Informed consent in the jungle

[John Hatton]

> Motivated by a recent publication by Robinson (2010), the October
LiP-meeting will compare the problems of obtaining informed consent
from people in non-literate communities (without access to modern
media and internet) with the problems of obtaining informed consent
from people in highly computer/internet-savvy communities.

I would so like to join you down there for this discussion.  Sigh. Up here in the highlands of PNG, we're feeling our way in this, without access to some of the literature and other discussions. It occurs to me to post what we're proposing at the moment. I post it not as a suggestion to anyone else, but rather in case someone on the list would like to warn us that it is inadequate legally, ethically, whatever. The challenge 'round here is to honestly convey the implications of a long-term repository, and the ease of access of internet, to people who may not have seen so much as a car in 20 years (if ever).

Note: in the group I work with, we had to get this into the vernacular, as a Tok Pisin form would not have been adequately understood.  The key stumbling block, which we eventually surmounted, was finding the right ending, so that the hearer would understand what it was they were supposed to do/say.  Particularly with women, I found that the notion of being asked "permission" by me was a difficult one to convey. I could tell from the puzzled looks on their faces that they weren't really sure.  In the end, what worked well was simply their version of "is that ok, or not ok?".  That lead to a big smile and the response "it's OK!".  So I'm helping colleagues here do something similar; each one is still being tweaked for their situation. For example, mine had to work in a situation where people would not be able to write their name or have any clue what that signified; it had to work well for collecting on video.  In contrast, here's one we developed for a colleague who works in an area where signatures make sense:

(In Tok Pisin written by university-grad, native Tok Pisin speaker on our staff.)

___ i laik harim toktok long tokples bilong yu. Em bai kisim dispela toktok na tu, em bai i wokim piksa bilong yu. Bihain em bai putim dispela toktok na piksa bilong yu i go insait long komputa na givim ol dispela samting i go long wanpela ples wei ol i save lukautim dispela kain samting long em (olsem universiti). Ol bai lukautim gut ol dispela samting. Ol bai i stap longpela taim na husait lain i laik lukim nau o bihain taim, em ol i ken lukim. Bihain, sapos ol tumbuna bilong yu o ol arapela manmeri i gat laik long kisim sampela save bilong tokples bilong yu na pasin o wei bilong tumbuna bilong yu, orait ol i ken lukim na harim ol dispela toktok na piksa bilong yu.  Em bai yu tok orait long dispela o nogat? Sapos yu tok orait, orait raitim nem o signatia bilong yu antap long mak o pepa.

Which is roughly:

___ wants to hear speech in your vernacular.  He will get this speech, and take pictures of you. Later, he's going to put this speech and pictures into a computer and give everything to a place where they take care of this kind of thing, a place like a university.  They will take good care of it. (This material) will be around a long time and whoever wants to see it soon or in the future, they will be able to.  Later, if your descendants or other people have a desire to learn about your vernacular and your culture, they will be able to hear your speech and see your picture. Is this alright with your or not?  If it is alright, ok then write your name or signature above the line.

Thanks for any comments, good or bad.  
 
John Hatton 
SIL Papua New Guinea, Palaso, & SIL International Software Development