alone as a sign that they should turn up their creepiness. Today was probably the creepiest when this 50-year-old man did not take the hint when I responded to his question “Were you saving this seat for me, sweetheart” with vigorously shaking my head and saying no. He proceeded to attempt conversation for around 10 minutes, asking about my work, water bottle, anything visible about me that could possibly turn into a conversation — I was shutting down most attempts at conversation… Finally he asked if he could take my picture and even though I said no he decided to continue pressing the picture point suggesting things like “I could take it by the fountain” and “you’re taking everyone else’s picture but no one’s taking yours” (I take general photos of the park for our presentations). I guess persistence is valuable in some circumstances however in this instance that’s really where the creepiness came from. Any of these questions alone could have been innocent or, had we actually have been having a conversation, also probably fine but disregarding any and all hints as to the unwantedness of comments is the point at which innocence turns to creepiness…

Advice on how to avoid situations like this in future is very welcome (of course, other comments are cool too)