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Talanoa: A Tongan Research
Methodology and Method
Timote M Vaioleti
University of Waikato, Hamilton, New Zealand
Synonyms
Talanoa
Introduction
This paper examines talanoa as a notion that
guides cultural approaches, pathways, and activi-
ties and which Pacific peoples undertake to create
meanings about themselves within the world in
which they live and their relationships to that
world and to each other. It will also endeavor to
unravel layers of talanoa to fathom the wisdom
and the spirit within it and to discuss how it may
be used as culturally appropriate methods and
methodology for researching Pacific issues.
Talanoa, Context, and Some Background
The ideas about talanoa in this paper are written
from a Tongan perspective, located in Aotearoa
(New Zealand), which is predominantly western
in its institutional values and general disposition.
Māori as tangata whenua (people of the land)
have challenged these positions over time for
more control over their own political, economic,
and cultural development. In social development,
Māori values and concepts were included in
health and education policies, methodologies,
and pedagogical approaches to make research
and education more reflective of Māori realities
and worldviews. The growing acceptance of
Māori holistic notions (e.g., aroha/compassion,
love), awhi (care, cultural support) as business,
pedagogical, or research notions (Smith 2012;
Vaioleti 2011), have fired my imagination to pro-
pose talanoa methods and methodology for
Pacific research and others.
The word “tala”means to command, tell,
relate, and inform while “noa”can mean common,
of no value, or without exertion. Talanoa is a
conversation, a talk, and an exchange of ideas,
be it formal or informal (Churchward 1959). It is
a verb but as a noun, and it can be a story. As a
process, it is used in multiple ways to obtain
information, building relationships and for creat-
ing and transferring knowledge. Tongans,
Samoans, Fijians, and other Pacific communities
in the Pacific, Aotearoa, Australia, and the USA
use talanoa as discussed in this paper or variations
of it.
While working in Fiji and Samoa in the early
2000, the way that leaders received information
from the community, which they use to make
decisions about civil, church, and national mat-
ters, was through talanoa (Vaioleti 2006). In the
early 2000s, talanoa was written as a culturally
#Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2016
M.A. Peters (ed.), Encyclopedia of Educational Philosophy and Theory,
DOI 10.1007/978-981-287-532-7_15-1
appropriate means through which Pacific peoples
can authentically share their issues in research and
provide philosophies to guide it. This approach is
the Talanoa Research Methodology (TRM).
According to Farrelly and Nabobo-Baba (2012
in Vaioleti 2013), TRM is the most accepted
Pacific methodology across the Pacific.
Talanoa: hala kuo papa (Well-Used/
Proven and Ancestral Pathway)
Talanoa itself as a word is functional and rela-
tional; it is an instruction of what to do and how
that is to be done. It is an epistemological and
ontological process that is used to explain philos-
ophies, to secure identity, to provide rationale for
important decisions, to seek solutions, to heal, to
entertain, and to cause māfana (positive warm
feeling, energy) in peoples’heart. It can be a
storehouse, framework, and even a network in
which knowledge, secrets, and other information
are held. Talanoa as well as chants, songs, poems,
phrases, and even iconic words are often ways of
remembering genealogies, landmarks or oceanic
pathways, tribal boundaries, signs of looming nat-
ural or man-made disasters, and even important
prayers.
Because these types of knowledge were or are
often about the difference between life or death,
their preservation in the mo’oni (truest) form was
paramount –hence, the accuracy of the uho
(content), fuo (sequence), and even sounds
which later turned into written letters and words
of talanoa are likely to have stayed mo’oni over
generations of ancestors. The accuracy and
robustness of the talanoa as a way of passing on
and constructing knowledge are spiritually signif-
icant and have a proud and robust genealogy, and
therefore I suggest a fitting base for a Pacific
methodology.
My son Andreas, founder and owner of several
companies, intrigued me with a particular gift. He
was a spelling champion at primary and high
schools. I recall him once sharing that he was
fascinated by words, their construction, and their
origin, and he spent much time breaking them up
to form other words and even searching for pos-
sible foreign origins.
