Revi ew of Educat i onal Research

Wi nt er 1977, Vol. 47, No. 1, Pp. 245-265

The Us e of Et hno g r a phi c Te c hni que s i n
Educ a t i o na l Re s e a r c h
Stephen Wilson
Center for New Schools
T h e r e i s a g r o wi n g i n t e r e s t i n t h e u s e o f a n t h r o p o l o g i c a l
t e c h n i q u e s i n e d u c a t i o n a l a n d p s y c h o l o g i c a l r e s e a r c h . T h e b a c k -
g r o u n d s of ma n y r e s e a r c h e r s , h o we v e r , c o n t a i n l i t t l e t r a i n i n g i n
o r e x p e r i e n c e wi t h t h i s k i n d of r e s e a r c h , a l s o c a l l e d q u a l i t a t i v e ,
p h e n o me n o l o g i c a l , o r e t h n o g r a p h i c . Be c a u s e e t h n o g r a p h i c
me t h o d o l o g y d i f f e r s s i g n i f i c a n t l y f r o m t h e r e s e a r c h a p p r o a c h e s
mo r e c o mmo n l y u s e d i n e d u c a t i o n a n d p s y c h o l o g y , i t i s i mp o r t a n t
t o c l a r i f y i t s r a t i o n a l e a n d i t s d a t a c o l l e c t i o n p r o c e s s e s . I t i s e s s e n -
t i a l t o u n d e r s t a n d t h e wa y s i n wh i c h e t h n o g r a p h i c a p p r o a c h e s
d i f f e r f r o m o t h e r a p p r o a c h e s b e c a u s e t h e y r e p r e s e n t f u n d a -
me n t a l l y d i f f e r e n t c l a i ms a b o u t t h e n a t u r e of h u ma n b e h a v i o r
a n d t h e b e s t wa y s o f c o mi n g t o u n d e r s t a n d i t . We p r o p o s e , t h e r e -
f o r e , t o r e v i e w t h e d i f f e r e n c e s b e t we e n t h i s k i n d of r e s e a r c h a n d
t h e t e c h n i q u e s mo r e f a mi l i a r t o mo s t r e s e a r c h e r s b y e x p l a i n i n g
t h e r a t i o n a l e b e h i n d i t s u s e a n d b y d i s c u s s i n g s o me o f t h e p r o c -
This article was a par t of research projects supported by gr ant s to t he Cent er for
New Schools from t he Urban Education Research Fund of the Uni versi t y of
Illinois at Chicago Circle, t he National I nst i t ut e of Education, t he National
I nst i t ut e of Mental Health, and t he Carnegie Corporation.
The Cent er for New Schools is a not-for-profit organi zat i on working to improve
urban education t hrough a combination of research and assi st ance activities.
The aut hor prepared this paper as par t of t he efforts of an interdisciplinary
t eam of psychologists, anthropologists, sociologists, t eacher t rai ners, communi t y
organi zers, t eachers and communi t y members, which compose t he Center. Drs.
Emile Scheppers, Thomas Wilson, Donald Moore, Richard Johnson, and Phyllis
Wilson critiqued earl y draft s of this article. Hazel Domangue and Monica
I ngr am helped in its production.
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REVIEW OF EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH Vol. 47, No. 2
e s s e s b y wh i c h t hi s r e s e a r c h is c onduc t e d. Thi s a r t i c l e is f oc us e d
on e d u c a t i o n a l r e s e a r c h , b u t t h e di s c us s i on a ppl i e s e q u a l l y t o
soci al ps yc hol ogi c a l r e s e a r c h i n al l s e t t i ngs .
Et h n o g r a p h i c a l r e s e a r c h is r e f e r r e d t o as a n a n t h r o p o l o g i c a l
me t h o d b e c a u s e h i s t o r i c a l l y i t h a s b e e n a s s o c i a t e d wi t h t h a t
p a r t i c u l a r di s ci pl i ne. An t h r o p o l o g i s t s , of c our s e , u s e a v a r i e t y of
r e s e a r c h t e c h n i q u e s . I n t h e c o n t e x t of t hi s p a p e r , h o we v e r ,
" a n t h r o p o l o g i c a l " u s u a l l y me a n s s ome v a r i e t y of p a r t i c i p a n t
o b s e r v a t i o n , l ong c o n s i d e r e d ba s i c t o a n t h r o p o l o g i c a l r e s e a r c h .
Unt i l r e c e n t l y , mo s t e t h n o g r a p h i c s t u d i e s we r e c o n d u c t e d out -
si de Ame r i c a n s oc i e t y or wi t h i n mi n o r i t y s u b c u l t u r e s . As t h e
n e x t s e c t i on e xpl a i ns , h o we v e r , t hi s ki nd of a p p r o a c h c a n pr ovi de
d a t a j u s t as v a l u a b l e f or ma i n s t r e a m Ame r i c a n s chool s as f or
t h o s e i n o t h e r c u l t u r e s .
Th e r e a r e i n d i c a t i o n s t h a t t h e us e of e t h n o g r a p h i c t e c h n i q u e s
f or s t u d y i n g Ame r i c a n s chool s is gr owi ng. The Na t i o n a l I n s t i t u t e
of Ed u c a t i o n ( NI E, 1973) is e n c o u r a g i n g t hi s ki nd of a p p r o a c h ,
a nd ma n y r e s e a r c h e r s i nvol ve d i n t h e e v a l u a t i o n of e d u c a t i o n a l
p r o g r a ms a nd i n t h e p r o c e s s e s of i n n o v a t i o n a r e f i ndi ng t h e s e
a p p r o a c h e s u s e f u l ( CNS, 1972; CNS, 1974b; Smi t h, 1974; a nd
Nel s on, Lu n d i n , & Gi a n o t t a , No t e 1). Se v e r a l g e n e r a l s t u d i e s of
s chool s h a v e b e e n c o mp l e t e d or a r e i n p r o g r e s s : Cus i c k (1974) on
s t u d e n t l i fe i n a hi gh school ; CNS (1974a) on s t u d e n t - t e a c h e r
r e l a t i o n s i n a l t e r n a t i v e s chool s ; J a c k s o n (1968) on l i fe i n e l e me n-
t a r y c l a s s r ooms ; I a nni , Be c ke r , Ve r e n n e , Da l t on, Le i c h t e r , a nd
Le v i n e ( Not e 2) on c o mp a r i s o n s a mo n g v a r i o u s ki nds of hi gh
s chool s ; Smi t h a n d Ge o f f r e y (1969) on l i fe i n a n i n n e r c i t y cl ass-
r oom; Smi t h a n d Ke i t h (1971) on t h e e v e n t s s u r r o u n d i n g t h e e s t a b-
l i s h me n t of a n i n n o v a t i v e e l e me n t a r y school ; Wol c ot t (1973) on t h e
d a y t o d a y r e a l i t i e s of an a d mi n i s t r a t o r ; a nd Wi l s on (1972) on t h e
c u l t u r e of an a l t e r n a t i v e hi gh s chool wi t h o u t wal l s.
Our p u r p o s e h e r e i s not t o r e p o r t on t h e s u b s t a n t i v e f i ndi ngs of
s t udi e s of t hi s ki nd. F o r s uc h f i ndi ngs t h e r e a d e r is u r g e d t o
c ons ul t o t h e r s o u r c e s (for e x a mp l e , Si ndel l , 1969; I a n n i & St or e y,
1973; Spi ndl e r , 1963; Wax, Ge a r i ng, & Di a mond, 1973; Wol cot t ,
1975; a nd t h e Council on Anthropology and Educat i on [CAE]
Quarterly). Our p u r p o s e i s t o p r e s e n t a r e v i e w of t h e me t h o d o l o g y
as i t r e l a t e s t o e d u c a t i o n a l r e s e a r c h .
Rat i onal e
Et h n o g r a p h i c t e c h n i q u e s a r e p a r t of a r e s e a r c h t r a d i t i o n t h a t
h a s b e e n d e v e l o p e d b y a n t h r o p o l o g i s t s a nd c o mmu n i t y - s t u d y
s oci ol ogi s t s . Th e s e me t h o d s h a v e b e e n f o u n d t o be u s e f u l f or
g a t h e r i n g c e r t a i n i mp o r t a n t ki nds of da t a ; i n f act , s ome r e-
s e a r c h e r s c l a i m t h a t t h e s e a n t h r o p o l o g i c a l t e c h n i q u e s ma y
g a t h e r i n f o r ma t i o n a b o u t h u ma n b e h a v i o r t h a t i t is i mpos s i bl e t o
246
WILSON ETHNOGRAPHIC TECHNIQUES
obt ai n by t he more quant i t at i ve met hods. The rat i onal e underl y-
ing this met hodol ogy is based on t wo set s of hypot heses about
human behavi or: (a) t he nat ural i st i c-ecol ogi cal hypot hesi s, and
(b) t he qual i t at i ve-phenomenol ogi cal hypot hesi s. These t wo fun-
dament al hypot heses accept ed t oget her provi de a st r ong ra-
tionale for par t i ci pant obser vat i on research. Bel ow is a revi ew of
several i ndependent st r ands of r esear ch and t heor y t hat have
given rise to each of t hese hypot heses.
