Hi All,
I received the following in response to my informal observation of the New Mexico bottle dig:
I really wonder what New Mexico State University's Institutional Review Board (IRB) would think of your impromptu reporting/faux ethnography exercise? Did you disclose your intentions to these folks? Did you get informed consent from them? Your university should take appropriate remedial action if you did not.
My reply was:
Of course, I informed everyone present about exactly what I was doing and why I was asking questions. They agree with me that it would be very helpful if archaeologists knew what collectors were doing and thinking and vice versa.
Everything was also done in a public setting. Observations of public settings is open to any interpretation, anyway.
Bill
Bill Lockhart
Associate Professor of Sociology
New Mexico State University
Alamogordo, NM
(575) 439-3732