After much talanoa mo hoku loto (deep self-
reflections), I realized that Andreas had a faiva
(a magic, trick, formula, performance). His faiva
was to treat words as stories. He would break up
words into combinations of letters which he saw
codes for different parts of the plot for a story. The
codes were held together by the flow of the story.
During his turn in the competitions, the judges
will hear the combinations of the letters but for
Andreas, it was the totality of his talanoa (story)
he was reliving as the word spelling was
unfolding.
I will used Andreas’faiva,ahala kuo papa, to
make Tongan iconic words mahu’inga mālie
(contextually meaningful), but instead of using
the letters as plots for a story to guide the spelling,
I will break up the iconic talanoa to sense if there
are sounds or even some laumālie (essence or
spirit) that may animate from it. I must however
consider two foundational matters to guide this.
Tongan language is functional and relational,
and as mentioned already, it is organized around
specific epistemology and arranged ontologically.
For this reason, it is neither grammatical nor sim-
ple in its meaning from a western or mainstream
perspective. The second point to this is that the
Tongan (and other Pacific) languages have tonal
and rhythmic patterns: song-like, chant-like,
poetic expressions and rhythmic in their fuo
(form); therefore, its delivery is also a faiva that
can stir up māfana in one’s own or another indig-
enous person’s heart.
If one is to analyze the word talanoa using the
above perspectives, three tonal and ontological
notions intersect rhythmically as in ta-la-noa. Ta
is often known as tāmeaning beat, as of a chant,
pulse, or the beat of the heart. Noa on the other
hand can be space and space is also known in
Tongan, Samoan, and other Pacific languages as
vā. Ta, la and noa are notional, functional, spiri-
tual, relational and some of the cornerstones of
Tongan onotogy.
2Talanoa: A Tongan Research Methodology and Method
An Epistemological and Ontological
Unpacking of Talanoa
Ferris-Leary (2013, pp. 134–135) proposed that:
In accordance with Māhina’s Ta-Va Theory of Real-
ity and the Hypothesis of Laumālie, I propose
...that Moana (Pacific) “words”are...constructed
from intersections of other Moana “words”or
abbreviations of “words”rather than having a spe-
cific linguistic root, and each “word”or “abbrevi-
ated word”, implies through its laumālie, multiple
and deeper layers of epistemological and ontologi-
cal content. In other words, a single Moana “word”
may be an “additive”construction using intersec-
tions of other “words”or... other “words”in order
to include their laumālie.
When tāand vāare repeated, one will have
pulse, pause, pulse, pause again, and again in a
cyclic rhythmic dance (performance) a symbol of
mo’ui (life, essence, sense of being alive) and
membership of a bigger collective. Tāenergizes
and vāprovides the space to give meaning (mālie)
to the tā. In Tongan performing arts, tāand vā
occur in ways that create much melie
(aesthetically sweet, pleasing emotion). In the
ancient times, drumbeats were a form of long
distant communications, and the tā(beats) and
vā(spaces between beats) were arranged to com-
municate all cognitive and emotional and spiritual
contents. Tāand vāof drumming were even used
to energize people to fever excitements in prepa-
ration for battle. There seems to be direct connec-
tions between tāand vāof performing arts (faiva
including talanoa) and the loto e tangata Tonga
(psychology or essence of that Tongan person).
Tongan thinkers such as Māhina and Ka’ili use tā
and vāas theories of reality to explain and predict
ontological phenomena of Pacific peoples, partic-
ularly Tongans.
The middle of ta-la-noa is la. La can be a short
for La’ā, the word for the Sun, a god of the old
Polynesian religions. La’ādirectly or indirectly
provided life’s necessities, and much was tributed
to it for those reasons. Polynesians as great navi-
gators of the past prayed to the La’āfor favors in
their oceanic travels. It is not a coincidence that
the sail that took their great vaka (ships) to many
new places is still called la. The genealogy of la
may lead also to (La)ngi (sky), reference to the
great spirit or the place of the god/s. Also, la is the
start of La(umalie), the Tongan for the great spirit,
god. In the past, it was customary not to use a
name of a god for fear of violating their tapu.