Naturalistic-Ecological Perspective
Many social sci ent i st s bel i eve t hat human behavi or is signifi-
cant l y i nfl uenced by t he set t i ngs in whi ch it occurs. They,
t herefore, bel i eve t hat it is essent i al to st udy psychol ogi cal
event s in nat ur al set t i ngs, and t hey claim t hat set t i ngs gener at e
regul ari t i es in behavi or t hat oft en t r anscend di fferences among
individuals. Ext ensi ve r esear ch has been conduct ed t hat demon-
st r at es t he i mpor t ance of t he i nfl uence of t he set t i ng and t he
oft en di ver gent fi ndi ngs t hat r esul t when t he same phenomenon
is st udi ed in t he l abor at or y and in t he field. (For a full di scussi on
of this r esear ch and rat i onal e see Bar ker , 1968, and Willems and
Raush, 1969.) Ecological psychol ogi st s claim t hat if one hopes to
gener al i ze r esear ch findings to t he ever yday world wher e most
human event s occur, t hen t he r esear ch must be conduct ed in
set t i ngs si mi l ar to t hose t hat t he r esear cher s hope to general i ze
about , wher e t hose same forces t hat will one day act are not
i nt er r upt ed. The et hol ogi st s (for exampl e, Hess, 1962) have not ed
similar probl ems wi t h much r esear ch on animals. The t ypi cal
l abor at or y or zoo di st ort s ani mal s' behavi or into pat t er ns t hat
have little to do wi t h how t hey behave in nat ur al set t i ngs.
How does t he set t i ng i nfl uence people in it? Bar ker wr i t es of
forces gener at ed bot h by t he physi cal ar r angement s of t he
set t i ngs and by i nt ernal i zed not i ons in peopl e' s mi nds about
what is expect ed and allowed. Significantly, a second t r adi t i on of
social science has arri ved i ndependent l y at t he same poi nt of
emphasi zi ng t he i mpor t ance of t he i nt ernal i zed not i ons gener-
at ed in set t i ngs. Sociologists st udyi ng organi zat i ons asser t t he
i mport ance of t he t radi t i ons, roles, val ues, and norms t hat are
par t of life in organi zat i ons. Much behavi or in or gani zat i ons is
i nfl uenced by t he par t i ci pant s' awar eness of t hese ment al st at es
and by pr essur es gener at ed by ot hers who are i nfl uenced by
t hese st at es (see March, 1965). Though organi zat i onal t heor i st s
mi ght not necessar i l y claim t hat r esear ch must be conduct ed in
t he fiel'd, t hey do recogni ze many of t he forces t hat t he ecological
psychol ogi st s see as i mpor t ant .
As organi zat i ons, schools exer t many powerful forces on partici-
pant behavi or. For exampl e, see Lort i e, 1973 for a di scussi on of
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t eacher rol es and t r adi t i ons; for a di scussi on of nor ms, see
Dr eeban, 1968; for a di scussi on of ot her pr es s ur es in t hes e
set t i ngs, see Jackson, 1968, and Sar ason, 1971. Real i zi ng t ha t
t hese forces exi st , t he ecol ogi cal psychol ogi st woul d war n t ha t if
one want s ul t i ma t e l y to gener al i ze r es ear ch f i ndi ngs to schools,
t hen t he r es ear ch is best conduct ed wi t hi n school s et t i ngs wher e
all t hes e forces ar e i nt act . The i nabi l i t y of cl assi cal l ear ni ng
t heor i es to say ver y much t ha t is meani ngf ul about e ve r yda y
cl assroom l ear ni ng can be expl ai ned in par t by t he absence of
t hese school / or gani zat i onal forces in t he r es ear ch l abor at or i es
wher e t he t heor i es wer e devel oped.
The same ki nd of r eal i zat i on about t he i mpor t ance of cont ext
for r es ear ch has been ar r i ved at in a t hi r d i ndependent t r adi t i on
of r esear ch. Social psychol ogi st s r eal i zed t ha t t hei r exper i ment s
wer e of t en pi cki ng up i nf l uences ot her t ha n t hose on whi ch t hey
wer e focusi ng. They f ound t ha t t he exper i ment al s i t uat i on- - f or
exampl e, t he ques t i onnai r e, t he i nt er vi ew, t he l abor at or y- - was a
uni que s et t i ng of i t s own wi t h i t s own dynami cs and i nf l uences on
behavi or . Ros ent hal and Rosnow in Art i f act i n Behavi oral Re-
search (1969) r evi ew t he f i ndi ngs of ext ensi ve r es ear ch under -
t aken to det er mi ne t he na t ur e of t hes e i nf l uences. For i nst ance,
t he role of bei ng a r es ear ch subj ect in social sci ence r es ear ch
of t en i ncl udes t he fol l owi ng i nf l uences on behavi or : a suspi ci ous-
ness of t he i nt e nt of t he r esear ch, a sense of t he behavi or t ha t is
ei t her appr opr i at e or expect ed, a speci al i nt er per s onal r el at i on-
shi p wi t h t he exper i ment er , and a desi re to be eval uat ed posi-
t i vel y. All t hes e forces can shape behavi or in a way t ha t is
ext r aneous to t he focus of t he r esear ch. A per son fi l l i ng out a
quest i onnai r e, r es pondi ng to an i nt er vi ew, or behavi ng in an
exper i ment even t hough he is t r yi ng to be ge nui ne - - ma y not be
abl e to pr ovi de accur at e i nf or mat i on about hi s us ual behavi or in
real , compl ex set t i ngs. One ar ea in whi ch t hi s s hor t comi ng has
been especi al l y f r us t r a t i ng is a t t i t ude r esear ch. Consi st ent l y,
peopl e' s r esponses on ques t i onnai r es and in i nt er vi ews have not
provi ded a de qua t e i nf or mat i on about t hei r obser ved act i ons
( Deut scher , 1966).
Sever al r eact i ons t o t hes e r eal i zat i ons about ar t i f act in re-
sear ch are possible. The r es ear cher s in t he Ros ent hal and Ros-
now wor k have a t t e mpt e d to fi nd ways to moni t or and cont rol
t hese i nf l uences in t hei r r esear ch. Cook and Sel l t i z (1964), in
t hei r mul t i pl e i ndi cat or appr oach, provi de a not he r way to at-
t empt to moni t or e xt r a ne ous forces. The most common met hod
used to over come t hes e di ffi cul t i es of ar t i f act is s t udyi ng t he
phe nome non na t ur a l i s t i c a l l y and unobs t r us i ve l y ( Campbel l ,
Schwar t z, & Sechr est , 1966). Under t he condi t i ons of nat ur al i s t i c
obser vat i on, t he behavi or st udi ed is subj ect to t he i nf l uences of
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WILSON ETHNOGRAPHIC TECHNIQUES
t he nat ur al set t i ng r at her t han t he specialized i nfl uences of
r esear ch set t i ngs.
Many r esear cher s will have no t r oubl e accept i ng t he precedi ng
rat i onal e. Obser vat i on is deepl y i ngrai ned in t he Amer i can edu-
cational r esear ch t radi t i on, and t he only demand t hat t he ecolog-
ical hypot hesi s makes is t hat behavi or be st udi ed in t he field. The
r est of st andar d t echni que is left i nt act - - f or exampl e, deri vi ng
explicit a priori hypot heses, defi ni ng operat i onal cat egori es of
observat i on, devel opi ng obj ect i ve met hods of dat a gat heri ng, and
conduct i ng appr opr i at e st at i st i cal anal yses. The next sect i on
di scusses a par t of t he r at i onal e behi nd ant hropol ogi cal tech-
ni ques t hat qual i fi es t hese processes.
Qual i t at i ve- Phenomenol ogi cal Hypot hes i s
Much of Amer i can social science st ri ves t owar d t he nat ur al
science model of obj ect i vi t y. Phenomenol ogy, a t r adi t i on of social
science t hat has t hr i ved in Eur ope but has been l argel y ne-
glected in educat i onal r esear ch in t he Uni t ed St at es, offers an
al t er nat i ve vi ew of obj ect i vi t y and met hods appr opr i at e for
st udyi ng human behavi or. Those who work wi t hi n t hi s t r adi t i on
asser t t hat t he social sci ent i st cannot u n d e r s t a n d h u ma n behav-
i or wi t hout u n d e r s t a n d i n g t he f r a me wo r k wi t hi n Which t he sub-
j ect s i nt er pr et t hei r t hought s , f eel i ngs , and act i ons. They poi nt out
t hat t he nat ur al science appr oach to obj ect i vi t y r equi r es t he
r esear cher to i mpose a priori l i mi t at i ons on t he dat a, an act
which makes it difficult to di scover t he per spect i ves of t he
subj ect s. (See Bant ock, 1965, Broadbeck, 1968, and Kockl emass,
1967.)
The rami fi cat i ons of t hi s position are far-rangi ng. The tradi-
tional st ance of obj ect i ve out si der favored by social sci ent i st s and
t he usual r esear ch pr ocedur es are deemed i nadequat e for gat her-
ing i nformat i on t hat t akes t hese par t i ci pant per spect i ves into
account. Moreover, t he cust omar y deduct i ve act i vi t i es of f r ami ng
hypot heses and defi ni ng cat egori es a priori before under t aki ng
t he st udy, and of anal yzi ng wi t hi n prespeci fi ed f r amewor ks are
seen as i nappropri at e.
