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eee ee als, a ere rs Gonanis Caruana poererninnay Cee ee ea nee ae mee ers eit Cena Pee ett ees) ores 7S ETHNOGRAPHER'S TOOLKIT ated fn Seber ns for Cnty ea Herd and Maret D LeCroy of Cra oer ‘Thestogapber Telit is deen iho, the mre een ind nae erento he eo ah bo of tT ae you aug the pe, Cone eps of dig elropapie ech ns eer sia age Cae ‘di cin hey pinto remembrance ateined (e hop there ly nderand the sng am Ei» yep ‘aaa eprac he sts se sletocmindhe comes an roi ‘crate ta dea tl ws Ree gettin cael ‘rap eh cliborain nd wey of st er sole nk pay, eanming and ps se eb nth ames he Tait the prt ing ist forpceconrin der rofanonal flr cling ices hey ‘Sov devlpment td the aswel frst adet sd expec ‘rr wtih Sed of ondecing ged ong Summer 1998 7 ome pperbec oe oe 07189029 ooKs NT TINOGRAPHERS TOOL 1 Designing nd Conducting tna Rr by Margret LeCompte Fant Shea 0619-9759 (pea) 2 sential Bopp Mao Oberon tris an Qusionates, by pes Sl fan See nd pe Dome e900 (one 5. Eahacd Ethnographic Method dori Teche Fw Grey Int nd tcttoe Tiguan Seka pre Long, ole Rasa pen Poa. pspeah) Mpeg Neto, Spt Dat en Hidden Popa en). Shewh, ror icmp Sake Teer, Ben Come od Ml Sng e193 pete nang Inepeting hap Dat by Mare D.C Fant een 0701-949 reper 6; Research Rl and Rear Part by Maret DLAC, Fe Seen Naru Wes on Mel Sage. 760.5700 (pepe) ‘ing Ebsogephic Ds nerves Pai Prgramming and Fa Ply. by chon Marist Lacon Aled Hef ome Ka Nese ey on Willson, ony Br td Bh ower 071889722 (opr) ASSTIL WIRE ® ESSENTIAL ETHNOGRAPHIC METHODS Observations, Ireenveus, ond ‘Questionnores STEPHEN L SCHENSUL JEAN J, SCHENSUL MARGARET D. Lecoere ETHNOGRAPHER'S TOOUWT 5--— EXPLORATORY OR OPEN-ENDED OBSERVATION Participant observation esto a proces oflarn- ing though exposure to orimavement nthe day- to-day or oun acti of part in therevatch seting, Pariipent observation represents the starting int netinogrepic research forthe following sons 1 es coma ding an baling rans impo ‘Sno the ite of he rach ender fries he raarcher a itt el nll pf the way hg erat wd roti, [op ehtto ne ante nd bear nacho and Fiynatboun we eed. fetter on ie cn conto of ‘qt planing {Sin sl oopetonsovowoonie sas nd hes ‘ering enthe courte rend sho whi ens ee rie frends pee te eed te omni, 1 protethe rocarher wth col epee ht an ‘edanel withay emt prpans tbe st ‘Scond wee anda According to Bogdewic, participant observation offers other advantages, tlading the opportniy 0 witness entation freer sineles fend song toro ey nes in poole into lng ett Pats isto one Ines ‘vets that outsiders would ot eave tated and to ‘cers stations that might bebdden fom the public such 2 certain religious sta, legal or soil stigmatized ‘tvs, ates that ioupe ae to malta spect identity ogewi 1992) PARTIPATION We begin our discussion regarding tools of observation with dfnkions of aberration and patton. Parti. ‘avons ainaye defined by ceearher presence at the ten bing observed. Prtispation means neo mmersion when ethnographer lien unfaliecommusitien were they have litleor no knowlege of loa cure and sad life thos canis thro thee own partisipation «filme residents and members. The tations defn tion of participant observation relist this immenion experience. Bren in these crcmstnces,howerer,te- searchers musreeat rom he fd fos time to ine ren if retreating ison t this oom ox priate space to ite ptheinotes. Otherwise ther unceonded experince will, reverb transformed int doament that an be read and interpre by them. ar wl oer a ein data nographes and oterresencher stl ean Hestify ‘opportunities for immersion experiences. Bt fr the moet art ebserersare not fill participants ia commanity fe Tn some instance, such as ethnography conc th drag users or others engaged in ileal acti, is not tthialy or profesional serpable for ethnographer to become fly iva, The range of opportuni, fom nonparticption o atv parlpation o compete pa tigation has often been expr a a continvum (De ‘Wale De Wal, 1998, pp 262.263 lose pracy, 1980), ooo In Book 6, we describe some of the personal chase: ‘eit that infanc the grees wit which ethno syaphic researchers may be coped into ast, These Include appearance, language, car background, manner, ‘asa interaction sl, ag, i, gender race and tiie i. Stuctural characteristics, such a rae replting the behavior and interaction of men and women, o as of hospi alo may ff posses for iteration in ‘ual Neko or ia Senegal fr expe tient culty ceptable for researchers to le alone o in # hotel. A researcher mt ve wih fami and epee socal ie Im the contest ofthat fly’ poston and role Inthe commanig Families or community menters may ven ‘ve researchers loa, family