Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
not belong. I believe that a colleague told me about it. The other group
waspostedtothe[discussionlist]list.NowIfindgroupsbydoinglistserv
searches, but mostly the ones that I stay with are word of mouth or
should I say word of email.
>
When you have joined a group(s), do you ever get a sense of “belong-
ing?” Do you ever feel
>
like, “I belong here.” If yes, why? What gives you the feeling?
Very much so. All three groups that I actively participate with are from
practicegroupsthatareinisolationtootherhealthcareproviders(school
nurses) or others with that expertise - there is no one in our workplaces
who shares our orientation or our concerns or have our expertise. I
dependontheselisttokeepmeupdatedonthelatesttrends,buzzwords,
the latest good publications and support and, yes, friendship. We have
had face-to-face meetings with 2 of the groups that I am on at profes-
sional conferences. We had 60 people attend a luncheon in San Antonio
[discussion list] and the school nurses identify themselves at conferences
all over the country by putting green dots on their name tags. This year
theNASNofferedtopickupthetabforribbonsforourbadges(youknow
the type that usually say speaker, these say XXXXX).
IfeellikeIknowthesepeoplebetterthanpeopleIseeeveryday.Ourget-
togethers are hysterical; you would think it is a group of long lost rela-
tives, not a group of people who have never laid eyes on each other. We
know each other very well before the conversations even start so there is
no warming-up period.
>
Does something transpire that leaves you feeling like you “belong?” If
not, what do you
>
think is missing that might enable you to feel like you “belong?”
You get lots of feedback, both directed to the whole group - isn't what
Martha just said so wonderful, or to you personally. If you post about a
reallytryingexperiencetheempathyispalpable.Thisisespeciallyforthe
schoolnurseslist.WEhaveallbeentherewhenaprincipaldoesnotback
you up, or a parent refuses to come to school to pick up a very sick
kid or, heaven forbid, you make a mistake. The warmth comes through.
Focus groups with email
Focus group data are discussions taking place among two or more participants
with or without the input of a leader. Group mail or listservers are an ideal plat-
formforthis.Thelistserversoftwarekeepsthemessagesorganizedbysubjector