General l y, r esear cher s t r y to find st r at egi es t hat minimize t he
role of subj ect i vi t y. They t r y to st andar di ze t he i nt er pr et at i ons
t hat t hey (or anyone else) at t r i but e to dat a percei ved by t hei r
senses. Deri vi ng a scheme for coding behavi or s observed in a
cl assroom is an exampl e. Theoret i cal l y, a coding scheme and a
f r amewor k for i nt er pr et i ng obser ved behavi or s can be devel oped
and communi cat ed so t hat anyone who has l earned t he scheme,
wi t h t r ai ni ng and pract i ce, will i nt er pr et t he behavi or s in ap-
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pr oxi mat el y t he same way. Thi s met hod is seen as gua r a nt e e i ng
obj ect i vi t y.
The phenomenol ogi s t poi nt s out t ha t t he adopt i on of t hi s
par t i cul ar f r amewor k for i nt e r pr e t i ng and codi ng behavi or is
ar bi t r ar y. Any numbe r of me a ni ng s ys t ems could be sel ect ed. In
fact , t he most i mpor t a nt f r amewor ks to unde r s t a nd mi ght be
t hose of t he subj ect s r a t he r t ha n t he r esear cher s. The obj ect i ve
social sci ent i st , in s t a nda r di z i ng t he i nt er pr et at i on, ma y have
dest r oyed some of t he most val uabl e dat a he or she had. Sever yn
Br uyn (1966) has expr essed t hi s view:
The t r adi t i onal empi r i ci st consi der s hi msel f (as a sci ent i st ) to
be t he pr i ma r y source of knowl edge, and t r us t s hi s own
senses and logic mor e t ha n he woul d t r us t t ha t of hi s
subj ect s. The par t i ci pant observer, on t he ot her hand, con-
si ders t he i nt er pr et at i ons of his subj ect s to have f i r st i mpor-
t ance . . . . By t aki ng t he rol e of his subj ect s he r ecr eat es in
hi s own i magi nat i on and exper i ence t he t hought s and feel-
i ngs whi ch ar e in t he mi nds of t hose he st udi es. (p. 12)
To know mer el y t he f act t ha t feel i ngs, t hought s , or act i ons
exi st is not enough wi t hout al so knowi ng t he f r amewor k wi t hi n
whi ch t hes e behavi or s fit. The social sci ent i st mus t come to
unde r s t a nd how all t hose who ar e i nvol ved i nt er pr et behavi or in
addi t i on to t he way he or she as sci ent i st i nt er pr et s it f r om his
obj ect i ve out si de per spect i ve. Moreover, si nce t he subj ect s can-
not al ways ar t i cul at e t hei r per spect i ves, t he r es ear cher mus t
fi nd ways to cul t i vat e awar enes s of t he l at ent meani ngs wi t hout
becomi ng over soci al i zed and una wa r e as most par t i ci pant s may
be. The r es ear cher mus t devel op a dynami c t ensi on bet ween t he
subj ect i ve role of par t i ci pant and t he role of obser ver so t ha t he
is nei t her one ent i r el y.
The necessi t y of abandoni ng t r adi t i onal deduct i ve processes
such as a pri ori hypot hes i s f or mat i on us ual l y follows as a conse-
quence to t hi s gener al appr oach to unde r s t a ndi ng huma n behav-
ior. Because qua nt i t a t i ve r es ear cher s are r es t r i ct ed wi t hi n t hei r
own per spect i ves, t he y ri sk bei ng concer ned about i r r el evant
vari abl es. Gl aser and St r aus s (1967) descri be a car ef ul met hod by
whi ch social sci ent i st s can gr ound t hei r t heor y and r es ear ch in
t he r eal i t y t he y ar e st udyi ng. They use t he t ensi on bet ween
pa r t i c i pa nt da t a and obs er ver anal ys i s t o c ons t a nt l y r ef i ne
t hei r t heor y. Tr adi t i onal r es ear ch anal ysi s f r amed wi t hout t hi s
on-goi ng awar enes s can seem forced to fi t t he t heor y gui di ng t he
r esear ch. For mal t heor y shoul d ent er onl y af t er t he r es ear cher s
have become convi nced of its r el evance. Gl aser and St r aus s
(1967) descri be t he a dva nt a ge s of t hei r open appr oach over a
pr e- s t r uct ur ed st udy.
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WILSON ETHNOGRAPHIC TECHNIQUES
The c o n s e q u e n c e [of t h e t r a d i t i o n a l a p p r o a c h ] is o f t e n a
f or c i ng of d a t a as wel l as a n e g l e c t of r e l e v a n t c o n c e p t s a nd
h y p o t h e s e s t h a t ma y e me r g e . . . . Ou r a p p r o a c h , a l l o wi n g
s u b s t a n t i v e c o n c e p t s a nd h y p o t h e s e s t o e me r g e f i r s t , on
t h e i r own, e n a b l e s t h e a n a l y s t t o a s c e r t a i n whi ch, i f a ny,
e x i s t i n g f o r ma l t h e o r y ma y he l p hi m g e n e r a t e hi s s u b s t a n -
t i ve t he or i e s . He c a n t h e n be mo r e o b j e c t i v e a nd l es s t h e o r e t i -
cal l y bi a s e d. (p. 34)
No one, of c our s e , e n t e r s a s i t u a t i o n a t r u e t abul a r as a.
L a n g u a g e i s i t s e l f a l i mi t i ng f a c t o r wh i c h p r o v i d e s one s e t of
c o n c e p t u a l t ool s a nd s c r e e n s o u t ot he r s . Si mi l a r l y, p r e v i o u s
e x p e r i e n c e s i nf l ue nc e t h e s c i e nt i s t ' s o b s e r v a t i o n a nd t h o u g h t . I n
f act , t r a d i t i o n a l e mpi r i c a l s ci ent i f i c me t h o d s h a v e s o u g h t t o
e x t r a p o l a t e a l ong t h e s e l i nes b y a s k i n g t h e r e s e a c h e r t o be mo s t
expl i ci t a nd r i g o r o u s i n t h e f o r mu l a t i o n of t h e p e r s p e c t i v e u n d e r -
l yi ng t h e r e s e a r c h . Th e r e is r oom i n t h e r e a l ms of r e s e a r c h ,
h o we v e r , f or o t h e r mo r e i n d u c t i v e a p p r o a c h e s wh e r e t h e r ol e of
t h e p r e f o r me d h y p o t h e s i s a nd c i r c u ms c r i b e d d a t a g a t h e r i n g
t e c h n i q u e s a r e r e d u c e d t o a mi n i mu m.
Th o s e wh o wo r k wi t h i n t h e a n t h r o p o l o g i c a l t r a d i t i o n c u l t i v a t e
t h e ski l l of s u s p e n d i n g ( t he p h e n o me n o l o g i s t s cal l i t " b r a c k e t -
i ng") t h e i r p r e c o n c e p t i o n s . Th e y s t u d y pr i or r e s e a r c h a n d t h e o r y
as mu c h as t h e t r a d i t i o n a l r e s e a r c h e r , b u t t h e y t h e n p u r p o s e l y
s u s p e n d t hi s k n o wl e d g e unt i l t h e i r e x p e r i e n c e wi t h t h e r e s e a r c h
s e t t i n g s u g g e s t s i t s r e l e v a n c e .
To i l l u s t r a t e t hi s v e r y i mp o r t a n t c onc e pt of me a n i n g a nd
p e r s p e c t i v e , l et us a s s u me t h a t a t r a d i t i o n a l r e s e a r c h e r i s in-
t e r e s t e d i n s t u d y i n g i n t e r s t u d e n t a g g r e s s i o n i n t h e c l a s s r oom,
p e r h a p s t o d e t e r mi n e t h e r e l a t i o n of i t s o c c u r r e n c e t o s ome
a s p e c t s of t e a c h e r a c t i v i t i e s or s o me s e t of s t u d e n t c h a r a c t e r i s -
t i cs. To d e t e r mi n e f r e q u e n c y of v a r i o u s ki nds of a g g r e s s i o n , t h e
r e s e a r c h e r s e t s up c a t e g o r i e s a nd t r a i n s o b s e r v e r s t o be s ens i -
t i ve , r e l i a b l e r e c o r d e r s of t h e s e a g g r e s s i v e e v e n t s . Th e r e-
s e a r c h e r s i mu l t a n e o u s l y f i nds wa y s t o r e c o r d a n d me a s u r e o t h e r
v a r i a b l e s of i n t e r e s t .