When it was necessary to refer to them, it was
the start of the name only that was mentioned.
If we accept la as symbolism for La(umalie),
then tāand vāhave a third intersecting notion
often associated with māfana (warm sense of
anticipation, light-heartedness, positive warm
sensation) which if intensified can lead to achiev-
ing mālie (elevated sense of spirituality; sense of
ecstasy). Manu’atu (2002) shares how the pro-
cesses of three Tongan concepts lead to achieving
mālie from Tongan katoanga faiva (cultural per-
formance of Tonga). She suggests that mālie is a
process that produces meaningful connections
between ta’anga (the context in Tongan language
and culture), hiva (singing), and haka (the bodily
movements); the psyche and the spirit of both the
performers and audience become māfana (light-
heartedness, positive warm sensation), all of
which energize and uplift people to a different
level of spiritual enlightenment and oneness.
If tāand vāin faiva or even in the skilful to and
fro in the performance of talanoa is repeated, then
meaningful mālie can be achieved. If mālie is
sustained over a period or intensified, it can lead
to much elation even ecstasy and a sense of
enhancement and positive well-being. This stage
is often referred to by Tongans as kuo tau-homau-
langi (we have touched or been touched by langi/
heaven), or we are now one with the great spirit/
god. This is the state of spirituality that Halapua
(in Vaioleti 2013) suggested that if reached in
talanoa, information that emmerge is straight
from the heart, uncluttered hence can be trusted
findings.
The figure below is a graphical intersection that
represents a notional connection and relationship
between tā,laumalie, and noa (vā).A metaphoric
representation of the relationship in a research
situation can be that tāis the researcher who
may lead the talanoa. The participant is noa, the
giver of knowledge. La can be the goodwill,
ethics, protocols, and the spirit that positively
energize and guide the research relationship.
(La)umālie may even be the aim and hope of the
Talanoa: A Tongan Research Methodology and Method 3
research, which will include a result that will
benefit Pacific interests. The laumālie of talanoa
will allow the participant to lead and be the tāat
different stages in the to and fro of the talanoa
fusion. La can even be the metaphor for the sail
that harnesses the information fused between tā
and noa (vā) (Fig. 1).
In terms of the value of this approach, Pacific
societies have traditionally used the process of
talanoa to both develop knowledge cooperation
and understanding. Talanoa is a process that is an
important part of social identity and a Pacific way
of viewing and negotiating the world.
Talanoa as a Methodology
Methodology deals with the philosophy, the
assumptions, and values that underlie and guide
the methods used for TRM. TRM takes on a
critical stance for emancipation purposes. For
talanoa, its “ology”is about centralizing Pacific
ways and values in how the research methods are
applied. For research, this should ensure that the
integrity of Pacific participants and Pacific
knowledge are maintained or enhanced and the
result of research will be relevant and beneficial to
Pacific issues.
In TRM both researcher/s and participants are
active in the process and are involved in defining
and redefining meanings in order to arrive at
agreed knowledge. If philosophy is about the
ways people undertake to understand or create
the fundamentals about themselves, their world,
and their relationships to that world and each
other, then it is about those people constructing
knowledge in their own ways, not as prescribed by
other peoples’ideals.
Langafonua (elevating or advancing the fonua)
is Tongan for working together for the benefit of
society or country. It is about co-building and can
be represented by constructionism inherent in
talanoa. Langafonua is the building or enhancing
what fonua represents such as language and cul-
tural notions such as talanoa. Langafonua by
talanoa is achieved in spread and understanding
of culture and ways of being by those involved.
