Summary of my Research (so far…)

I’m going to take a moment to summarize how I’ve gotten to this point of my research.

When introducing Lamb’s 8Ws Model, Callison says, “Questions from inquiry come from personal issues more than from academic assignments.” Why did I choose this topic? And before I started, what did I think I knew about it?

I always thought the main reason for eating organic food was to avoid consuming so many dangerous chemicals. Now, I’m no health freak, but I at least try to limit the amount of junk that I eat. My parents raised me to respect the environment, and it’s my understanding that organic farming is also less harmful to the environment. Eating organically is a big decision for me, though, since it can be rather costly. So my goal is to determine if eating organically is actually beneficial, or if it’s just a fad. Is organic food just “Yuppie Chow?”

This is somewhat based on the beginning of Follett's Information Skills Model.

Some of my initial questions:
1. Main question: Is organic food worth the extra cost?
a. What makes organic food cost more?
i. Is organic food healthier?
1. Why or why not?
ii. Is organic farming better for the environment?
1. If so, how?
iii. Do organic farmers have better working conditions?
1. If yes, in what ways?
iv. Does organic food taste better/worse? (Obviously a matter of opinion.)
v. Is organic farming more sustainable?
1. How?

My most-used search terms:
“organic food” cost
“organic food”
Organic
Organic environment
“organic food” environment
“organic food” process
Organic sustainability

Subject headings used in Academic Search Premier:
ORGANIC farming
ORGANIC foods
ORGANIC living

I stayed away from organic gardening and organic fertilizers because I wanted to focus on more general issues associated with organics.

Next up: Wrapping.

Weaving

In order to organize and “weave” my thoughts, I created a Gliffy diagram. As I mentioned in my last blog, I’ve been beginning to look at the difference between the product and the process of organics. From there I wanted to consider all the different aspects of organic food – good and bad. Once I see all these various points, maybe it will help me come to a conclusion about whether or not it’s worth it to go organic. Of course, many of the points contradict themselves (since they’re from different sources), so making this diagram really helped me straighten out all the opposing views and reach a few of my own conclusions.

[insert Gliffy graphic]

Wiggling

I needed something to help me evaluate my resources in an organized way, so I created a somewhat crude spreadsheet to keep track of my findings. On the spreadsheet is a spot to write the name of the website or article, whether it is mostly for/against/neutral on organics, whether or not it seems credible (points backed up with data and/or references), and what the main or unique points are. To find more websites, I further broadened my search terms: from “organic food” to simply “organic.”

* * *

[Tried to post spreadsheet here... looked bad. Tried to save spreadsheet as JPG and insert picture... couldn't get that to work.]

I have been keeping track (on the spreadsheet) of what I’ve read. Also, I created a little for/against section here.

For: no poisonous chemicals; 50% more vitamins, minerals, enzymes and other micro-nutrients; not genetically modified (organicfoodee); no anti-biotics, growth promoting drugs, anti-parasite drugs; “Organic food is not really more expensive than intensively farmed foods, as we pay for conventional foods through our taxes.” “Intensive farming can seriously damage farm workers’ health.” “Organic farms support and nurture our beautiful and diverse wildlife” [from organicfoodee – not supported]; “it seems that other factors (if any) rather than safety aspects speak in favor of organic food” (Magkos for/against)

Against: microbial hazards more significant for food safety than chemicals (pesticide residues, food additives); since agrochemicals introduced after WWII, no increase in US/European cancer (besides lung and AIDS-related); “asserted health benefits are impossible to quantify and do not seem, as yet, to compensate for the increased price”; no evidence to support or refute claims that organic food is safer or healthier; (Magkos)

At this point, I am pretty convinced that organic food is not necessarily healthier. However, I am beginning to put more thought into the other aspects of organic foods: particularly the process, not the product. Is organic food more beneficial in terms of the environment and/or sustainability? I broaden my search terms to “ ‘organic food’ process” and “ ‘organic food’ environment”

I’m learning a lot! A lot of people have strong opinions one way or the other, and I’m trying to focus on articles that back up their claims with evidence.

But another big question that has been in my mind throughout my research is, “Who funds these studies?” The article Scientists Gang Up on Organics by Jones gets me thinking.

I’m starting to get a headache, so I think I’ve done enough wiggling for now.

Beginning to Web

It's time to "engage with information" (Eisenberg and Berkowitz's Big6), to "input" (Yucht's Flip It!), to begin "collecting information," (Kuhlthau's ISP) or... you know... time to "web." I started – where else? – Google. Why? Because I’m most comfortable with it. I first searched: “’organic food’ cost.” This already brought up a lot of information, but not necessarily from the most reliable sources. Many results were just single, general articles on news sites. I expanded my search to just “organic food” to find what the most popular websites and organizations were. I found a lot of information about what organic food is and why it costs more, but I didn’t find much critical analysis regarding if it’s worth the extra cost. Specifically, do these differences in organic food matter? Are we really healthier as a result of eating organic food? Or, another concern of mine, is organic farming really better for the environment? All these things play into the cost. So I began to yearn for articles from scholarly journals.

I headed to Inspire – Academic Search Premier because I’m – again – most comfortable with it. I guess I have had to use it pretty regularly for various SLIS assignments, and I tend to have good luck with it. Right off the bat I found this article: Organic Food: Buying More Safety or Just Peace of Mind? A Critical Review of the Literature. That sounds like what I’m looking for, and the abstract reinforces this feeling. Another: Is organic food better for our health? Perfect! There are many other relevant articles. I’m trying to decide if it would help my product to maybe interview someone about this topic. But who would I interview? My aunt, a devoted organics consumer? Perhaps I could interview the owner of the Bleeding Heart Bakery in Chicago; it’s an all organic bakery and café, and I’m always looking for a reason to go there. My problem with this idea is that I think these people are already too biased. I need the critical analysis, and I feel pretty confident that many of these articles in the scholarly journals are just what I’m looking for.

This seems too easy… Now I just need to pinpoint what kind of information might be most helpful. Maybe that will be the greater challenge. The wiggling.

Indiana Standards - Wondering

"Wondering" about my topic...

After perusing the Indiana standards, I found that, just as Dr. Lamb said, just about anything will relate to the standards. So I have decided to do Project 1 on organic food. My husband and I are gradually trying to go organic, but it’s hard right now due to the higher cost of organic food. I found that Indiana Standard for Health10.3.5 – Demonstrate the ability to evaluate a personal health assessment to determine strategies for health enhancement and risk reduction. One of the main reasons for going organic is to avoid ingesting chemicals such as pesticides and growth hormones… so I think that falls in the “risk reduction” category.

Wondering about Potential Topics (Watching?)

At this point I am still trying to think of what topic I want to focus on for this assignment. My problem is that I have too many interests! I’m always first drawn to environmental issues, but I feel like I should choose something different. My next thoughts are travel? Skiing? Chicago? Something music-related? These are all things I enjoy, but I feel like I already know a lot about them. I love fall and Halloween - how about haunted places in Indiana that I’d like to visit? Or organic food? Is it worth spending the extra money? I wonder if these could relate to the standards somehow…

Testing again.

My computer won't let me view my blog at school. :[

First Post

this is a test.