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People often have to adapt in their day-to-day lives. Plans can go askew, but we must continue with our lives working around the issues we encounter. We must be adaptable to the given situation. This is a common phenomenon within the human research community as humans are subject to error. We are not designed to make the right decisions 100% of the time, and we constantly feel the effects. It is often that people make commitments in advance and when it comes time to follow through, don’t remember, don’t care, or don’t want to. As a researcher, I have been on the effect side of these decisions. I found and even still find it frustrating that the participants in our study would promise to come in on a certain day at a certain time and then not show up. Being that this is a human research study, however, all participants must come in on voluntary accord. As the study continued I realized that this frustration wouldn’t make them come. It wouldn’t even make my life experiences better. It’s vital for researchers, especially human researchers, to be adaptable because of the human tendency towards error.
For the research study Dr. Easley and I were completing, we collected data on body composition. This required the student-athletes to come in before their practice time as they must be regularly hydrated. During this phase, Dr. Easley and I spent hours waiting for athletes to show up. We would give them a four-hour window in the morning to stop by, and some days we would only have one come by when 5+ said they would come. As the hours passed by with no one coming, I became extremely frustrated. I had to be up and ready before the sun to sit in a chair for hours waiting on other people. It was hard to grasp the fact that even if the athletes said they would come in, they didn’t have to since the study was completely voluntary. The lack of obligation and commitment drove me insane. It felt as though they were wasting my time. However, I through this constant anger, realized it wasn’t improving the situation or making things happen as I wanted them to. I had to step back, put myself into their shoes, and think about what they prioritize. These girls have their own separate lives that they need to take care of. No matter how important this study was for me or Dr. Easley, we had no control over the situation. The data collection wasn’t even about us. The athletes were doing us a favor by coming in and allowing us to take their measurements. I needed to change my mindset to realize that this was a privilege to collect data, not a right. In addition, all the data we needed was collected in the end, but I had to let go of wanting the study to proceed how I wanted it. I had to remind myself that this phase of the study wasn’t about me and how I imagined the perfect situation to go, it was about the athletes and conforming to their schedules so that we could make the study possible.
The need to adapt roots from mistakes occurring, or disorder. In Chemistry 112: General Chemistry Ⅱ we discussed entropy. Entropy is the universe’s natural tendency to disorder. This is comparable to human subjects. Humans were not designed to be perfect. We all make mistakes day in and day out, and it is the natural tendency of things. I, for one, constantly feel my life being pulled into a state of disorder and error; especially when it comes to planning. Either I or the person/people I am hanging out with make a mistake. Since our universe is designed to be disorderly, it is imperative that we have the ability to adapt. The conditions generally never occur exactly as we intend, we have be able to work around them. This is the same in human research. Since we cannot control what the participants choose to do, no matter how much we may want to, we must be prepared to adapt to these changes. They have different priorities and values, so we need to accept this and move on. Researchers desire the information that is collected from the participants, so we must work around their schedules and adapt to their needs.
When an issue occurs, change is inevitable. Although everyone would love for change to happen immediately and smoothly, unfortunately, that doesn’t happen. It takes time for us to adapt. In Biology 101L: Biological Principles Ⅰ Lab we learned about evolution. This is defined as change over time. Evolution occurs when the environment changes and the species within it need to follow suit. For example, in Africa, malaria was a prominent disease that affected the population. Over time they developed sickle cell anemia as their bodies way to defend themselves from this disease. This example highlights the fact that evolution doesn’t always entail an optimal change. It is the most readily available change that can happen to defend a population from its environment. This is similar to how researchers must adapt to the participants. Although it may not be optimal for the researcher to set up a new date for data collection or come in at a different time, it is the most readily available fix for them at that point. The environment won’t change because it has no need to, so the adaption must happen in the population that is living in it. In terms of human research, the participants won’t change because it must be voluntary, and since the researchers are the ones who desire the information and are experiencing the issue, they must be the ones to change and adapt to the participants' needs.
Throughout the research study, I had to accept my lack of control. To do this, I had to contemplate the root of the problem before being able to enforce change. Through chemistry, I was able to understand the world's affinity towards disorder. This helped me accept the fact that I can’t control the participants or the outcome. We as researchers must have the ability to understand and sympathize with a situation because error is bound to occur. We then have to adapt to whatever has happened. Biology helped me understand that adapting falls on the shoulders of the researcher. Our participants have no obligation to help us, so adaptability is key. The researchers are who want the data, therefore they have to do what they can to obtain it, even if it is unfavorable. The journey may have to change, but the end destination is fruitful enough for it to all be worth it.
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