Talanoa told are lives re-lived and stories re-told
are lives shared with an ever growing concentric
circle of possible hosts for such knowledge. Every
ta
pulse, beat, the tā,
entity, initiator – (in
talanoa research it
can be the
researcher)
la
Laumālie – spirit,
essence. La’ ā (Sun),
beauty&warth, God in
the old religion,
creator & life
sustainer, la is sail
that drives movement
(spirit that drive &
guides)
noa
space, the vā,
accommodator (in
talanoa research, it
can be the
participant)
Talanoa: A Tongan
Research Methodology
and Method,
Fig. 1 Graphical
intersection that represents
connections between ta,la,
and noa
4Talanoa: A Tongan Research Methodology and Method
time they are shared, they have the chance to be
examined, challenged, enriched, reshaped,
recomposed, and re-owned through good vā
(relationship, relational space). The circle of
learning and reconstruction of fundamentals starts
again so talanoa assures currency and relevancy
of fonua.
Talanoa shares similarities with a narrative
approach to research, especially with reference
to the process used to share information, and
sharing information is sharing of self. TRM shares
a phenomenological approach to research with
grounded theory, naturalist inquiry, and some eth-
nographical research approaches. In talanoa,
however, culture is central and in such talanoa
can become a specific environment too. In this
sense while it is nonlinear and responsive like
the above mainstream methodologies, talanoa is
a phenomenological process that is appropriate to
Tongan or Pacific environment, and philosophy
therefore is different as it is ontologically
embedded.
In previous papers I have argued that for a
while Pacific peoples have been exposed to
research that have not been beneficial for them
and suggested that non-Pacific/indigenous meth-
odologies and methods used to guide research for
Pacific issues were ill-equipped to fully compre-
hend Pacific phenomena. The quality of talanoa,
and thus TRM, is dependent on how accurately a
researcher can recognize participant actions and
nonactions, what is said and unsaid in combina-
tion with how they are or are not said (fuo), and
then affirming and interpreting those through the
cultural ways of the participant (uho). These
involve tāand vā(the researcher and participant/
s). What is obvious is the third element
represented by la and in this case laumālie (spirit
or spirituality) as represented by mālie. Achieving
mālie is necessary for a sense of empowerment by
both researcher and participants, a state that will
encourage more critical deep thinking and freer
contributions to the research.
Despite shared characteristics with other meth-
odologies, talanoa centers Pacific cultures and
paradigms, with emancipation of their processes
as a by-product. Using talanoa and its cultural
protocols is a philosophical approach that
provides strategies that empower Pacific peoples
to have control over their knowledge creation and
operationalizes a certain amount of self-
determination. Its philosophical base is collective
and it acknowledges Pacific aspirations for
knowledge creation and knowledge searching.
Talanoa advocates for control over authentic and
trustworthy knowledge-making processes while
developing its own theoretical and methodologi-
cal base for relationship to Māori in Aotearoa and
others and each other.
Talanoa as a Method
Methods are about the way talanoa is used as a
tool, technique, or process to secure or
co-construct knowledge. For that reason, talanoa
involves learning to live, tell, relive, and retell
stories of relational knowing as narrative
inquirers, that is, stories in which ideas are not
owned but shared, reshaped, recomposed, and
renowned through relationship and conversation
at the different levels of talanoa.
When a life (in talanoa) is shared, a certain
essence of the vā(space) environment and tā
(time) which it is shared becomes a part of that
life marking it (talanoa) different from the last
time it is shared. For thousands of years, talanoa
lived and were told orally and relived. In the late
1800s the missionaries taught Tongans to re-live
their lives (hence talanoa) in written texts. Today,
talanoa as lives are relived in emails, phone con-
versations, surveys, and even observations. New
forms of lives are retold or relived electronically
therefore talanoa as a tool, and a method has to
reshape itself to stay timely, precise and
phenomenal.
The following methods are approaches that can
be applied at different stages of the talanoa. The
methods can be utilized singularly, simulta-
neously, or discursively. One method of the
talanoa may be dominant, and others can be
employed interchangeably to set a good atmo-
sphere, pass or obtain information holistically,
and prod or triangulate while observing cultural
protocols. Based on Tongan protocols and
Talanoa: A Tongan Research Methodology and Method 5
language, methods of the talanoa that are likely to
be used are:
Talatalanoa
Talatala can mean consultative; therefore,
talatalanoa can mean consultative talk with a
view to uncover something. Talatalanoa allows
the speakers and participants to go to and fro
many times, and every time those involved go
back, they pick up and unpack matters missed/
not realized (Linita Manu’atu, talanoa, Aug.