Le t us a s s u me t h a t " s t u d e n t hi t s o t h e r s t u d e n t " i s one of t h e s e
c a t e g o r i e s of a g g r e s s i o n . Th o s e wh o h a v e b e e n o b s e r v e r s / c o d e r s
i n t h e c l a s s r o o ms a r e a wa r e i n t u i t i v e l y t h a t not e v e r y " s t u d e n t
hi t s o t h e r s t u d e n t " e v e n t i s c o mme n s u r a t e . The o b j e c t i v e t r a di -
t i on a nd t r a i n i n g l e a d s a p e r s o n t o p u t t h e s e r e s e r v a t i o n s a s i de
(or t o ma k e l i mi t e d i n f e r e n c e s ) a nd r e p o r t t h e " f a c t s . "
The p a r t i c i p a n t o b s e r v e r i s n o t wi l l i ng t o s a c r i f i c e al l t hi s
i n f o r ma t i o n a b o u t t h e s u b t l e d i f f e r e n c e s b e t we e n s i mi l a r h i t t i n g
e ve nt s . I n f act , t hi s o b s e r v e r f eel s t h a t u n d e r s t a n d i n g t h e s e
d i f f e r e n c e s is c r uc i a l a nd mu c h of t h e r e s e a r c h i s s pe c i f i c a l l y
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ai med at ge t t i ng t hi s i nf or mat i on. Moreover, t he danger exi st s
even in qua nt i t a t i ve s ys t emat i c obser vat i on t ha t t he f ai l ur e to
unde r s t a nd t he meani ngs of hi t t i ng event s ma y r es ul t in miscod-
ing, t he under - or over es t i mat i on of r el at i onshi ps, or t he t ot al
negl ect of power f ul concept s and hypot hes i s r el at ed to t he re-
sear cher ' s i nt er est s.
The par t i ci pant obser ver s ys t emat i cal l y works to be awar e of
t he meani ngs of event s. For exampl e, in r el at i on to t he hi t t i ng
exampl e above, he or she woul d be awar e of t he fol l owi ng
par t i ci pant per spect i ves and woul d know whi ch wer e r el evant in
t he s i t uat i on bei ng st udi ed:
How do t he var i ous par t i ci pant s (t he hi t t er , per son bei ng hi t ,
onl ookers, t eacher ) percei ve t he event ?
Do t hey even see it as aggr essi on?
Do t he hi t t er and per son bei ng hi t concur on t he meani ng?
I t could, for exampl e, not be an act of aggr essi on:
I t could be an act of af f ect i on as in a game of exchange.
I t coul d be par t of s ubcul t ur al nor ms. (In some bl ack subcul -
t ur es, pr eadol es cent and adol escent mal es hi t each ot her on
t he a r m and t he s houl de r as pl a yf ul de mons t r a t i on of
s t r e ngt h r a t he r t ha n as a specific act of aggressi on. )
I t coul d be an a t t e mpt to get t he t eacher ' s at t ent i on or to
di sr upt cl ass or der r a t he r t ha n bei ng di r ect ed to t he per son
bei ng hi t .
Even if it is aggr essi on, t her e ar e ma ny cri t i cal di f f er ences
among event s t ha t it is i mpor t a nt to under s t and.
The event could be an i ni t i at or y f i r st act , or it could be a
r et r i but i on for pr evi ous act s of aggr essi on not necessar i l y
l i nked i mmedi at el y in space, t i me, or ki nd.
The event coul d be par t of a per sonal r el at i onshi p bet ween
t he t wo s t ude nt s i nvol ved, or it could be par t of a l ar ger
i nt er per s onal net wor k of r el at i ons for exampl e, i nt er gr oup
host i l i t y.
Ther e ar e cri t i cal aspect s of huma n behavi or to under s t and.
The qual i t at i ve r es ear cher l ear ns of some of t hes e per spect i ves
by he a r i ng par t i ci pant s expr ess t hem in t he flow of event s. To
l ear n of ot her s, t he r es ear cher mus t ask t he par t i ci pant s ques-
t i ons and become a c qua i nt e d wi t h " e mi c " ( a c t or - r e l e va nt )
cat egor i es t ha t ar e r ar el y expr essed. Some of wha t we ar e cal l i ng
per spect i ves or meani ngs , however , ma y not even be consci ous
for t he par t i ci pant s; no par t i ci pant could s pont aneous l y ar t i cu-
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l at e t hem. The par t i ci pant / obser ver ' s day-t o-day obser vat i on of
t he full r ange of act i vi t i es and t he st at us of out si der/ i nsi der put
t he obser ver in a uni que position to under s t and t hese forces on
behavi or and to ar t i cul at e t hem.
This bri ef di scussi on has cer t ai nl y not exhaust ed all t he possi-
ble meani ngs of t hi s par t i cul ar action. Any set t i ng wher e human
bei ngs act is full of behavi or s t hat have t hei r si mi l arl y rich set s
of possible meani ngs. Al t hough it is i mpossi bl e for any i ndi vi dual
to compr ehend all t he meani ngs in any set t i ng, a r esear cher
usi ng ant hropol ogi cal t echni ques can be awar e of t hem and be
able to use t hem in under s t andi ng and expl ai ni ng human behav-
ior.
Summary
We have bri efl y expl ai ned, t hen, t he t wo set s of hypot heses
under l yi ng t he r at i onal e for par t i ci pant obser vat i on r esear ch: (a)
Human behavi or is compl exl y i nfl uenced by t he cont ext in whi ch
it occurs. Any r esear ch pl an whi ch t akes t he act ors out of t he
nat ural i st i c set t i ng may negat e t hose forces and hence obscure
its own under st andi ng. (b) Human behavi or oft en has more
meani ng t han its obser vabl e "fact s. " A r esear cher seeki ng to
under st and behavi or must find ways to l earn t he mani f est and
l at ent meani ngs for t he part i ci pant s, and must also under s t and
t he behavi or from t he obj ect i ve out si de perspect i ve.
Because t hese hypot heses t aken t oget her f undament al l y chal-
lenge t he way t hat much t radi t i onal educat i onal r esear ch is
conduct ed, t hey will undoubt edl y rai se many quest i ons and
prot est s. Such debat e can be benefi ci al if it l eads r esear cher s of
all per suasi ons to quest i on t hei r basi c assumpt i ons about human
behavi or and ways of under s t andi ng it.
Research Process
Under st andi ng t he act ual processes involved in t hi s kind of
r e s e a r c h is as i mpor t a nt as unde r s t a ndi ng t he r a t i ona l e .
Et hnogr aphi c r esear ch is much like quant i t at i ve r esear ch in
t hat it has a long t r adi t i on wi t hi n which i nvest i gat or s are
worki ng cont i nual l y to refi ne and devel op effect i ve and appro-
pri at e r esear ch met hods.
Educat i onal r es ear cher s who ar e unf ami l i ar wi t h t he an-
t hropol ogi cal r esear ch t r adi t i on oft en see t hi s kind of r esear ch as
synonymous wi t h j our nal i st i c r epor t i ng and anecdot al or impres-
sionistic story-telling. Thei r expect at i on is t hat someone ent er s
a set t i ng, looks ar ound for a time, t al ks to some people, and
wri t es a r epor t of his i mpressi ons. They specul at e t hat any
person in t he set t i ng could produce t he same i nsi ght s by wri t i ng
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s ome r e c ol l e c t i ons . Th e y do not s ee t hi s as r e a l r e s e a r c h a nd f e a r
a l a c k of o b j e c t i v i t y . Thi s s e c t i on wi l l a t t e mp t t o br i dge t h e
s e r i ous g a p b e t we e n e t h n o g r a p h i c a n d n o n - e t h n o g r a p h i c r e-
s e a r c h e r s b y d e s c r i b i n g t h e a c t u a l p r o c e d u r e s i nvol ve d.
As e x p l a i n e d i n t h e s e c t i on d e s c r i b i n g t h e r a t i ona l e , t h e u n d e r -
l yi ng pr i nc i pl e g u i d i n g t hi s ki nd of r e s e a r c h is t h e a s s u mp t i o n
t h a t i ndi vi dua l s h a v e me a n i n g s t r u c t u r e s t h a t d e t e r mi n e mu c h
of t h e i r b e h a v i o r . The r e s e a r c h s e e k s t o d i s c o v e r wh a t t h e s e
me a n i n g s t r u c t u r e s ar e, h o w t h e y devel op, a nd h o w t h e y i nf l u-
ence b e h a v i o r , i n as c o mp r e h e n s i v e a nd o b j e c t i v e a f a s h i o n as
pos s i bl e. F o r t h e s a k e of a na l ys i s , t h e e t h n o g r a p h i c r e s e a r c h
pr oc e s s wi l l be di vi de d i nt o a s e r i e s of i s s ue s : e n t r y a nd e s t a b -
l i s h me n t of r e s e a r c h e r r ol e; d a t a col l ect i on p r o c e d u r e s ; obj e c t i v-
i t y; a nd a n a l y s i s of d a t a .
