BP - I'm the new kid on the block here, but I've traveled to LAm a lot, lived there a good long while, and have participated in at least one other forum for a considerable amount of time. So, that being said, let me see if I can tackle the question you have, and the lack of response thus far.
First, I think you should be commended for coming out of the dark yesterday, and making it known that you were here to "gather data'. Personally, I would have preferrred to see you do it on day one, but it is what it is.
Secondly, the reason I don't think you'll get many respondents is at least twofold, if not more. One, the guys here don't trust people doing "research", not so much for the fear that you'll mis-categorize what they have to say, as you'll write what it is you're going to write anyway, but that these are human beings working, in some instances desperately, to furnish themselves with a better relationship in life, and improve their overall "quality" of life. I truly believe that most guys' won't want to be in the "fish bowl" so to speak. They share what they share, but private thoughts and matters most likely will remain just that. Private. Searching for a significant other in LAm is time consuming in and of itself, and any free time will most likely be spent conversing with loved one's, or love interests, or, doing what it is ultimately so important in the Latin American culture...spending time with loved ones and family. It's not an experiment. It's not research. One guys folly, might be another mans gain. Different strokes, for different folks if you will. Everyone has a different thought, everyone has their own "perfect" significant other. In my experiences over the years, it's certainly not anything that you'll be able to shoe horn into one thought or another. All you can do, is watch.
One other item on the list that needs to be discussed. You say that your researching for a sociology paper on Latin America culture/relationships. I have to tell you, that Colombia is not very representative of the rest of Latin America. Colombia es Colombia. Trying to pigeonhole it down a little further by safety factors/lack of murders, certainly makes that non-representation even more unrepresentative if that makes sense. In just comparing capitols, Bogota is certainly not anything like Lima, and Santiago is a far cry from what Buenos Aires is like. So, just what is it that you'll be researching?
I wish you a lot of luck in accomplishing what it is that you've set out to annotate, and I think the most prudent course of action on your part, would be inaction. Instead of "asking" guys to elicit an answer, observe their answers. Sociology is about observation, and the study of social action, is it not? Observing that action out of it's natural state, could flaw your results. JMHO, and certainly not the views of anyone else except myself.
Best Regards, and Good Luck!