2016). It is almost always done calmly and with
a positive spirit. Since a composition by the late
King Tupou IV called Toe Talatalanoa (let us talk
again), talatalanoa had taken a softer, deeper, and
spiritual meaning. The late King implied that
talatalanoa is the method in which God commu-
nicates with his unreserved compassion. One of
the lines is fakaikiiki hangēki ha tamaiki which
actually means the messages are simplified as if
for children and that love is given out of compas-
sion and freely.
Talatalanoa then from the above discussions
uses simple language, and it requires minimal
formality because of the good understanding or
relationship between those involved; however, as
it is for the Tongan language, it is ontologically
shaped. It may just be a way to maintain connec-
tion, or to lay the foundation for a more objectified
talanoa such as faka’eke’eke and talanoa’iat a
later stage.
Talanoa faikava
Faikava is the process in which kava is prepared
for drinking at a gathering. A faikava can consist
of two or more people in a circle, and the main
ingredient shared are kava and talanoa. In faikava
the most senior person of the group monitors and
directs the activities of the occasion including the
talanoa to maintain a good vāand the group on
any task at hand.
The use of faikava is a metaphor for a group of
shared characteristics; therefore, its use in talanoa
is likened to a focus group. In faikava, it is com-
mon for one person to speak at a time, and while
they speak, everyone actively engages and reflects
until it is the next person’s time to contribute. One
topic is interrogated at one time until what needs
to be covered has been completed.
Talanoa usu
‘Ana Mo’ungatonga (talanoa, Dec, 2010)
suggested that talanoa usu is “...me’a fa’u
pe...”(just a construction), a makeup story. She
further suggested that “...‘oku ‘aonga ia ke fa’u
ha founga ke fakatefito kiai hano fakamata’i ha
‘uhinga ‘oku faingata’a hono fakamatala’i...”
(it is used as a metaphor for scaffolding those
involved in the talanoa to more important or key
information that may be difficult to explain).
Experts in talanoa usu can capture appreciative
participants as these experts are skilled in humor
and in contextual constructions to suit topics but
still respectful to participants’age, gender, and
rank. It is ideal for building trust and for relaxing
participants.
Talanoa faha’ikehe (tevolo)
Faha’ikehe means those from the other side
(including ancestors). The Christian missionaries
rename faha’ikehe tevolo (devil) to discourage the
Tongan people from activities that involved
faha’ikehe. However, today these talanoa engage
the emotion, spirit, body, and the mind in ways
that most other talanoa cannot. This is an onto-
logical dimension of talanoa and has to do with
supernatural matters. This is fundamental to
understanding Tongan thoughts, relationships,
spirituality, and knowledge as it strikes at the
heart of their epistemology. As epistemology
includes how knowledge is legitimated, some
Tongans (and other Pacific peoples) still consider
dreams, visitations, and visions to be a source of
legitimated knowledge.
Talanoa faka’eke’eke
‘Eke implies act of asking direct questions. Faka
means the way of and ‘eke’eke implies verbal
searching, interviewing, or even relentless
questioning. Talanoa faka’eke’eke can start with
a question, and depending on the answer, more
probing questions may follow. The questions con-
nect or build on the answers given by participants
in order to identify or uncover certain point/s.
6Talanoa: A Tongan Research Methodology and Method
Because this talanoa has a more objective aim,
it is efficient and likely to be dominated by the
researcher. This approach is more likely to miss
social contexts and other dimensions necessary
for a full picture. However, one can employ
pōtalanoa to gain more data on issues missed by
this approach. Faka’eke’eke is the term given to
formal police investigative procedures in Tonga.
