There can be a big divide between field researchers and analytical researchers. Let's break down how a researcher who is unable to do field work can extend their knowledge and make huge contributions.
There's a ton of reasons why someone cannot do field research -
Distance from subject matter
Disability or physical limitations on hiking.
No finances or car to reach locations
Severe allergies
No time or days off for travel.
There are plenty more reasons, sometimes emotional, physical, mental, or because of caregiving responsibilites and the like.
Don't let that situation stop you from making huge contributions in the field.
Some ideas -
Stay connected to a field researcher. Sometimes these guys need guidance from Google Earth research from home. You can stay on the phone and even give suggestions in what to do next when they come upon a situation. Two minds are better than one. You can give reminders of how to procure evidence, take photos measure things.
One researcher who was disabled became "home base" for our team. He would look things up, check out Google Earth, measure distances, give coordinates. On some cases of treasure hunting, he became the Google Earth expert to follow clues and find locations. His place on our team was super important.
I had one field researcher who mailed me a huge cast he had obtained of a Bigfoot print that also had amazingly two hand prints with it. He did not realize he should preserve the dirt and hairs caught in all the toes and fingers. This was something I was able to remove under a magnifying light with clean tweezers and bag for DNA study.
If you have tech experience or want to develop it, consider being the designer of the website, the one who edits videos, the blogger who reports team findings, the artist who creates logos and t-shirts, running an online store for the team.
For ghost hunters, a home base researcher is super helpful. Many times, reviewing video and EVP audio is a tedious chore, but someone who can sit still and listen is critical to the team.
As well, setting up potential ghost investigation sites and getting the details and permissions in order is a huge relief for a team that is itching to study a building.
Promoting the team is a huge relief. By networking, joining groups on Facebook or starting your own, setting up potential podcast interviews and the like is like being the agent/manager or a team.
A true analytical researcher is going to pour over books and reference materials, scientific magazines, and the like coming up with new experiments and techniques, designing and building equipment, and educating the team on the location and its history is a fantastically important part of being in a team.
You know the movie "The Truman Show"? The director was up there in the command center making directions for cameras and queuing up events. He controlled the whole world. Truman was just tromping around in the field living moment to moment.
You can be the director, the one who is a stable place to evaluate people in the field who are reacting and adapting to a present situation. You can take what they find and see what it all means without the distractions of being a field participant who ran a gamut of emotions and interpretations under fire.
Ultimately, educating others, writing books, making educational videos and documentaries, hosting a podcast, and much more are just some of the zillion ways you can proudly research the subject without dropping yourself into the forest or haunted hospital.
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