Ent ry and Establishment of Role
E t h n o g r a p h y is b a s e d on t h e a s s u mp t i o n t h a t wh a t pe opl e s a y
a nd do is c o n s c i o u s l y a nd u n c o n s c i o u s l y s h a p e d b y t h e soci al
s i t ua t i on. The e t h n o g r a p h e r is s e n s i t i v e t o t h e wa y he e n t e r s a
s e t t i n g a nd c a r e f u l l y e s t a b l i s h e s a r ol e t h a t f a c i l i t a t e s t h e col l ec-
t i on of i n f o r ma t i o n . He mu s t ma k e de c i s i ons a b o u t h o w i nvol ve d
he wi l l b e c o me i n c o mmu n i t y a c t i vi t i e s (Gol d, 1958) b e c a u s e he
k n o ws hi s a c t i v i t i e s wi l l i nf l ue nc e t h e wa y s i n whi c h pe opl e r e a c t
t o hi m. He mo n i t o r s t h e wa y hi s e n t r y i nt o t h e c o mmu n i t y is
i ni t i a t e d b o t h of f i ci al l y a nd unof f i c i a l l y b e c a u s e he k n o ws t hi s
wi l l i nf l ue nc e h o w pe opl e s ee hi m ( Geer , 1964; Ka h n & Ma n n ,
1952; Vi di ch, 1955). He t r i e s not t o be i de nt i f i e d wi t h a n y p a r t i c u -
l a r g r o u p i n t h e s e t t i n g . Mo r e o v e r , t h r o u g h o u t t h e s t u d y he
mo n i t o r s t h e v i e ws p a r t i c i p a n t s h a v e of hi m; f or i n s t a n c e , he
woul d not e c a r e f u l l y t h e di f f e r e nc e b e t we e n wh a t pe opl e s a y a nd
do wi t h e a c h o t h e r ( e i t he r i n hi s p r e s e n c e or as r e p o r t e d t o hi m)
a nd wh a t t h e y s a y a nd do wh e n a l one wi t h hi m ( Be c ke r , 1961).
Mos t i mp o r t a n t l y , t h e p a r t i c i p a n t s mu s t c ome t o t r u s t a nd v a l u e
t h e o b s e r v e r e n o u g h t o be wi l l i ng t o s h a r e i n t i ma t e t h o u g h t s
wi t h hi m a nd a n s we r hi s e n d l e s s q u e s t i o n s ( Br u y n , 1966). The
o u t s i d e r oc c a s i ona l l y c o mi n g i n a nd t a l k i n g t o pe opl e doe s not
h a v e t hi s o p p o r t u n i t y t o s y s t e ma t i c a l l y c u l t i v a t e a nd mo n i t o r a
r ol e t h a t f a c i l i t a t e s col l ect i on of al l ki nds of i n f o r ma t i o n a t al l
l evel s.
To of f er a c o n c r e t e e x a mp l e , we wi l l br i e f l y c o n s i d e r h o w a
p a r t i c i p a n t o b s e r v e r mi g h t h a v e gone a b o u t c u l t i v a t i n g hi s r ol e
i n t h e s t u d y of s t u d e n t a g g r e s s i o n a n d t h e h i t t i n g e pi s ode
c ons i de r e d p r e v i o u s l y . The r e s e a r c h e r wo u l d be c a r e f u l a b o u t t h e
wa y he e n t e r e d t h e s i t u a t i o n a n d c a me t o be pe r c e i ve d. F o r
e x a mp l e , he wo u l d wo r k me t h o d i c a l l y t o a voi d b e i n g i de nt i f i e d as
t h e me mb e r of a n y p a r t i c u l a r s u b g r o u p . Di d t h e t e a c h e r s con-
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si der hi m someone t he pri nci pal had sent ? Did t he y feel he woul d
be s ympat het i c t owar d t he t eacher poi nt of vi ew? I f t her e wer e
f act i ons of t eacher s , did t he obser ver become i dent i f i ed wi t h any
one of t hem? Si mi l ar l y, did t he s t ude nt s consi der hi m to be a
t eacher - l i ke per son? Did par t i cul ar gr oups of s t ude nt s see hi m as
an i ngr ouper or an out gr ouper ? The gr oup i dent i t y of t he ob-
ser ver is i mpor t a nt not onl y because t he par t i ci pant s mi ght
consci ousl y wi t hhol d i nf or mat i on f r om someone wi t h t he wr ong
i dent i f i cat i on (for exampl e, s t ude nt s not t al ki ng about pl ans for
" get t i ng" cer t ai n cl as s mat es in f r ont of a t eacher - l i ke person),
but also because t he par t i ci pant s mi ght consci ousl y color wha t
t hey sai d and did (for exampl e, s t ude nt s not t al ki ng about hi t t i ng
games in f r ont of a t eacher - l i ke per son who t he y fel t woul d
consi der t hem silly).
I n e ve r y e t hnogr a phi c s t udy we ha ve c onduc t e d i n hi gh
schools, s t udent s have expr essed t hei r concer n about t he re-
sear cher ' s i dent i t y. I n one al t er nat i ve school, an as s embl y was
hel d to i nt r oduce t he obser ver and t o ans wer quest i ons about t he
r esear ch. One s t ude nt asked f r om t he audi ence, "Ar e you a
t eacher or a s t ude nt ? " La t e r event s de mons t r a t e d t ha t t hi s was
an i mpor t ant concern. The obser ver t r i ed to expl ai n hi s uni que
s t at us of bel ongi ng to no one group. Thi s expl anat i on was not
ful l y accept ed or under s t ood at t ha t t i me. Dur i ng t he next
sever al weeks, t he obser ver spent much ener gy es t abl i s hi ng t hi s
role and f i nal l y was accept ed as bei ng in nei t her gr oup as
i l l ust r at ed by s t ude nt wi l l i ngness to di scuss i ssues t ha t wer e
t aboo in f r ont of t eacher s.
Dat a Collection
Also a key f act or in unde r s t a ndi ng et hnogr aphi c r es ear ch is a
r eal i zat i on of wha t cons t i t ut es da t a and what t he c us t oma r y
met hods of obt ai ni ng it are. Thi s ki nd of ant hr opol ogi cal i nqui r y
seeks to di scover t he me a ni ng s t r uc t ur e s of t he par t i ci pant s in
wha t e ve r f or ms t he y are expr essed. Hence, t hi s r es ear ch is
mul t i modal , and all of t he fol l owi ng ar e r el evant ki nds of dat a:
1. For m and cont ent of ver bal i nt er act i on bet ween part i ci -
pant s
2. For m and c ont e nt of ver bal i nt e r a c t i on wi t h t he re-
s ear cher
3. Nonver bal behavi or
4. Pa t t e r ns of act i on and nonact i on
5. Traces, ar chi val records, ar t i f act s, document s
The essent i al t as ks for t he ant hr opol ogi cal r e s e a r c he r ar e
l ear ni ng wha t da t a will be neces s ar y to ans wer hi s quest i ons and
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g e t t i n g a c c e s s t o t h a t i n f o r ma t i o n . The p r e v i o u s s e c t i on i l l us-
t r a t e d h o w t h e r e s e a r c h e r wo r k s on i n t e r p e r s o n a l a c c e s s b y
b e c o mi n g s o me o n e wi t h wh o m p a r t i c i p a n t s a r e wi l l i ng t o s h a r e
i n f o r ma t i o n a nd r e a c t i o n s . E v e n as t h e s e p r o b l e ms a r e b e i n g
sol ved, h o we v e r , t h e e t h n o g r a p h e r mu s t c o n s t a n t l y ma k e deci -
s i ons a b o u t wh e r e t o be, wh a t ki nd of d a t a t o col l ect , a nd t o wh o m
t o t al k. Unl i ke p r e s t r u c t u r e d r e s e a r c h de s i gns , t h e i n f o r ma t i o n
t h a t is g a t h e r e d a n d t h e t h e o r i e s t h a t e me r g e mu s t be u s e d t o
di r e c t s u b s e q u e n t d a t a col l ect i on.
The r e s e a r c h e r mu s t l e a r n t h e f o r ma l a nd i n f o r ma l ps yc hi c
s c h e d u l e s a nd g e o g r a p h i e s of t h e p a r t i c i p a n t s ( Br u y n , 1966). He
mu s t b e c o me a wa r e of al l t h e b e h a v i o r s e t t i n g s i n t h e c o mmu n i t y
a nd t h e i r i mp o r t a n t c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s ( Ba r k e r & Gump, 1964). He
wo r k s t o b e c o me p a r t of t h e v a r i o u s c o mmu n i c a t i o n n e t wo r k s
t h a t da i l y o r i e n t p a r t i c i p a n t s a b o u t wh e r e a nd wh e n s i gni f i c a nt
e v e n t s a r e l i kel y t o occur . The r e s e a r c h e r d e v e l o p s s a mp l i n g
p r o c e d u r e s t h a t r e f l e c t t h e r e s e a r c h goal s . Wh e n t h e s e s i t u a t i o n s
exi s t , t h e r e s e a r c h e r ma k e s c a l c u l a t e d de c i s i ons a b o u t wh a t ki nd
of d a t a t o col l ect a n d wh e t h e r or n o t he s houl d e n g a g e i n a c t i ve
fi el d i n t e r v i e wi n g ( pr obi ng, r a t h e r t h a n r e l y i n g on n a t u r a l i s t i c
obs e r va t i on) .
Al so i mp o r t a n t i s t h e choi ce of wh o m t o t a l k t o. The r e s e a r c h e r
b e c o me s a wa r e of v a r i o u s p e r s o n s ' r ol e s i n t h e c o mmu n i t y a nd
t h e p e r s o n a l ma t r i x t h r o u g h Whi ch p e r s o n s f i l t er i n f o r ma t i o n .