Pōtalanoa
Pōimplies night or evening which points to this
talanoa’s origin. In a Tongan village life before
the time of television, after the evening meal,
friends, relatives, and neighbors would visit each
others’house to talanoa, discuss family matters,
as well as the more secular such as sharing plans
and hopes for the days ahead. It may be what we
identify as conversation and can be held anytime,
both day and night. Manu’atu (2002, p. 194)
describes pōtalanoa as:
...Cultural and political practice of Tongan people
where space in time is created to connect to the
contexts of their experiences through discussions
and talking with others. Through pōtalanoa, the
people come to know questions, find out,...about
their world and their relationships to it. In my view a
key to the practice of pōtalanoa is the capacity of
people to connect with each other within a context
of whether it is kinship, a work experience, com-
mon knowledge, faith or whatever.
It is fitting that Manu’atu (above) saw
pōtalanoa as the way people come to know ques-
tions and become aware of their world and their
relationships to it which form the elements of the
very philosophical argument of this chapter for
talanoa.
Talanoa’i
Talanoa’iis a verb; purposeful, has a particular
aim which may be an outcome. Talanoa’iallows
participants to go back and forth many times, and
every time those involved go back, they pick up
and unpack matters that may have been missed. It
implies high-level analysis and synthesis. Those
involved in talanoa’ihave similar backgrounds or
status, complementary expertise in the topic of a
talanoa. Talanoa’ithen is a more rigorous process
guided by its purpose/s and possibly a leader. It
may even take the form of a robust debate but with
the normal respect for age, gender, and others’
cultural conventions.
In talanoa’ithe researcher is not a distant
observer but is active in the talanoa process and
in defining and redefining meanings in order to
achieve the aim of what is being talanoa’i.
Talanoa’iis suited for stripping layers of history
and hurt that may have lead to tension, bad rela-
tionships, and even conflict. Talanoa’iencourages
contributions from participants just as participants
may demand the same of the researcher. Different
people may take leadership at different stages of
the encounter in the active pursuit of the best
knowledge, solution, or a final consensus.
Tālanga
Tālanga is dialogical and involves both the acts of
speaking and listening. Talanga can be used to
challenge. The two approaches of tālanga are
kau‘i-talanoa and tau-ngutu. Kau‘i-talanoa can
mean joining a conversation which one is not
expected to (Vaka’uta 2008 in Vaioleti 2013).
This may be a result of exclusion based on rank,
gender, age, or class. Kau’i-talanoa is used to
disrupt and challenge the authenticity or fact of a
talanoa. It is used by outsiders or less powerful
individual or groups to invite themselves into a
talanoa. At another level, tau-ngutu (fighting or
warring mouth) is talking or arguing back, a more
forceful way of stating opposing views (ibid).
Tālanga can be used to challenge a process or
findings during and even after the talanoa
process.
Further Discussion on Talanoa
and Application
When the methods of talanoa are used skillfully,
positive relationships and richer findings can
result. They can be used to triangulate; to assess
authenticity as well as cause and effect through
power differentiation (e.g. between researchers
(tā) and or between participants (vā)) and adjust
reflexivily whenever needed. These can be done
using talatalanoa or tālanga while talanoa faikava
is introduced regularly to maintain
the mālie (enjoyment) of talanoa. The person
Talanoa: A Tongan Research Methodology and Method 7
who is leading the talanoa can use one or as many
methods simultaneously as appropriate to assist
participants in reconstructing or recapture the full
richness of experiences being studied.
When TRM is used to study a phenomenon,
talanoa attempts to understand it through the eyes
of the participants. For that reason, the multiple
approaches of talanoa would be a culturally, spir-
itually, intellectually flexible method for explicat-
ing the meaning, structure, and essence of such
phenomenon as it appears to the participants.
Talatalanoa may be a good start for a talanoa to
focus participants into the task and then the
researcher or the participant/s can use talanoa
faka’eke’eke to clarify points or even establish
creditability or either party. Talanoa usu can be
used concurrently to scaffold any party to the
topic or relax them while layering on meaning in
the reconstruction of the phenomenon being
studied.
