Table 3.

Trustworthiness assessment.

Criteria of trustworthiness	How addressed
Transferability is “concerned… with the transferability of one manifestation of a phenomenon to a second manifestation of the phenomenon” (Hirschman, 1986, p. 245), including presenting sufficient details about the context of the fieldwork when writing up the results (Lincoln & Guba, 1985).	This study used theoretical sampling, specifically interviewing those who were traders involved in the focal industry of vegetables, located in a resource-scarce context. Also, the research context, as well as “sufficient thick descriptions of the phenomenon under investigation was provided” (Shenton, 2004, p. 70) in the present paper.
Dependability seeks for data collection that is stable and consistent, such as involving more than one researcher (Hirschman, 1986, p. 245) and presenting the research process in detail, including “the minutiae of what was done in the field” (Shenton, 2004, p. 72).	Interviews were conducted by both the lead author, and the local research assistant (on her own), and observations were undertaken by both authors at separate periods. Further, the details of the research process were recorded and detailed in the paper.
Confirmability is the pursuit of ensuring interpretations are supported from the gathered data, representing “a logical set of conclusions, given the reasoning he or she employed during the interaction, and to be nonprejudiced, nonjudgmental rendering of the observed reality” (Hirschman, 1986, p. 246, italics removed).	We conducted debriefing sessions with those familiar with the data, with the context, or with theoretically similar contexts, in order to solicit feedback. The lead author kept detailed memos to support reflexivity, both observations and interviews were conducted and reported, and limitations were included (e.g., Shenton, 2004).
Credibility is the extent to which the findings fit reality (Merriam, 1998), or the “[e]xtent to which the results appear to be acceptable representation of the data” (Flint et al., 2002, p.106).	As Shenton (2004) recommended, we followed established research methods, sought early familiarity, used debriefing sessions, and invited peer scrutiny of the project over multiple occasions. We also conducted interviews at multiple locations,
Integrity is the “extent to which the interpretation was unimpaired by lies, evasions, misinformation, or misrepresentations by informants” while understanding “that data are never perfect reflections of the phenomena being studied” (Wallendorf & Belk, 1989).	Following the guidelines by Wallendorf and Belk (1989), the interviewer sought to build up rapport and trust with the participants. The interviews were anonymous and conducted in a nonthreatening and friendly way. Five interviews were also conducted by the Burmese research assistant.