The me t h o d o l o g i c a l l i t e r a t u r e ( Dean, Ei c hor n, De a n, 1967; De a n
& Wh y t e , 1958; Ar g y r i s , 1952) i s r i c h wi t h d i s c u s s i o n s of t h e
b a s e s f or ma k i n g t h e s e de c i s i ons a b o u t wh o is a n a p p r o p r i a t e
r e s p o n d e n t or i n f o r ma n t f or v a r i o u s p u r p o s e s . Agai n, de c i s i ons
a b o u t wh o is t a l k e d t o a r e ma d e i n t e r ms of e me r g i n g t h e o r y a nd
p r e v i o u s l y g a t h e r e d i n f o r ma t i o n .
Muc h of t h e i n f o r ma t i o n g a t h e r e d b y p a r t i c i p a n t o b s e r v a t i o n is
s i mi l a r t o t h a t wh i c h c a n be g a t h e r e d b y o t h e r me t h o d s , f or
i ns t a nc e , s y s t e ma t i c o b s e r v a t i o n a nd s t r u c t u r e d i n t e r v i e wi n g .
The p a r t i c i p a n t o b s e r v e r h a s mo r e l a t i t u d e i n t h a t he i s n o t
l i mi t ed t o p r e s p e c i f i e d pl a c e s a nd t i me s . He c a n i n t e r v i e w a nd
o b s e r v e i n ma n y s i t u a t i o n s not u s u a l l y a v a i l a b l e t o o t h e r r e-
s e a r c h e r s . He al s o h a s a n a d v a n t a g e i n hi s a bi l i t y t o mo n i t o r t h e
r a p p o r t he h a s b u i l t wi t h i n t e r v i e we e s a nd t o ga i n a c c e s s t o
c onf i de nt i a l i n f o r ma t i o n .
I n o t h e r wa y s , t h e d a t a g a t h e r e d b y p a r t i c i p a n t o b s e r v a t i o n is
s i gni f i c a nt l y d i f f e r e n t f r om t h a t g a t h e r e d b y o t h e r me t h o d s . The
r e s e a r c h e r l i nks t o g e t h e r t h e i n f o r ma t i o n he g a t h e r s b y v a r i o u s
me t h o d s i n a wa y t h a t is n e a r l y i mpos s i bl e wi t h o t h e r ap-
pr oa c he s , a n d he h a s a c c e s s t o s ome u n i q u e ki nds of i n f o r ma t i o n .
F o r i n s t a n c e , he c o mp a r e s t h e f ol l owi ng: (a) wh a t a s u b j e c t s a y s
i n r e s p o n s e t o a q u e s t i o n ; (b) wh a t he s a y s t o o t h e r peopl e; (c)
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what he says in var i ous si t uat i ons; (d) what he says at var i ous
times; (e) what he act ual l y does; (f) var i ous nonver bal si gnal s
about t he mat t er (for exampl e, body post ures); and (g) what t hose
who are si gni fi cant to t he person feel, say, and do about t he
mat t er. Fur t her mor e, t he par t i ci pant obser ver in i nt er vi ewi ng
knows much about t he persons or i nci dent s r ef er r ed to in t he
answer s to his quest i ons. Fi nal l y, t he par t i ci pant obser ver culti-
vat es an empat het i c under s t andi ng wi t h t he par t i ci pant t hat is
nearl y i mpossi bl e wi t h quant i t at i ve met hods. The r esear cher
shares t he daily life of par t i ci pant s and syst emat i cal l y works to
under st and t hei r feel i ngs and react i ons.
It is i mpor t ant to not e t hat t her e are also di sadvant ages in t he
use of par t i ci pant observat i on; for i nst ance, t he di ffi cul t y of
obt ai ni ng a pi ct ure of t he compl et e di st ri but i on of at t i t udes in a
l arge communi t y. A single obser ver woul d not be able effi ci ent l y
to get t he feelings of a maj or i t y of people at one poi nt in time. For
a descri pt i on of ot her di sadvant ages in par t i ci pant observat i on,
see McCall and Si mmons, 1969.
Et hnogr aphi c i nqui r y is a syst emat i c r esear ch process, j us t as
are t he quant i t at i ve appr oaches more fami l i ar to educat i onal
r es ear cher s . As t hi s br i ef sect i on has demons t r at ed, et hno-
graphi c r esear cher s met hodi cal l y plan t he forms of dat a t hey will
collect, t he set t i ngs in which t hey will gat her t he dat a, t he
part i ci pant s wi t h whom t hey will i nt eract , and t he quest i ons
t hey will ask. They also t r y to be open to new i nformat i on, but
t hey do so in a cal cul at ed fashion, for exampl e, by seeki ng out
places t hat are likely to pr esent t hi s new i nformat i on.
To i l l ust rat e, we will descri be t he dat a collection t hat woul d be
par t of t he st udy of t he hi t t i ng event di scussed previ ousl y. The
part i ci pant obser ver woul d us e his flexibility and his special
accept ance by t he communi t y to di scover wher e he woul d find
r el evant i nformat i on. He mi ght make all t he following moves:
He woul d be pr esent when t hese event s were likely to occur.
He woul d not e ver bal and nonver bal behavi or r el at ed to t he
event (for i nst ance, t he r eact i ons of t he st udent bei ng hit, t he
t eacher, and bys t ander st udent s).
He would di scover wher e and when st udent s wer e likely to
di scuss t he event , and he woul d be pr esent (for i nst ance, in
t he halls or at recess).
He woul d be pr esent wher e and when t eacher s di scussed t he
event (for i nst ance, in t he t eacher s' lounge).
He would work to become t he kind of person t he par t i ci pant s
want ed to shar e t hei r r eact i ons wi t h (for i nst ance, by bei ng
fri endl y and shar i ng val ued activities).
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To c onf i r m e me r g e n t t h e o r y , he woul d a s k peopl e q u e s t i o n s
wh i c h wo u l d he l p hi m r e f i ne a nd de ve l op t h e t h e o r y .
He woul d bui l d up t h e h i s t o r y of i n v o l v e me n t t h a t woul d
e n a b l e hi m t o r e l a t e a n y n e w bi t of i n f o r ma t i o n t o p r e v i o u s l y
g a t h e r e d i n f o r ma t i o n . ( For i ns t a nc e , he wo u l d c o n s i d e r a
t e a c h e r ' s c o mme n t a b o u t t h e h i t t i n g e v e n t i n t e r ms of t h e
f ol l owi ng: t h e t e a c h e r ' s r e l a t i o n s h i p t o t h e pe opl e b e i n g
t a l k e d t o, p r e v i o u s c o mme n t s a n y o n e i n t hi s g r o u p h a d ma d e
a b o u t s i mi l a r e v e n t s , t h e e v e n t as a c t u a l l y wi t n e s s e d b y t h e
o b s e r v e r , s i mi l a r e v e n t s o b s e r v e d p r e v i o u s l y , s i mi l a r s i t ua -
t i ons wh e r e t h e s e e v e n t s di d not occur , a nd s t u d e n t t h o u g h t s
a b o u t t h e e ve nt . )
Th e s e a nd s i mi l a r s t r a t e g i e s he l p t h e r e s e a r c h e r t o a c c u mu l a t e
t h e u n d e r s t a n d i n g of h u ma n a c t i on t h a t is s o u g h t b y e t hnog-
r a phy.
Objectivity
Be c a u s e t h e q u a l i t a t i v e r e s e a r c h e r does not u s e f a mi l i a r qua n-
t i t a t i v e me t h o d s of s t a n d a r d i z i n g s u b j e c t s ' e x p r e s s i o n or r e-
s e a r c h e r s ' o b s e r v a t i o n s , t h o s e not a c q u a i n t e d wi t h p a r t i c i p a n t ob-
s e r v a t i o n f e a r t h a t t h e d a t a wi l l be pol l ut e d wi t h t h e o b s e r v e r s '
s u b j e c t i v e bi as . Ho we v e r , we l l - e x e c u t e d e t h n o g r a p h i c r e s e a r c h
us e s a t e c h n i q u e of disciplined s u b j e c t i v i t y t h a t i s as t h o r o u g h
a nd i n t r i n s i c a l l y o b j e c t i v e as a r e o t h e r ki nds of r e s e a r c h . To
e x p l a i n t h i s a s s e r t i o n , we mu s t r e f e r t o t h e q u a l i t a t i v e -
p h e n o me n o l o g i c a l h y p o t h e s i s a b o u t h u ma n b e h a v i o r d i s c u s s e d
pr e vi ous l y. Hu ma n a c t i ons h a v e mo r e me a n i n g t h a n j u s t t h e
c o n c r e t e f a c t s of who, wh a t , wh e r e , a nd wh e n t h a t an o u t s i d e r
can o b s e r v e ; t h e y h a v e mo r e me a n i n g s t h a n e v e n t h e r e s p o n s e s
t h a t s u b j e c t s coul d gi ve wh e n b e i n g i n t r o s p e c t i v e (for i ns t a nc e ,
i n an i n t e r v i e w or a n a t t i t u d e s cal e ma r ki ng) . The e t h n o g r a p h e r
s t r i v e s t o u n c o v e r t h e s e me a n i n g s .
