From the Digital Realm to New Experiences: The Many Dimensions of Research
Reflections by Diāna Mierture, 3rd-year student of the BA programme “Cultural Sociology and Management”
Science and research are often associated with the rather dull image of “sitting at the computer,” endless writing, number crunching, and creating charts in Excel. This perception also came up in a focus group discussion with 12th-grade students, held within the framework of the study “Study on Science Consumption and Public Engagement” in Latvia. Indeed, data processing and analysis often involve such tasks, but the ways of collecting data reveal a much broader world – new places, people, experiences, and interests. In reality, research encompasses much more than just desk work.
At the age of sixteen, I already knew that I wanted to study cultural research, and I was convinced that I would do so at the Latvian Academy of Culture (LAC). I realised this when, in dialogue with literature, people, and other sources, I began to seek patterns in the development of culture and the arts. The research process fascinated me so much that I never doubted my choice. What mattered most was the opportunity to be among people who would help me “see through a researcher’s eyes” – and this truly has become one of the most valuable aspects of my studies.
Over the past two years, my interest in research has introduced me to students, lecturers, researchers, communities, school pupils, and cultural enthusiasts from different programmes and universities. This path has taken me to places in Latvia that were once unfamiliar – Kazdanga, Pape, Alsunga, Renda, Liepāja, Ventspils, Valmiera, Ludza – and beyond Latvia, to Nuremberg in Germany. I have been involved in every stage of the research process: from idea development and securing funding, to recruiting respondents and conducting fieldwork, to processing and analysing data, writing scientific articles and reports, and finally presenting results at conferences.
This experience has strengthened not only academic skills – the ability to write scientific texts, structure arguments, and analyse both qualitative and quantitative data – but also many other useful competences: leading group discussions, tailoring the same message for different audiences, communicating effectively, planning, and working under time constraints. I also had to learn not to be afraid of approaching people, persuading them of the value of an idea, and developing both short- and long-term project plans.
Particularly important was the experience of surveying cinema audiences in Latvia, facilitating a focus group with the youth audience of the Latvian National Symphony Orchestra, and participating in recruitment for international projects such as “Mapping of the Central and Eastern European non-governmental heritage sector” and “EU Kids Online.” These projects demonstrated that working with people is no easier than working with data – and confirmed how crucial it is to develop the skills, which are indispensable in any research field.
Cultural research has revealed both topics that deeply interest me and others that engage me less. Two projects were especially formative in this discovery. The LAC research project “Kazdanga – from Local Stories to Community Identity Networking and Heritage Digitalisation” was the first I joined as a student researcher in my first year. My first interview, fieldwork experience, and encounter with community identity studies sparked a lasting interest in community research, which I continue to develop both individually and in team projects. This led to a follow-up initiative – “Training in the Use of Kazdanga’s Cultural Space Interactive Digital Tool” – where I wrote my first grant application to the State Culture Capital Foundation and gained deeper skills in intangible heritage digitalisation and mapping.
Equally meaningful was my involvement in the baseline study for “Liepāja – European Capital of Culture 2027.” Together with colleagues, we conducted surveys of residents in South Kurzeme and Kuldīga municipalities, as well as Liepāja, on their satisfaction with local cultural offerings. A conversation with a visitor at the “Trubadūrs” singer-songwriter festival in Renda led me to the singer-songwriter community “Austrasbērni”, which I chose as the focus of my first course paper – and will continue to study further, highlighting the largely unexplored phenomenon of Latvian singer-songwriters. The community’s values felt so close to my own that I eventually decided to join them myself, discovering an interest in singing and guitar playing. This is how research can reveal not only professionally significant themes but also lifelong passions.
Research has also introduced me to entirely different fields. Participation in the Rīga Stradiņš University project “Anthropological Study of the Latvian Population by J. Prīmanis” sparked an interest in anthropology and allowed me to try unconventional methods in cultural research – photography, anthropometry, and even 3D scanning. This experience vividly showed that cultural research can overlap with methodologies commonly used in medical science.
Conversations with fellow students about their research experiences are an ongoing part of projects. Students from other universities often emphasize that LAC students have the unique advantage of engaging in research projects from the very beginning of their studies – to see things from new perspectives, discover new places, collaborate with peers and researchers, receive remuneration, and, most importantly, identify early on the topics and communities that inspire them.
In this regard, the project “Youth Participation in Contemporary Art Practices: A Case Study of GraffitO!”, supported by LAC, stands out. Here, students – alongside peers and guided by experienced professionals – design and implement a full-fledged research project.
Studying cultural research provides countless opportunities to try, discover, and realise what truly works, inspires, and excites. Of course, there are less attractive sides – Excel spreadsheets, interview transcriptions, looming deadlines, and occasional funding rejections. And for a student researcher, academic coursework always takes priority. Yet research can never be called boring – while writing may be exhausting, it is far from the only thing that defines the work of a researcher.