7.2 What to call the participants

There are differing opinions on what to call the people providing the data for the research-project. Crowley holds that calling them 'informants' makes it sound as if they were spies giving away secret information, while Bowern adds that it plays down the role of a language teacher. Bowern settles for 'consultants' instead, although she acknowledges Crowley's critique that there can be a negative connotation to the term, as it is often used by highly paid self-appointed experts that often lack awareness for the situation they are called to give their opinion on. Crowley usually uses the term 'language-helper', which is considered patronizing by Bowern. Other suggestions include 'field-assistant', 'colleague' or 'collaborator' (depending on how active the involvement may be), 'teacher' or 'research-participant' (Bowern 2008: 10; Crowley 2007: 86).

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