There are multiple ways in which my observational standpoint effected my TOC. One of the most unique perspectives I think that I bring to the TOC, which perhaps other members of my group do not bring is that I am very familiar with the Indian culture (because my family is from India) and therefore, I am able to bring a knowledge of a cultural perspective to our TOC-creation-process. I think that looking at various interventions through this lens is useful because I can get a better idea of what interventions will be more successful than others in this particular cultural context. In many ways, however, I do believe that this observational standpoint is blinding because firstly, I have to keep in mind that although I am familiar with South Indian
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I find myself constantly reminding myself that I cannot let my experiences completely bias my judgement of what interventions are culturally feasible and what interventions are not. To clarify, I do use my cultural perspective to evaluate different aspects of the TOC, but I try not to let this standpoint overtake the rest of my project. I think that having other members in the group who are not as blinded by their previous experiences as I am is beneficial because they are able to think more “outside the box” than I am. Having perspectives aligning with these two extremes has been beneficial to our project.
Interestingly, another observational standpoint I bring to this TOC is my experience with the American medical system. Although I have traveled to India many times (Karnataka, especially) and I am familiar with multiple cultural nuances, I do not have any experience with the Indian medical system. This is a common observational standpoint for all the members of our group. Due to our experiences with the American medical system, many of our interventions are ones that we believe would work based on our own experiences, but in reality, we are making a risky assumption that the contexts are not so vastly different that what works in the United States will
I find myself constantly reminding myself that I cannot let my experiences completely bias my judgement of what interventions are culturally feasible and what interventions are not. To clarify, I do use my cultural perspective to evaluate different aspects of the TOC, but I try not to let this standpoint overtake the rest of my project. I think that having other members in the group who are not as blinded by their previous experiences as I am is beneficial because they are able to think more “outside the box” than I am. Having perspectives aligning with these two extremes has been beneficial to our project.
Interestingly, another observational standpoint I bring to this TOC is my experience with the American medical system. Although I have traveled to India many times (Karnataka, especially) and I am familiar with multiple cultural nuances, I do not have any experience with the Indian medical system. This is a common observational standpoint for all the members of our group. Due to our experiences with the American medical system, many of our interventions are ones that we believe would work based on our own experiences, but in reality, we are making a risky assumption that the contexts are not so vastly different that what works in the United States will