Elliott Liebow's thick description of his observational study on a group of Negro males.

1. Sovonne Ukam
Concordia University
Qualitative Research Methods EDDC 611
Teresa Dillard, PhD
October 31, 2015
Tally’s Corner
by Elliott Liebow
Classic Book Journal

2. I chose as my book choice Tally’s Corner, by qualitative writer,
anthropologist and professor Elliott Liebow. It is a thick description of his
observational study on a group of Negro males, who spent the greater part of their
days meeting and talking on a street corner in Washington, D.C. The study came
about in the early 1960’s as part of his doctoral dissertation in anthropology at the
Catholic University of America (Liebow, 2003). As now; poverty was an intense
subject of debate, and Liebow sought the opportunity to garner a clear
understanding of poverty, its affects, and foundation. Therefore, Liebow spent
countless hours observing a certain group of Negro males in order to gain an
understanding of their struggles, relationships, and experiences, in a life of poverty
in America.
Tally’s Corner

3. The study provided an intimate account of America’s underclass, and is
deemed as a poignant classic. Many research studies and books pertaining
to poverty have risen from Liebow’s work, in addition, significant
qualitative terms such as, thick description have been illustrated citing
Tally. Take for example this article, Brief Note on the Origins, Evolution,
and Meaning of the Qualitative Research Concept “Thick Description,” by
Joseph G. Ponterotto, and how it reflects Tally’s impact on qualitative
studies. Ponterotto (2006) notes, “a central component of “thick
description” is the interpretation of what is being observed or witnessed”.

4. Tally’s Corner is the perfect example to demonstrate relational and descriptive-interpretive types of
thick description. In the article, Misogyny in Rap Music a Content Analysis of Prevalence and
Meanings, written by Ronald Weitzer and Charis E. Kubrin, the study assesses the portrayal of
women in a sample of 403 rap songs (Weitzer & Kubrin, 2009). Again, Liebow’s study is used to
validate Weitzer and Kubrin (2009), - “…four decades ago, an ethnographic study of a low-income,
Black neighborhood described how important it was for men to be seen as ‘‘exploiters of women,’’
even if they did not always treat women in this way”.

5. These articles barley tip the scale regarding the use of Tally to support works
by other researchers of poverty and the culture of poverty. It provides
researchers access into lives that they may never have the personal opportunity
to visit. However, for me as an African American woman growing up poor in
the south, access was not impossible, therefore, I am a little remiss in some of
the observations made by Liebow, of which I will gladly share weekly in my
journal.

6. References
Liebow, E. (2003). Tally’s corner: A study of Negro streetcorner men. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield.
Ponterotto, J. G. (2006). Brief note on the origins, evolution, and meaning of the qualitative
research concept “thick description”. The Qualitative Report, 11(3), 538-549. Retrieved
October 30, 2015, from http://www.nova.edu/ssss/QR/QR11-3/ ponterotto.pdf
Weitzer, R., & Kubrin, C. (2009). Misogyny in rap music: A content analysis of prevalence and
meanings. Men and Masculinities, 12(1).