I think the strengths of my Project include that the topic is uniquely useful to the Christian community, and that the research question is rather uncommon. I am trying to link social language rules of conversation to a particular type of rhetoric. Another interesting feature is that that rhetoric (proselytization) is one that is frequently debated and is a very sensitive area. In fact, I think it could be called a “taboo” topic.
Something that has been tough about I has been collecting the right data. I am realizing now that I should have approached it by writing the paper, then searching for data as I felt the need for that data. By looking for my data first, I’ve kind of limited myself in what I can talk about. (ie. I can only pull out what actually comes up in the interview and in the literature I’ve chosen). Nevertheless, I think I am getting closer to a working sense of organization for the paper, which will draw primarily from an Article on Sensitivity in Proselytizing Rhetoric. That article puts forth criteria for judging sensitivity in conversations, and these criteria actually work really well for measuring awkwardness.
One tactic I have started is looking for guides for conversation skills. These guides are open to everyone and not necessarily intended for religious conversations, but I am starting to think that what is creating awkwardness in religious conversations is just the same stuff that makes any old conversation awkward. Luckily, it seems that my interview data has provided a couple good examples of what I’m looking for. So now I need to look at pulling it all together.
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