soc 3322a ethnographic studies and other types of field research
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Soc 3322a Ethnographic Studies and Other Types of Field Research
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Types of field research
Ethnography, ethnomethodology, phenomenological studies, grounded theory studies are all different variants of what is called field research in sociology
Often field research is a combination of two or more approaches, done along with interviewing. Case studies may also be done.
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Ethnography A way of building an understanding the culture and
behaviours of a group as a whole. Done in a setting or field site where a group of
people share a common culture. In sociology, ethnography usually called a field
study Uses:
Participant Observation Interviews with Informants Examination of documents and cultural artifacts
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More on Ethnography...
Different definitions, broadly speaking, type of research associated with studying the natural setting.
Has its roots in cultural anthropology, whereby the researcher examines a group’s observable and learned patterns of behaviour, customs, and ways of life by getting involved in the day-to-day lives of the people or by interviewing one-on-one members of a group.
Can be used to study of ethnic collectivities. To study how members of ethnic groups identify
themselves, how they give meaning to their ethno-cultural identity and how it has changed across generations.
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New Ethnography
“Extensive fieldwork of various types including participant observation, formal and informal interviewing, document collecting, filming, recording and so on.”
As Berg states, a detailed examination of people and their social discourses and the various outcomes of their actions.
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Ethnomethodology The study of commonsense knowledge How do individuals make sense of social
situations and act on their knowledge? What are the tacit rules used by members of
a culture? Detailed studies of interactions Breeching experiments (Garfinkel)
To uncover hidden norms
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Phenomenological Study
Understanding an experience from a research participant's point of view
Interview several participants as to their perceptions of an experience
Try to build a picture of the experience through using a combination of theories, literature in the area, illustrated by anecdotes, to build a detailed portrait of the experience
Use of Max Weber’s “verstehen”
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Grounded Theory Study*
Theories are empirically grounded into the data. Data collection and analysis are combined. Cycle – observe data, modify theory, observe data based
on theory An “inductive” theory building process Developed 1960’s by Barney Glaser, Anselm
Strauss (1968) Used for clinical sociology An important methodological breakthrough Def’n: The systematic generation of theory from
data *is an experiential methodology
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Grounded Theory (cont.)
Main assumptions: Social life integrated and patterned All actions integrated with other actions Can discover pattern categories within which the
action is integrated All social action is multivariate
Inductive vs. deductive is an oversimplification of complex thinking processes (i.e. thinking up hypotheses actually an inductive process)
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Validity in Field Research
Problematic because of investigator subjectivity
Can counteract by: using multiple sources of evidence, establishing a chain of evidence as in a grounded
theory study and having a draft case study report reviewed by
key informants (Yin, 1994)
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Participant and Non-Participant Observation in Field Research
Preparing for the field: 1. Background preparation and literature review
2. Talking to informants
3. Gaining entry into the group Gatekeepers Public vs. private settings
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Entry to the Field: Gatekeepers Gatekeepers, Guides, Informants: you should learn
who the “important” people are that can help you or hinder your research. How can they help you? How can they hinder/influence your research?
Becoming Invisible: What does it mean? Is it advantageous and how can you become invisible?
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The Various Roles of the Observer (Raymond Gold’s levels, 1983) A. Complete participant
B. Participant-as-observer
C. Observer-as-participant
D. Complete observer
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Ethnography: Considerations and Issues
Access to Setting: careful planning; it varies depending on scope of research, the resources available, and whether the community is easily accessible or not.
Reflexivity: acknowledging that your own subjectivity is part of the research and can influence outcome. In ethnography, reflexivity is not only encouraged, it is demanded. You must have a “dialogue” about not only what you know, but how you come to know –how did you arrive to your interpretations, and disclose that in your writing.
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In the field...
Field Note-Taking: a central component of ethnographic research. Must provide detailed accounts of observation of behaviour, conversations. You do this at various points throughout:
Cryptic Notes: brief notes, statements, sketches. Detailed Notes: right after your observation. Analytic Notes: your own ideas, comments, application of
theories to what you observed. Self-reflective notes. Next, you analyse by CODING. Each fieldwork is
separately coded. You extract themes, issues, topics you have “uncovered”. Then, you look at recurrent patterns in themes.
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Initial analysis of field notes
Typologies- classify similar events, actions, and people into discrete groupings, by how they share similar “culture” in setting.
McSkimming & Berg’s example of tavern patrons who were divided into 4 typologies
So, after having spent time in the field, you look for patterns, similarities, and divide them into groupings that are exhaustive, mutually exclusive and have a significant meaning for differentiation.
Can go back into the field and use your typology for further observation
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Recording observations
Field journal To record empirical data To record interpretations
Guidelines for note taking Don't trust your memory Take notes in stages Record everything
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Organizing and Writing Notes Make simple jotted notes at time of
observation
Rewrite your notes in full as soon as possible after making observations
Best to do this on computer, using word processor
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Notes (cont.) Creating files helps organize field notes for analysis.
a. Chronological file as a master file. b. Background files (from literature review, and
documentation of topic's history.) c. Biographical files on key subjects in the study. d. Bibliographical files of all references related to study. e. Analytical files to categorize what you are observing. f. Cross-reference files may be useful to retrieve data.
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Using computers in field research
some software programs (i.e. NVivo) are now available for field research notes
Can save time, especially when analyzing data
But can use Word, Word Perfect too
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Advantages of field research
High external validity
Can study nonverbal behaviour
Flexibility
Natural environment
Longitudinal analysis
Relatively inexpensive
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Disadvantages of field research Time consuming Not applicable to the investigation of large social
settings Low internal validity (lack of control) Biases, attitudes, and assumptions of the
researcher can be problem Selective perception and memory Selectivity in data collection Presence of the researcher may change the system
or group being studied Virtually impossible to replicate the findings
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Now, an exercise for you
Conduct a brief ethnographic study : spend about 10 minutes in the “Living Room” at Brescia. Develop rough field notes and create a typology of the people and actions observed while in the field.
Be prepared to share with the class ( I will call on a few of you) your typology and discuss what you observed.