Nov 10, 2016 pdf pthe researchers of various disciplines often use qualitative and quantitative research methods and approaches for their studies. The main purpose of ethnography is obtain in a deep understanding of people culture. What are the strengths of ethnography that lead us to believe that it is a valuable research strategy. Unlike other research methods, ethnography is almost entirely participant driven and generally involves a. Answer with detailed reference to at least one ethnographic study. Ethnography advantages and disadvantages learn and absorb. The disadvantages of nonparticipant observation are that the researchers do not have satisfaction of contributing toward the function of the group and cannot penetrate to the heart of the group woods 1986. It is also difficult not to become involved someway in the life of the group. Ethnography can be briefly defined as the systematic study of. Download pdf show page numbers observational research is a term that encompasses many different forms of qualitative inquiry, each of which deals with monitoring and noting conditions as they exist in the field, rather than constructing an experimental design. Ethnographic research has several disadvantages to consider as well.
What is specific about ethnographic research how the ethnographic research process proceeds what are the methodological and ethical principles of ethnographic research how to do ethnographic fieldwork how to analyze and interpret ethnographic research materials. What are the strengths of ethnography as a research. Problems of reliability and validity in ethnographic research. Advantages and disadvantages when we use ethnography. Although autoethnography as a research method can be an unknown and difficult tool for novice researches to use, it is an instrument through which researchers can explore and portray the culture where a phenomenon is being experienced. Cyber ethnography, also known as virtual ethnography, and most commonly online ethnography, is an online research method that adapts ethnographic methods to the study of the communities and cultures created through computermediated social interaction. The pros and cons of researching events ethnographically ncbi.
Ethnography is particularly good at examining complex cultural phenomena. Is the ethnographic method the social scientific research method that probably gets closest to observing the intensities of peoples everyday lives jerolmack and khan, 2014 not particularly wellsuited for investigating such periods. The strengths and weaknesses of ethnography argumentative. Through the ethnographers observation, photos, and notes, a research can gain a much deeper account of, importantly, not what people say they do, but of what they actually do in real life. Jun 21, 20 autoethnography, as with all research methods, has advantages and disadvantages. Commentary section includes some of the advantages and disadvantages to qualitative observational. What procedures might we wish to follow to insure maximum benefit from ethnographic research. Feb 26, 2016 gerry katz, vice chairman of applied marketing science, explains how ethnographic research can be used to gain deep insights about how customers use your products or services on a daily basis. The advantages and disadvantages of using qualitative.
Difference between case study and ethnography definition. That is to say, there was a shift of research methods from quantitative to qualitative, and the superiority of quantitative research. Ethnographic research is a qualitative method where researchers observe andor interact with a studys participants in their. Dec 16, 2019 at first glance, ethnography offers a wide range of benefits. The origin of ethnography in health research dates back to the development of a branch of anthropology known as medical anthropology. Ethnography shares commonalities with the qualitative methods currently used in healthbehaviour evaluations but has a distinctive approach over and above these methods. Ethnography is the description of cultures and the groups of people who live within them. With this in mind, it is now the best time to discuss outsourcing, its advantages and its disadvantages. Ethnography is the hallmark of social anthropology.
The advantages and disadvantages of using qualitative and. Applying research techniques from the social sciences, in particular from anthropology, has a number of tangible benefits. Check out our the strengths and weaknesses of ethnography essay this is a qualitative study examining the factors that affect the validity of ethnographic researches. As a member, youll also get unlimited access to over 79,000 lessons in math, english, science, history, and more. Ethnographic analysis, or the study of ethnography, is a branch of the social sciences that involves the direct study of people and cultures.
For example, cal notices that there is a higher prevalence of vigilante justice. It provides researchers which rich insights into human, social and cultural aspect. A case study is a detailed investigation of a single event, situation or an individual in order to explore and unearth complex issues. Difference between case study and ethnography definition case study. Read on to learn more about the pros and cons of ethnography. This paper seeks to reflect on these questions through two successive developments. Lecompte houston independent school district and judith preissle goetz university of georgia although problems of reliability and validity have been explored thoroughly by experimenters and other quantitative researchers, their treatment by eth.
The emergence of teambased ethnography, as a departure from the traditional lone researcher working in the field, is in part in response to the globalisation of societies, economies and ororganisations. May 16, 2017 gouldwartofsky has made an ethnography of the occupy movement that goes back to the moment it started, in september 2011. An ethnography is the detailed and systematic study of people and cultures. When critically appraising the combination of ethnography and autoethnography, researchers must evaluate paradigmatic philosophies and methods of inquiry for commensurability and delineate the advantages and disadvantages of combining methods as they relate to each paradigm. Ethnographic research is a method of study which involves the field observation and qualitative analysis of human behaviour. In ethnographic research, scholars study groups of people by living among them. Todays post takes a look at these issues and also sheds light on the disadvantages of buying a chipunlocked. Pdf the advantages and disadvantages of using qualitative. Narrative is an interpretive approach in the social sciences and involves using storytelling methodology. Ethnography is mainly used to gather in a scientific manner the evidence to show that how and why groups of people chose to live as they do. In what ways is it different from other research strategies. Examples of studies that can use an ethnographic approach 6.
Unlike other research methods, ethnography is almost entirely participant driven and generally involves a larger time commitment. A prime example of using ethnography for success is in us foreign relations, particularly where the work of anthropologist ruth benedict was used in. What are the disadvantages of anthropology as a source of. Ethnography provides a detailed exploration of group activity and may include literature about andor by the group. Ebscohost serves thousands of libraries with premium essays, articles and other content including autoethnography as a research method.
