Abstract:
When Pasifika researchers in New Zealand embark on a research project, two questions come to mind. The first question is, what perspective should one take for the project? Second, how does one apply that perspective to the project? This paper describes the perspective of a Samoan researcher while contemplating undertaking a research project. Having settled initially on the viewpoint the research will take, the paper describes how this perspective is then applied to the research process. The paper argues that using a methodology that is responsive and culturally appropriate to a Pasifika audience can yield good outcomes for future directions. In addition, the employment of such a methodology can illustrate the richness of things Pasifika that other people can look upon as relevant and ethnic specific thus dispelling the myth that only Western methods are valid and reliable.