He u s e s t h e t e c h n i q u e s we h a v e d e s c r i b e d t o be i n t o u c h wi t h a
wi de r a n g e of p a r t i c i p a n t e x p e r i e n c e s . He ma k e s s u r e t h a t hi s
s a mp l i n g is r e p r e s e n t a t i v e ( Br u y n , 1966) a nd t h a t d a t a a r e
i n t e r p r e t e d i n t e r ms of t h e s i t u a t i o n wh e r e t h e y we r e g a t h e r e d
( Becker , 1958). I n o r d e r t o u n d e r s t a n d t h e s e hi dde n or u n e x p r e s -
s ed me a n i n g s , t h e r e s e a r c h e r mu s t l e a r n t o s y s t e ma t i c a l l y em-
p a t h i z e wi t h t h e p a r t i c i p a n t s . He mu s t s y n t h e s i z e t h e v a r i o u s
e x p e r i e n c e s of p a r t i c i p a n t s t o c o mp r e h e n d t h e s u b t l e t i e s of t h e i r
act i ons , t h o u g h t s , a nd f eel i ngs . S o me t i me s he u s e s hi s own
r e a c t i ons , whi c h he h a s c u l t i v a t e d b y u n d e r g o i n g t h e s a me
e x p e r i e n c e s as p a r t i c i p a n t s , t o u n d e r s t a n d t h e r e a c t i o n s of t h o s e
he is s t u d y i n g .
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WILSON ETHNOGRAPHIC TECHNIQUES
The assumpt i on about human behavi or t hat t hese meani ngs
exi st and t hat under s t andi ng t hem r equi r es i nvol vement in t he
part i ci pant s' per spect i ves- - cal l s for such t echni ques as empat hy
and nonst andar di zed observat i on. However , t hese t echni ques
are not used in an i mpressi oni st i c manner. There are i mpor t ant
di fferences bet ween t he subj ect i vi t y of t he par t i ci pant s and t hat
of t he r esear cher who is careful never to abandon hi msel f to
t hese perspect i ves. The discipline of t he r esear ch t r adi t i on calls
for him to const ant l y moni t or and t est his react i ons. In addi t i on
to syst emat i cal l y t aki ng t he per spect i ves of t he subj ect s, who
rarel y share a monolithic poi nt of view, he also vi ews act i ons
from t he perspect i ve of t he out si der. By syst emat i cal l y seeki ng
to under st and act i ons from t he di fferent per spect i ves of vari ous
groups of part i ci pant s, t he r esear cher avoids get t i ng caught in
any one out l ook (Vidich, 1955; Wilson, 1972). He is able to vi ew
behavi or si mul t aneousl y from all perspect i ves. These t ensi ons in
point of vi ewmbet ween out si der and i nsi der and bet ween groups
of i nsi der s- - keep t he careful r esear cher from l apsi ng into subj ec-
tivity.
A concret e exampl e from t he st udy of t he hi t t i ng event will
i l l ust rat e t hi s kind of obj ect i vi t y. The par t i ci pant obser ver woul d
under st and t he same act from t he per spect i ves of all involved:
Teacher: The obser ver woul d compr ehend fully
t he t eacher ' s anger at t hese st udent s,
t he f ear of losing control, and t he
det er mi nat i on to change t hei r f ut ur e
behavi or.
St udent s Invol ved: The obser ver mi ght under s t and t hei r
percept i ons of t he hi t t i ng event as a
game, t hei r lack of i nt ent i on to dis-
r upt t he class, and t hei r confusi on
about t he t eacher ' s react i on.
Bys t ander St udent s: The obser ver woul d know whi ch
st udent s saw t he hi t t i ng as a game,
whi ch saw it as a chal l enge to t he
t eacher, and whi ch saw it some ot her
way- - f or i nst ance, as a specific act
of aggressi on.
Each sci ent i st who applies t hi s disciplined r esear ch met hod
mi ght be expect ed to gat her si mi l ar dat a, j us t as in quant i t at i ve
met hods sci ent i st s usi ng t he same t echni ques collect si mi l ar
facts. The danger exi st s t hat , as in quant i t at i ve research, t he
same dat a can be i nt er pr et ed di fferent l y. See Rober t Redfi el d' s
book Tepoztlan and Oscar Lewi s' book Life in a Mexican Village:
Tepoztlan Revisited, on t hei r var i ous i nt er pr et at i ons of life in t he
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same vi l l age. Ant hr opol ogi s t s ar e cur r ent l y debat i ng t hi s prob-
lem. 1
Anal ysi s of Data
A fi nal ar ea t ha t it is i mpor t a nt t o unde r s t a nd is how et hnog-
r apher s anal yze t hei r dat a and devel op t heor y. Some et hno-
gr aphi c r es ear ch is ver y si mi l ar t o t r adi t i onal educat i onal re-
sear ch in i t s deduct i ve use and devel opment of t heor y. Ot her
ki nds of et hnogr aphi c r esear ch, however , ar e much mor e i nduc-
tive.
The ant hr opol ogi s t seeks to unde r s t a nd t he meani ngs of t he
par t i ci pant s and hence seeks to be car ef ul not t o have hi s
i nt er pr et at i ons pr e ma t ur e l y over s t r uct ur ed by t heor y or previ-
ous r esear ch. Fur t he r mor e , he is per haps mor e r eady t ha n ot her
ki nds of r es ear cher s to accept t he possi bl e uni quenes s of t he
var i ous set t i ngs, gr oups, or gani zat i ons , etc., t ha t he st udi es.
Seeki ng t heor y gr ounded in t he r eal i t y of par t i ci pant s does not
mean a di sr egar d for pr evi ous work. The r es ear cher mus t become
t hor oughl y acquai nt ed wi t h r el at ed r es ear ch and t heor y so t ha t
he can use it whe ne ve r it is hel pf ul for expl ai ni ng event s.
Si mi l arl y, he cont r i but es to t he devel opment of knowl edge by
poi nt i ng out cor r obor at i on and cont r adi ct i on of hi s f i ndi ngs wi t h
t he f i ndi ngs of ot her r es ear cher s . Moreover, he uses pr evi ous
r esear ch and t he or y to sel ect t he s et t i ng he is s t udyi ng and to
i nf or m t he i ni t i al focus of hi s i nf or mat i on gat her i ng.
The devel opment of gr ounded t heor y is not ha pha z a r d. The
r es ear cher c ons t a nt l y t es t s hi s emer gi ng hypot hes es agai ns t t he
r eal i t y he is obser vi ng dai l y. Unl i ke t he usual pr e s t r uc t ur e d
r es ear ch desi gns, par t i ci pant obser vat i on i ncl udes a cons t ant
necessi t y for t e s t i ng t heor y agai ns t r eal dat a. For a f ur t he r
descr i pt i on of t hi s cons t ant comparative method, t he r eader is
ur ged to consul t Gl aser and St r aus s (1967). Becker (1961) poi nt s
out t ha t t he s ear ch for negative evidence is a not he r way t ha t
par t i ci pant obser ver s r ef i ne and t est t hei r t heor i es. Becaus e of
his awar enes s of t he set t i ng, t he r es ear cher knows wha t si t ua-
t i ons ar e l i kel y to pr ovi de di s cor dant i nf or mat i on. He ent er s
t hese s i t uat i ons to conf r ont t hi s possi bl y negat i ve evi dence,
probes t o fi nd out why t he t heor y cannot account for wha t is
observed, and gr adual l y devel ops hi s t heor y. I t makes sense,
t hen, t o t hi nk of par t i ci pant obser vat i on as a seri es of st udi es
t ha t follow each ot her dai l y and bui l d on each ot her in a cyber-
net i c f ashi on.
' This view of objectivity, of course, represents an ideal. Anthropologists are
currently debating about how objective participant observers can be even within
the rigorous tradition. Participant observation, however, is no less intrinsically
objective than other research methods.
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Summary
We h a v e br i e f l y d e s c r i b e d t h e e t h n o g r a p h i c r a t i o n a l e a nd
r e s e a r c h p r o c e s s . Mo r e e l a b o r a t e c o n s i d e r a t i o n s of t h i s
me t h o d o l o g y a r e a v a i l a b l e i n t h e f ol l owi ng s our c e s : Ad a ms a nd
Pr i e s s , 1960; Br u y n , 1966; Fi l s t e a d , 1970; Gl a s e r a nd St r a u s s ,
1967; McCal l a nd Si mmo n s , 1969; Na r ol l a n d Cohen, 1970; Scot t ,
1965; S c h a t z ma n a n d St r a u s s , 1974.
The me t h o d o l o g y of e t h n o g r a p h i c r e s e a r c h e r s is as r i g o r o u s
and s y s t e ma t i c as t h a t of o t h e r r e s e a r c h e r s . I t i s a vi t a l a nd
vi a bl e t r a d i t i o n wh i c h is c o n s t a n t l y i n t h e p r o c e s s of b e i n g
e v a l u a t e d a nd r e f i ne d. One of t h e mo s t i mp o r t a n t i de a s b e h i n d
p a r t i c i p a n t o b s e r v a t i o n is t h a t t h e r e i s no one r i g h t me t h o d : t h e
me t h o d s houl d ma t c h t h e s t udy. The t e c h n i q u e s d e s c r i b e d h e r e
can be c o o r d i n a t e d wi t h o t h e r me t h o d s i nt o a n e x c e l l e n t r e s e a r c h
de s i gn t h a t coul d el i ci t i n f o r ma t i o n not a c c e s s i bl e t o r e s e a r c h e r s
u s i n g mo r e q u a n t i t a t i v e t e c h n i q u e s .
