We would normally recommend that ethnographic methods are used for very complex and/or critical design problems. More complex design problems (in terms of their domain, audience(s), processes, goals and/or context(s) of use) are likely to need the deeper understanding which ethnographic studies can bring.

What is ethnographic research used for?

It is used not only to study distant or unfamiliar cultures, but also to study specific communities within the researcher's own society. For example, ethnographic research (sometimes called participant observation) has been used to investigate gangs, football fans, call center workers, and police officers.

What is the main purpose of an ethnographic observation?

Ethnography is a study through direct observation of users in their natural environment rather than in a lab. The objective of this type of research is to gain insights into how users interact with things in their natural environment.

Under what circumstances would a researcher use ethnography as a method to study a population?

When to Use Ethnography Research

Ethnographic research should be used in the early stages of user-focused systematic investigations. This is because ethnography research helps you to gather useful information about the dispositions, goals, and habits of the research variables in specific contexts.

What is an example of ethnographic research?

A classic example of ethnographic research would be an anthropologist traveling to an island, living within the society on said island for years, and researching its people and culture through a process of sustained observation and participation.

Ethnographic Research - Meaning, Purpose, How to Conduct it, Advantages and Disadvantages (224)

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How do you use ethnographic research?

How to Do Ethnography Research

1. Identify Research Question. Determine what problem you are seeking to better understand. ...
2. Determine Location(s) for Research. ...
3. Formulate Presentation Method. ...
4. Acquire Permissions and Access. ...
5. Observe and Participate. ...
6. Interview. ...
7. Collect Archival Data. ...
8. Code and Analyze Data.

What is ethnographic research and why would it be used?

Ethnographic research is a qualitative method where researchers observe and/or interact with a study's participants in their real-life environment. Ethnography was popularised by anthropology, but is used across a wide range of social sciences.

Why is ethnography useful in everyday life?

Ethnography is the description of cultures and the groups of people who live within them. It can be useful in personal adaptation, personal success, and to better understand other cultures.

What can ethnographic research reveal that other forms of research Cannot?

What can ethnographic research reveal that other forms of research cannot? By using ethnographic research, it can revel nuances that other researcher may miss. How did the use of questionnaires and observational research reveal about people that ethnographic research might miss?

What is ethnography as applied in research?

Ethnography is a type of qualitative research that gathers observations, interviews and documentary data to produce detailed and comprehensive accounts of different social phenomena. ... It is also aimed at those interested in considering the use of ethnographic methods in their own research work.

What is the focus of ethnography?

Ethnography is the description of people and their way of life. As a key method of anthropology, ethnography is concerned with culture, shared practices and beliefs, and how the social context shapes, and is shaped by, individuals [11].

How does ethnographic research collect data?

Ethnography is characterised by long-term participant observation as a central method, where the researcher spends an extended period of time in a social group in order to collect data. ... It often relies on participant observation through prolonged field work and may include other qualitative and quantitative methods.

What is one limitation of the ethnographic method?

Ethnographic research has several disadvantages to consider as well. Ethnography is time consuming and requires a well-trained researcher. It takes time to build trust with informants in order to facilitate full and honest discourse. Short-term studies are at a particular disadvantage in this regard.

How do companies use ethnography?

Business ethnographers examine the way that your customers or clients interact with your product or service at the point of use. They use direct observation and interviewing techniques to find out why your customers use your product and what it means to them.

Why is ethnography important to anthropology?

Why are ethnographies important? Ethnographies as texts offer excellent insight into how social anthropologists undertake their fieldwork, what it is like to experience daily life in an environment that may be initially unfamiliar, and the political, economic and social dynamics involved in collecting 'data'.

What are some examples of ethnography?

Here are some examples of ethnography:

• Observing a group of children playing. ...
• Observing employees in a corporate office. ...
• Observing medical personnel in a high-volume hospital. ...
• Observing an indigenous village. ...
• Observing a high school classroom. ...
• Observing motorcycle riders.

How did Claire Sterk build rapport?

She had explained she was an anthropologist to some of the pimps, and because she continued immersing herself in their culture she was able to build up a rapport with them and gain their trust. ... Her use of the participant-observation method allowed Sterk to understand their culture deeply, as she was accepted into it.

What are the advantages and disadvantages of ethnography?

List of Pros of Ethnography

• It helps people know more about other cultures. ...
• It helps businesses learn more about their target market. ...
• It helps increase scientists' understanding of human behavior. ...
• It can easily evolve and discover new things. ...
• It can be difficult to choose a representative sample. ...
• It takes a lot of time.

How can we use ethnography to better understand the city?

Ethnography has played an important role in urban research by helping to reveal the different social groups that inhabit the city as well as the ways in which diversity achieves organization and claims its rights to the city.

Why is ethnography important in the study of cultural sociology?

Ethnography can illuminate that which is taken for granted and which goes unspoken within a community. It also allows the researcher to develop a rich and valuable understanding of the cultural meaning of practices and interactions.

What is the moral of ethnography?

The basic ethical principles to be maintained include doing good, not doing harm and protecting the autonomy, wellbeing, safety and dignity of all research participants. Researchers should be as objective as possible and avoid ethnocentricity. Any deception of participants should be fully justified.

What makes good ethnographic research?

These were: (1) a transparency of the ethnographer as researcher; by this they meant not gratuitous reflexivity, but a clear and communicated sense of how knowledge was accumulated, of what the scholar's relationships with the community were; (2) the presence of people in the text as characters who you get to know, ...

How does ethnography differ from other research approaches?

Among other research techniques (methods of research), you can use the participant observation, as well as interviews, etc. Ethnography is the systematic description of human culture, involving both the process and the product. ... Ethnography is a field of study, whereas, participant observation is a method for research.

What is the difference between anthropology and ethnology?

Anthropology is a field of study that focuses on human origins, societies and culture. On the other hand, ethnology is the study of the characteristics of different peoples.

What are ethnographic studies?

Ethnography, simply stated, is the study of people in their own environment through the use of methods such as participant observation and face-to-face interviewing. ... Classic ethnographic research involves a detailed description of the whole of a culture outside of the country of origin of the researcher.