Write short notes on key informant
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The term key informant is generally associated, though not exclusively,
with qualitative research in which a researcher employs interviewing of
knowledgeable participants as an important part of the method of
investigation. During the often extended period of fieldwork that such
research requires, a particular subject may become an especially useful
source of information, be repeatedly interviewed, and thus earn
designation as a key informant. It is not unusual in field research that
at any particular time an investigator might have several informants
who could be identified as performing in that role. Key informants can
extend the investigator's reach in situations where he or she has not,
or cannot, be a direct observer, and they can illuminate the meanings of
behavior that the researcher does not understand. They can also serve
as a check on the information obtained from other informants. Varying
circumstances may determine who actually ends up serving as a key
informant. Sometimes a person becomes a key informant by merit of
playing an important role in the social setting being studied. If the
researcher is studying an organization, for example, a key informant
might turn out to be that person who occupies a central structural
position or who may be situated strategically in the communication
network within the organization.
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