o ean nam, In Mes Jean Scheu Spanish name was ait, In Sena she Fest wasiven he Wolf version ofher fst atie—lenbi late, when leaders of a adtional women’ group eld ‘he quetion of to which family she belonged, she was ‘informally asigned the dan name ofthe family wth whom she wa ning a he me. Becoming incorporated int afl rings wititrany sonal social and sentc advantages On the oe: hand finding private ime to work or travealone Becomes 4 challenge when researchers ae expected to partic it family evens Furhemoe, the poitonof he famiinthe ommnity may imitresarcher acs onfrmaion and opportunites. In contrat tothe previous examples, in Cina a esacher may be tested a an ofeil visitor hase residence i confined oa hotel or tng for for ‘sguersand whose opportnts or leamingate limited a ther ays 'As Werner and Schaef (197) not, how ch a. ‘iipaton i posible or estes infoenced bythe sting Satte retest theresa tt ‘pane me snd the research question: “Studying a Plynesin village ‘whe ving it egies false partpation commit Ing daly 0 fie station to sandy eemen wie iing st home region part-time partpton” (pp. 258-259), Patcation als varies interme of the cvs in hich the researcher Is expected to or can paricpate Sometines escarchersarepresit in commis oF tan ctv and need do nothing but scompany thes ob serve, and ik questions, At oer tines they aay be x ec to patpate more actively Sometimes researchers in find ways of making theme weful—for example, by wating cen, hopping for fod sing ren paying «game with youth o ads, working ith public health ofcialsandwachersoma public health am alga. Taional ethnographer wee expected tear by doing (prt), bese in immersion t= tings there ae stations such ae eligousceremoriey, to ‘which outsider ae not ited ae forbid fo partic: pate "Ehnoraphers maybe ech from petition for yar of reasons Thee ay fcide lack of trast the ‘community’ diomfort with an oud communi mem ‘ba anticipation that itation might be dangerous, or the community eluctaace or inability because of poverty ‘orci war 0 provide continuing suport fora strange. Some exclusionary eciqaes nha the following recheroeot nder 1 Gisei enitoticimentsnnheietnaeer 1 Poctoningo th theetnogapbercnntbar wating oa rey eeachercaneapettocaperiene econ Rec- counting whether or ot one intentionally exlded and ‘leering what excanon means forthe secs ofthe research ian important component of any Gel sty ‘spec inthe ely sages Seng boundaries nd Units ‘round one patiption during the fet months of th ographic eléwork, establishing a rowtne, sd thing ‘egrets from the fl ate ways of coping with the ‘ese and ambigtis of longterm immersion ine search tng. ‘Aer a period of parlpaton and observation, re searchers at ikea come tthe ealiatin that hey ave become reeaized apd accepted inthe sad community. (Often thiourea unusal nent, chasing ‘family ora grou a cri daring which they ae per ‘eived ar having in 2 manner hat demons serous ‘commitment othe community (DeWal & DeWal, 199, P25), (OBSERVATION ‘Observation ie vas iter through the researcher in spre frames The most accurate abervations are shaped by feat theoretal frameworks and erup ous attention to deta. Other nflaener op observation, suchas personalise and values and other tac, plc, ‘or unariculated thor, are les help nographers ‘Should be scupuloosintheirunderetandngofthereerch problem anditsformativetheoretial famework,aswellas ‘hel oun biases—attempting to strengthen the eects of ‘heformerand inimizetheeectofthelater Thequality and importance ofthe facts that an ethnographer obreves Sd records depend on the abervatona documentation, nd interpretation sls ofthe observer and the oppor ites she as for observing ein: Otero Cte seen oh be eyesore teagan ‘henna ee Sacnlsn oe ‘re [In the remalnder ofthis ehape, we wil ssa what ehnographers obser, when and whete they ober what tol are sre to improve cbreretonal sills and dha quality and howe oberon dts are eorde, \WHATDO ETHNOGRAPHERS OBSERVE? ‘Wit ethnographer obser inthe ld wil ier doing il stay Researchers Spend the is days nd month of Gel exgeiene geting oriented Te ned oles ow to function na new aitaton aswel as csity bout wil dive oberon Later on, obseration wil Become tote letive When they fs enter the fel, ethsogrphess wil not now exactly what they are observing, expec the seting is unfamiler. During the early sages is very importnsto document ohevaton acutely andi con crete etal without prematurely imposing categories de- rived fom apreestublsied external theory or concepts framework enteral to the community or cll context, being sued, Local formative theory ate researchers ©

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