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Research  Methods CASA Writing Center Research  Methods CASA Writing Center

Research Methods CASA Writing Center - PowerPoint Presentation

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Research Methods CASA Writing Center - PPT Presentation

Ethnography ethno graphy ethno people graphy writing ethnography writing about people Defining ethnography arararPr langen sz2400 dirty0 arararPr langen sz2400 dirty0 smtClean0 ID: 719531

community research lang dirty research community dirty lang ethnography rpr ethnographic data 2800 field culture writing observe observation notes

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Slide1

Research MethodsCASA Writing Center

EthnographySlide2

ethno-graphyethno = people

graphy

= writing

ethnography = writing about peopleSlide3

Defining ethnography

Slide4

What is the purpose of ethnography?

Slide5

Ethnography is...

study of a particular group - in their natural

setting

,

doing

everyday

activities, practices, processes

embedding

oneself into a culture to observe and

describe patterns

cultural interpretation (Reimer, 2011

)

cultural patterns

or processes of

a community

finding the inner workings of social settings Slide6

What is an ethnographer?

the data collection instrument (Reimer, 2011

)

gaining the "insider" perspective

translating this perspective for outsiders

"We bring our cultural selves with us wherever we go, and even with the best of intentions, an ethnographer can never see life completely through another person's eyes... the ethnographer is never able to completely write him or herself out of the ethnography" (Reimer, 2011, p. 165). Slide7

An ethnographer is...

a researcher - in and out of the

field

an observer

a participant

an interviewer

an interpreter Slide8

What is the goal?

To gain an "insider's"

perspective on a community, culture, or group of individuals

To develop a cultural

interpretation

cultural constructions, values, norms, processes, meaningsSlide9

Dogtown and Z Boys (2001)

Examples of Ethnography

Counter Culture (2009)Slide10

History of Ethnography

Foundations in anthropology, sociology, social anthropology, cultural anthropology

an interest in observing and understanding the cultur

e and processes of

"the Other"

i.e. tribal, native, or

indigenous

cultures

Ethnography has moved/moves beyond these foundations to explore cultures and communities in

all

areas of life.Slide11

Why ethnography?

As a process, ethnographic

research allows the individual to observe, interact, experience, and participate in a community or culture.

As a product, ethnographic research - or an ethnography -

translates and offers an “insider’s” perspective on the community or culture for outsiders.

This allows others to understand the community or culture more fully.

Why might this be valuable?Slide12

Research Methods

Quantitative

data can be

measured

deals with

numbers

raw data is used to construct graphs or tables

fails to capture human experience

Qualitative

data can be observed, but not

measured

explores

the experiences of

participants

descriptive data

gathers information in a non-numerical form

interviews, diary accounts, open-ended questionnaires, observations

Slide13

Research Methods

Ethnographic research methods include both quantitative and qualitative research.

quantitative: survey data, background research

qualitative: observations,

field notes, interviews

, interactions, reflectionsSlide14

Research Question Before beginning any research project, it is important to consider what you are researching and why.

What is your research question?

Please refer to your instructor’s assignment guidelines and/or develop your own research question as necessary. Slide15

Ethical Considerations “The need to protect research participants is so critical that all ethnographers, even students conducting ethnographic research for a class, must abide by this code of conduct” (Reimer, 2011, p. 171). Slide16

Code of ConductPlease ask your professor or the Institutional Review Board (IRB) for more information regarding ethical considerations in ethnographic research.

Code of Conduct, American Anthropological Association (1998)

Your ethnographic research should not:

Harm or exploit its participants

Your ethnographic research should:

Seek informed consent from participants

Respect the anonymity or recognition of participantsSlide17

What are ethnographic research methods?

“ethnographic reconnaissance” (

W

olcott, 2008, p. 187).

f

ieldwork – researcher in “the field”

r

esearcher as data instrument

o

bservation of community

data collection

Compose

fieldnotes

through observation.

Revise and add to

fieldnotes

through reflection.

Conduct interviews (informal or structured) and/or surveys with members of the community or group.

Collect site documents and/or representative artifacts of the community or group.

data analysis

r

eport writingSlide18

"Ethnographic Reconnaissance"

reconnaissance: a mission to survey, explore, and obtain

information

exploration of a community or field site to orient

oneself

Visit your site and check it out – it’s okay to feel like an outsider!

Wolcott

(2008) argues that it allows the researcher "to make a better-informed decision as to whether or how to proceed with more thorough investigation" (p. 188). Slide19

Fieldwork

"the field" is the natural setting of the community or culture being observed

For example, if researching the community of regular diners at a cafe, one would observe this community at the cafe.

Give yourself time to observe.

It is best to return to "the field" as often as possible to gain an insider's perspective on the community and its processes, practices, and/or values.

Fieldwork cannot be rushed.

Don’t procrastinate!