Cultural interplays during talanoa include
emotions, silence, reflective thoughts, and eye
and body movements which are all integrated
and inseparable parts of talanoa as collectively
they are articulation of participants’communica-
tion. It is in the flexible and multilevel manifesta-
tions of talanoa that allow skillful researchers and
participants to construct, relive, retell, and
re-share their experiences in their richest and
most authentic forms.
Protocol/Ethics in Talanoa
Vaioleti (2006, pp. 29–32) discussed
faka’apa’apa (respect), anga lelei (appropriate
disposition), mateuteu (prepared well), poto he
anga (culturally apt), and ‘ofa fe’unga (exercise
appropriate compassion), based in ‘anga
faka-Tonga (Tongan processes and ways) and
how to apply them contextually to guide talanoa.
These will protect the integrity of participants and
researchers and ensure that data collected, find-
ings, or construction are as authentic as possible.
Talanoa should be pragmatic, and when it loses
mālie (aesthetics, authenticity, spirit) or no more
new information is forthcoming, then it should
cease. The protocols proposed to guide talanoa
emphasizes that while truth is good, respect for
human dignity is better.
Fakakaukau (Bringing Together):
Thoughts on Analysis
Talanoa research approach can generate a large
quantity of information, notes, tape recordings,
jottings, and emails all of which have to be ana-
lyzed, and information do not naturally fall into
neat categories. However, in a small-scale talanoa
research using physical documents, the analysis of
the information is likely to be manageable. This
can be done by reading through material gener-
ated and get a feel for what is collected, identify-
ing key themes and issues in each text. They
should be then entered under different headings
but categories related to the research questions to
be juxtaposed and compared to identify relation-
ships between different themes and other factors.
However, for larger projects with a significant
numbers of participants, it is now customary for
the data to be uploaded to an electronic database
to be coded and processed using programs such as
Nvivo in order to analyze, characterize, classify,
and visualize the information gathered. The skill
in interpreting the data and creating the knowl-
edge from the TRM findings still rests with the
researcher/s. The advice given here though is that
reasons for making decisions on influential ele-
ments of the analysis such as coding or chucking,
main categorizes, and how those are related or
contributed to answering the research questions
should be recorded and transparent as this will
contribute to the robustness and acceptance of
the final findings of the TRM.
Talanoa shares a philosophical base with
Kaupapa Māori and other localized critical
research methodologies; therefore, it is effective
in visualizing deep issues and making voices
heard. This is not always comfortable for funders
or dominant institutions. On the other hand, many
organizations value the new and cultural insights
that can be the start for developing authentic and
lasting solutions, which an indigenous research
approach can bring in terms of cutting through
issues that limit the opportunities for those that
8Talanoa: A Tongan Research Methodology and Method
have not benefitted fully from what our civiliza-
tion has achieved.
References
Churchward, C. M. (1959). Tongan dictionary. London:
Oxford University Press.
Ferris-Leary, H. E. (2013). An analytical perspective on
Moana research and the case of Tongan Faiva. Doc-
toral dissertation, ResearchSpace, Auckland.
Manu’atu, L. (2002). Pedagogical possibilities for Tongan
students in New Zealand secondary schooling: Tuli ke
ma’u hono ngaahi mālie. Unpublished EdD thesis, The
University of Auckland, New Zealand.
Smith, L. T. (2012). Decolonizing
methodologies –Research and indigenous peoples
(2nd ed.). London/New York: Zed Books.
Vaioleti, T. M. (2006). Talanoa research methodology:
A developing position on Pacific research. Waikato
Journal of Education, 12, 20–34.
Vaioleti, T. M. (2011). Talanoa, Manulua and Founga
Ako: Frameworks for using enduring Tongan educa-
tional ideas for education in Aotearoa/New Zealand.
Unpublished doctoral thesis, University of Waikato,
Hamilton.
Vaioleti, T. (2013). Talanoa: Differentiating the Talanoa
research methodology from phenomenology, narrative,
Kaupapa Māori and feminist methodologies. Te Reo,
56, 191.
Talanoa: A Tongan Research Methodology and Method 9
