Ethnographic Observation
An ethnography is a useful qualitative research tool in which data is collected about people interacting in a particular setting. In this exercise of ethnographic observation, you will be an unobtrusive researcher observing the social world of individuals and/or groups in a particular setting.
The goal of this exercise is to do a 90-minute observation in a selected setting and to document your observations using field notes. In ethnographic research, field notes serve as the central source of data and are used to capture, in detail, your observations while in the setting. More specifically, notes from the field should contain complete narratives and should provide “thick and rich descriiption” of the setting so that anyone who reads your field notes will understand and experience the social setting without actually being there.
Preparation and Methodological Considerations:
Please review class materials relevant to ethnographic observation.
Ethnographic ResearchDownload Ethnographic Research
Ethnographic Field NotesDownload Ethnographic Field Notes
Select a site to study. Sometimes it helps when the site contains a group of participants that are different from you in 2 out of following list of characteristics:
Ethnicity
Age
Socioeconomic status
Sex/Gender identification
Religious affiliation
Click here for ideas on groups or settings to observeLinks to an external site..
Other ideas include observation/participant observation at a family gathering, sporting event, religious service, coffee shop, restaurant, club meeting, airport, concert, hospital, amusement park, gym, etc.
Choose a safe setting and gain permission to visit if necessary.
Jot down your DETAILED field notes.
Allow 90 minutes to observe a single setting where people interact.
Develop an observational protocol to help record detailed field notes.
Click here for an example of how your field notes should be organized.Download Click here for an example of how your field notes should be organized.
You may use the above template for your notes, however your notes DO NOT need to be in table format. They just need to be organized in a way that includes descriiptive notes and corresponding reflective notes, if applicable.
Your field notes MUST have descriiptive AND reflective notes.
Click here for more information on descriiptive and reflective notes.Links to an external site.
Record basic information about the setting as well as who, what, when, and for how long you observed particular events and activities. Field notes should include descriiptive and reflective notes, and drawing(s) diagramming the setting and important features.
Note any patterns you observe, or point out any observations or patterns that particularly surprise you.
Your goal should be to identify patterns in the subculture: in the way it works, the values that its members share, the ways they communicate and interact, their patterns of behavior, or some more narrowly focused question (such as the different ways that male and female members interact).
Start with a descriiption of the place itself. Map out the space. How does traffic flow? What’s the general atmosphere? What details create that atmosphere? What’s the lighting like? The floor? The furniture? Pictures on the wall? Of what? Remember that you have five senses. What do you smell, hear, taste, touch?
Pay attention to the people in your field site. What are their ages, genders, clothing? How do they interact? Record specific bits of conversation. Are they using any insider language, any unfamiliar words?
Discuss the theme of your research and research question (What group are you studying? Were you interested in focusing on gender roles? stratification? cultural values?)
You may have discovered other themes during your observation, but what was your initial theme?
Discuss the setting – location, date, time of day
Discuss the participants
Discuss the patterns of behavior you observed and discuss the significance of your observations from a sociological perspective (Which sociological concepts did you identify? Which theories could be used to explain activities/behavior/situations?)
Discuss any questions that might have risen during your observation and analysis
Simply write your answers in a numbered list.
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