Th e r e ar e, of c our s e , q u e s t i o n s t h a t c a n be r a i s e d a b o u t t h e
v a r i a t i o n s i n t h e q u a l i t y of p a r t i c i p a n t o b s e r v a t i o n s t udi e s , j u s t
a s t h e r e a r e v a r i a t i o n s i n s t u d i e s u s i n g q u a n t i t a t i v e
me t hodol ogi e s . The q u e s t i o n s t h a t a r e a p p r o p r i a t e t o a s k a r e n o t
e a s i l y a n s we r e d wi t h i n a j o u r n a l a r t i c l e f o r ma t . An a l mo s t
c ompl e t e h i s t o r y of e a c h p a r t i c u l a r r e s e a r c h p r o j e c t wo u l d be
r e qui r e d, a n u n d e r t a k i n g t h a t wo u l d n e c e s s i t a t e as mu c h s pa c e
as t h e di s c us s i on of t h e s u b s t a n t i v e f i ndi ngs . We wi l l i l l u s t r a t e ,
h o we v e r , s ome i mp o r t a n t c o n s i d e r a t i o n s b y br i e f l y o u t l i n i n g t h e
q u e s t i o n s e t h n o g r a p h e r s mi g h t a s k a b o u t e a c h o t h e r ' s wor k.
The q u a l i t a t i v e r e s e a r c h e n t e r p r i s e d e p e n d s on t h e a bi l i t y of
t h e r e s e a r c h e r t o ma k e h i ms e l f a s e n s i t i v e r e s e a r c h i n s t r u me n t
b y t r a n s c e n d i n g hi s own p e r s p e c t i v e a nd b e c o mi n g a c q u a i n t e d
wi t h t h e p e r s p e c t i v e s of t h o s e he is s t u d y i n g . I n a f u n d a me n t a l
wa y i t i s i mp o s s i b l e t o k n o w t o wh a t d e g r e e t h i s wa s ac-
c ompl i s he d i n a n y p a r t i c u l a r s t u d y wi t h o u t b e i n g i n t h e f i el d.
The a n s we r s t o t h e f ol l owi ng ki nds of q u e s t i o n s , h o we v e r , gi ve
t h e f el l ow s c i e n t i s t s o me ba s i s on wh i c h t o j u d g e t h e wor k. Our
l i st of q u e s t i o n s is a d o p t e d f r om t h o s e u s e d b y Na r ol l (1967) i n
j u d g i n g c r o s s - c u l t u r a l s t udi e s .
The f i r s t s e t of q u e s t i o n s p r o b e s t h e r e s e a r c h e r ' s a bi l i t y t o
move b e y o n d hi s own p e r s p e c t i v e s . A r e v i e we r t h u s n e e d s t o
know wh a t we r e t h e r e s e a r c h e r ' s or i gi nal poi nt s of vi ew. I nf or -
ma t i o n a b o u t t h e s e q u e s t i o n s c a n be s o u g h t f r om a n y s our c e , b u t
t h e p r i ma r y e mp h a s i s is on t h e r e s e a r c h e r ' s s e l f - r e por t s .
Wh a t wa s t h e r e s e a r c h e r ' s r ol e i n t h e s e t t i n g ? (e.g., t e a c h e r ,
a d mi n i s t r a t o r , r e s e a r c h e r ? )
Wh a t wa s hi s t r a i n i n g a n d b a c k g r o u n d ?
Wh a t wa s hi s p r e v i o u s e x p e r i e n c e i n t h e f i el d?
261
REVI EW OF EDUCATI ONAL RESEARCH Vol. 47, No. 2
What wer e hi s t heor et i cal or i ent at i ons about r el evant is-
sues?
What wer e his per sonal f eel i ngs about t he topic?
What was t he pur pose of t he field st udy?
Who suppor t ed t he st udy?
Why was t he par t i cul ar s et t i ng chosen?
To wha t ext ent did he become a par t i ci pant ?
Ther e are i mpor t a nt qual i t i es to not e about t hes e quest i ons.
Thei r ans wer s pr ovi de onl y t e nt a t i ve gui del i nes r a t he r t ha n fi rm
bases by whi ch to j udge t he r esear ch. For i nst ance, a r esear ch-
er wi t h pr evi ous exper i ence as an admi ni s t r at or or wi t h a
cer t ai n t heor et i cal or i ent at i on does not necessar i l y mean t ha t he
is locked i nt o t hose per spect i ves and t ha t hi s r es ear ch can be
di scount ed as bei ng bi ased by t hose poi nt s of view.
The second set of quest i ons probe t he ef f ect i veness of t he
r es ear cher in comi ng to unde r s t a nd t he per spect i ves of t he
par t i ci pant s.
How l ong was t he r es ear cher in t he set t i ng?
How r egul ar l y was he t her e?
Wher e did he spend most of hi s t i me?
Wi t h whom did he spend most of hi s t i me?
How well did he unde r s t a nd t he l anguage of t he part i ci -
pant s?
How was he per cei ved by var i ous gr oups of par t i ci pant s?
Whi ch member s of t he c ommuni t y wer e hi s i nf or mant s ?
Was t her e s ys t emat i c var i ance in his unde r s t a ndi ng of t he
per spect i ves of var i ous gr oups?
What wer e t he di f f er ences in i nf or mat i on ga t he r e d by vari -
ous met hods?
What wer e t he l evel s of confi dence t he r es ear cher pl aced in
var i ous concl usi ons?
What was some of t he negat i ve evi dence?
I t is i mpor t a nt t o r eal i ze t ha t a full di scussi on of t hese i ssues is
i mpossi bl e wi t hi n t he l engt h l i mi t at i ons of t he usual vehi cl es of
communi cat i on. Wi t hi n monogr aphs and books e t hnogr a phe r s do
us ual l y di scuss t hes e i ssues in appendi ces. What is cus t omar i l y
done in s hor t er f or mat s, however , is a compromi se. The re-
sear cher offers a br i ef hi s t or y of t he r es ear ch i nvol vement , a
di scussi on of some of t he maj or i ssues in conduct i ng t he r esear ch,
262
WILSON ETHNOGRAPHIC TECHNIQUES
a di s cus s i on of pa r t i c ul a r l y pr obl e ma t i c concl us i ons , a nd an
a t t e mpt t o pr ovi de fi el d da t a wi t hi n t he t e xt a de qua t e f or r ead-
er s t o ma ke i nde pe nde nt j udgme nt s .
Et hnogr a phy is not j us t a ne w f ad; r a t he r i t is pa r t of a
l ong- r e s pe c t e d r e s e a r c h t r a di t i on t ha t f or va r i ous hi s t or i c a l
r e a s ons ha s r e ma i ne d out s i de t he ma i ns t r e a m of e duc a t i ona l
r e s e a r c h. Si mi l ar l y, i t is not a s t at i c t r a di t i on; r e s e a r c he r s ar e
c ons t a nt l y wor ki ng t o r ef i ne t he me t hods . At pr e s e nt , i nves -
t i ga t or s ar e e xa mi ni ng wa ys i n whi c h qua l i t a t i ve a nd qua nt i t a -
t i ve a ppr oa c he s can s uppl e me nt e a c h ot he r (CNS, Not e 3), t he
wa ys t e a ms of qua l i t a t i ve r e s e a r c he r s can be us ed t o gua r a nt e e
mul t i pl e pe r s pe c t i ve s , a nd i n a f or t hc omi ng CNS publ i c a t i on t he
wa ys qua l i t a t i ve a ppr oa c he s c a n be us ed i n e va l ua t i ve r e s e a r c h
will be e xa mi ne d. Educ a t i ona l r e s e a r c h will be c ons i de r a bl y
e nr i c he d as qua l i t a t i ve a nd qua nt i t a t i ve r e s e a r c he r s l e a r n t o
i nt e gr a t e t he i r a ppr oa c he s .
Reference Notes
1. Nelson, H., Lundin, S., & Giannotta, F. Multidisciplinary evaluation of educa-
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meeting of the American Educational Research Association, Chicago, 1974.
2. Ianni, F. (Chair.), Becker, H., Varenne, H., Dalton, W., Leichter, H., & Levine,
D. Social organization of the high school. Symposium presented at the meeting
of the American Educational Research Association, New Orleans, 1973.
3. Center for New Schools. A quantitative-qualitative study of student subcultures
in an alternative high school. Paper presented at the meeting of the American
Educational Research Association, Chicago, 1974.
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AUTHOR
STEPHEN WILSON Address: Center for New Schools, 59 East Van Buren,
Chicago, Illinois 60605. Title: Research Coordinator. Degrees: A.B., Antioch
College; M.Ed., Boston College; Ph.D., Uni versi t y of Chicago. Specialization:
Research and eval uat i on methodology, social psychology of education, in-
novative process.
265