"Certainly, the more time available for fieldwork the better" (Wolcott, 2008, p. 190). Slide20

Researcher - Ethnographer

Ethnographer as the data instrument

Using your own experiences, observations, and perceptions to observe and take note of a community or culture

In addition to observation and interviews, ethnographers conduct outside research to learn more about the community or culture they are researching.

This helps them in the field and also in writing their ethnographic reports. Slide21

Observation

This takes time!

Be sure to seek permission to observe a community.

Prepare a statement of purpose to explain your reasons for being there.

Return to your field site as often and as many times as possible.

This will depend on the time you have available to conduct your own ethnographic research. Slide22

Types of Observation

Participant Observation

The researcher becomes an active participant in the community while observing.

Experiential observation

Non-Participant Observation

The passive observer

"fly on the wall"

The researcher does not become an active participant in the community.

Focus on observation only - no interaction Slide23

Observation as Experience

"

Participant observation is founded on firsthand experience in naturally occurring events" (Wolcott, 2004, p. 49).

Using all five senses to observe, experience, and absorb

.

Documenting these observations in field notes. Slide24

Data Collection - Field notes

Keep a notebook with you to take notes and/or make sketches.

Outsider perspective / insider perspective

Each time you sit down to observe, date your notes.

Some things you could consider are:

Observe WHO is present – what are their roles?

WHAT they are doing?

WHY are they doing this?

Consider the focus and purpose of your research. Slide25

Writing Field Notes “As quickly as possible, write up notes about what you learn, including first impressions, problems you anticipate, leads you might follow, analytical concepts you may later want to consider. Keep track as well of your emotional responses and information gained through

all

your senses, not just what you have ‘seen’” (Wolcott, 2008, p. 193). Slide26

Field Notes – What to write?First impressionsInformation gained through all your sensesProblems you anticipate

Leads or interests you might follow

Analytical concepts

i.e. discourse community theory

Emotional responses

(Wolcott, 2008) Slide27

Interviews

Seeking permission – informed consent

Using a recording

device

Interviews – sitting down face-to-face with an individual to discuss questions

Formal – structured Q&A

Informal – more like a conversation

Guided by prepared questions, but flexible to discuss responses of interviewee(s)Slide28

SurveysSurveys – developing questions for participants to respond to and return to the researcherAllow for a larger response population

Can offer numerical data and open-ended responsesSlide29

Collecting Site Documents

How are people communicating?

How is information gathered and/or shared?

Genres – newsletters, memos, forms

Media – images, web sources, videos

“…texts… are reflections of shared practice, societal norms, and public relationships, [and] they are potentially rich sources of data” (Reimer, 2011, p. 168). Slide30

Data Analysis

You will analyze the data you have collected according to the focus of your research.

Return to your Research Question. Slide31

Report Writing

Abstract

Introduction

Background – Review of the Literature

Informing your reader about the community or culture, its history, its construction, its importance, etc.

Methods

Discussing your methods of ethnographic research

Results

Analyzing the results

Using the data you collected in your observations, interviews, site documents, etc.

Discussion Slide32

How do I do ethnography?

Select a community or group of individuals that you will study.

Develop a focus or question for your study.

i.e. What are the goals and characteristics of this discourse community?

Set up a time to observe your community.

It is best to return to your field of study numerous times.

Compose thorough field notes and return to reflect on them often.

Interact with individuals within the community.

Seek interviews or distribute surveys.

Organize your findings

.

Analyze your findings.Slide33

Ethnography activity - Step 1

Imagine you are asked to conduct ethnographic research to learn more about the goals and values of college freshmen.

Create five (5) interview questions you could ask an "insider" of this community. Slide34

Ethnography Activity - Step 2

Using the five (5) interview questions you created, travel to another table and interview an individual.

Be sure to take notes on their responses. Slide35

Ethnography ModelsIf you’d like to look at some examples of ethnographic research and reports, see the Writing About Writing

textbook:

Mirabelli

, T. “Learning to serve: The language and literacy of food

s

ervice

w

orkers” (p. 538)

McCarthy, L. P. “A stranger in strange

l

ands: A college

s

tudent writing across the curriculum” (p. 667)

Branick

, S. “Coaches can read, too: An ethnographic study of a football coaching discourse community” (p. 557)Slide36

References

American Anthropological Association. (1998). Code of ethics of the American

Anthropological Association. Retrieved from

http

://www.aaanet.org/committees/ethics/ethcode.htm

Reimer

, J. F. (2011). Ethnography research. In S. D. Lapan, M. T. Quartaroli, &

F

. J. Reimer (Eds.),

Qualitative research: An introduction to methods

and

designs

(pp. 163-188). Hoboken, NJ: Jossey Bass.

Wolcott, H. F. (2008).

Ethnography as a way of seeing

, 2nd ed. New York,

NY

:

Alta

Mira Press.

Whitehead, T. L. (2004). What is ethnography? Methodological, ontological,

and

epistemological

attributes.

Cultural Ecology of Health and Change

(

CEHC)

. Retrieved from http://

www.cusag.umd.edu/documents/

WorkingPapers/EpiOntAttrib.pdf