The disadvantage of anthropology as a source of history is the disadvantage of any source of history. However, its important to note that it can also have several drawbacks. Disadvantages of ethnographic research methodology. Medical anthropology concerns its self with a wide variety of healthrelated issues, including the etiology of disease, the preventive measures that human members of sociocultural systems have constructed or devised to prevent the onset of disease, and the. Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools.
However, seeing that anthropologists work hard to describe the circumstances of the site they are studying, i would say ethnographi. There are several disadvantages to conducting ethnographic research. Ethnography is a research method that involves spending a period of time living with a culture in order to. Aug 14, 2018 the disadvantage of anthropology as a source of history is the disadvantage of any source of history. Ethnographic research is one of the most indepth research method. The advantages and disadvantages of ethnographic methods. The history of participant observation as a method participant observation is considered a staple in anthropological studies, especially in ethnographic studies, and has been used as a data collection method for over a century. The grade of complexity and accuracy of the results of a social research depends on adopting the most appropriate method. While ethnographic research can be applied to virtually any kind of sociological or anthropological subject of inquiry, there are distinct advantages and disadvantages to using the method. Examples of ethnographies key features major steps and skills dos and donts ethnography what is ethnography. As discussed above, ethnographic studies do not always require a long period of time, but this consideration is nonetheless valid.
Ethnographic research is a method of study which involves the field observation and qualitative analysis of human behavior. The purpose of this article is to introduce ethnography, to describe how ethnographic methods may be utilized, to provide an overview of ethnography s use in healthcare and medical education, and to summarize some key limitations with the method. Observational research, advantages and disadvantages sage. He has even included the anterior months, when leftist new yorkers came together in meetings to discuss how they could set up a huge new form of protest against capitalism. Ethnographic methods for process evaluations of complex. That is to say, there was a shift of research methods from quantitative to qualitative, and the superiority of quantitative research was not as powerful as before. Because of its richer output, an ethnographic study will tend to take longer to. The advantages and disadvantages of ethnographic studies media. This should include as illustrative material i your own ethnographic case study, and ii examples from both a anthropological research in a modern organisational context and b more traditional ethnographies. An ethnographer sees what people are doing as well as what they say they are doing. The advantages and disadvantages of grounded theory methodology and ethnographic approaches to qualitative research abdul aziz essay sociology methodology and methods publish your bachelors or masters thesis, dissertation, term paper or essay. Disadvantages dependent on the researchers observations and interpretations difficult to check the validity of the researchers conclusion observer bias is almost impossible to eliminate may lack transferability ethnography is time consuming and requires a welltrained researcher. As dewalt and dewalt 2002 relate it, one of the first instances of its use involved the work of frank.
Used in cultural anthropology, sociology, business and organizational psychology, ethnography brings strengths and weaknesses to the research. An overview of ethnography in healthcare and medical. Aug 15, 2018 ethnographic analysis is the study of peoples and cultures from a groundlevel view. Dr sushil baral, sudeep uprety and bipul lamichhane. Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of adopting an ethnographic approach to the study of society. Advantages and disadvantages of ethnographic research 2. Gerry katz, vice chairman of applied marketing science, explains how ethnographic research can be used to gain deep insights about how customers use. In this how to account i will describe the process by organizing my description around the following seven questions.
Ethnography, field research, qualitative research, participant observation, and methodological issues. Autoethnography, as with all research methods, has advantages and disadvantages. Download fulltext pdf download fulltext pdf autoethnography as a research method. Lecture on ethnography, qualitative research, ethnography, culture, research, discovery, naturalism, exploratory, rapport, covert, gatekeeper, marginality, how to. Apr 12, 2011 doing ethnography means in fact staying with a group of people, observing their behaviour and literally living with them for a period of time. This is not an example of the work produced by our essay writing service. One of the main criticisms levelled at ethnographic studies is the amount of time they take to conduct. One of the biggest drawbacks of ethnography is that it requires a substantial amount of time. It is an overlooked methodology in trials of complex healthbehaviour interventions that has much to contribute to the understanding of how interventions work. Plus, get practice tests, quizzes, and personalized coaching to help you succeed. Nov 10, 2015 types of ethnography visual ethnography visual ethnography uses photography, motion pictures, hypermedia, the web, interactive cds, cdroms, and virtual reality as ways of capturing and expressing perceptions and social realities of people. Participant observation as a data collection method.
The weaknesses of participatory methods for rapid definition also lie in the process of gaining knowledge. Ethnography is one of the method in entirely in fieldwork. While ethnographic research can be applied to virtually any kind of sociological or anthropological subject of inquiry, there are distinct advantages and disadvantages. The pros and cons of researching events ethnographically. I recently had the pleasure of learning how to conduct ethnographic research for the first time. Before he could begin studying a certain group of people, the ethnographer has to build rapport with his subjects and make them comfortable around him. In this how to account i will describe the process by organizing my. Observational research, advantages and disadvantages. In this essay, i reflect upon the issue of what the ethnographic method has. Ethnographic research this chapter will provide information on.
Ethnography is the systematic study of other cultures by use of observation, participation observation, and what i will coin the term, participationobservationinclusion. It will first describe what is meant by autoethnography, or evocative narratives, and consider the. What are the benefits and drawbacks of ethnography. Critical evaluation of ethnography and grounded theory. Ethnography is time consuming and requires a welltrained researcher. Ethnography ethnography is a long term investigation of a group often a culture that is based on immersion and, optimally, participation in that group. The advantages and disadvantages of mixing methods. Problems of reliability and validity in ethnographic research margaret d. Ethnography immerses the project team in participants lives and enables a relationship to develop with research participants over the period of study. The purpose of ethnographic analysis is to allow scientists to observe their subjects on the ground level, interacting with them as another person would instead of creating a scientistsubject relationship. It can be useful in personal adaptation, personal success, and to better understand other cultures.
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