More Related Content Similar to Words are Tricky: Creating shared understanding with Ethnography (20) Words are Tricky: Creating shared understanding with Ethnography2. ©2016 Kevin Matheny
Hello, world!
• I’m Kevin Matheny
• Agile coach, Web architect, recovering VP, bourbon dork
• Anthropologist
3. ©2016 Kevin Matheny
Today I want to
• Demonstrate why communication is hard
• Explain why that’s a problem
• Give you techniques for
Discovering information
Increasing understanding
Documenting knowledge
(And maybe teach you a bit about Anthropology, the Simpsons and Whisk(e)y…)
7. ©2016 Kevin Matheny
Language is complex
• Denotations
Direct meaning
Explicit
Factual (?)
• Connotations
Implied meanings
Implicit
Emotional
Image © User:SuHoGo / Wikimedia Commons / CC-BY-SA-3.0
8. ©2016 Kevin Matheny
The meaning of words is contextual
• Cultural context
• Social context
• Temporal context
• Physical context
• And lots of assumptions
10. ©2016 Kevin Matheny
Let’s go shopping!
• I am in the market for a new pickup
• I want to replace the one I have now
• I don’t use it too often
• I am open to new or used
• I don’t want to pay too much
• I want good quality
• What brands do you recommend?
13. ©2016 Kevin Matheny
If you don’t
know what
they really
mean, how
do you
know you’re
building the
right thing?
16. ©2016 Kevin Matheny
Topics
• Interviewing
• “Folk terms” and domains of meaning
• Structural questions
• Taxonomies
• Contrast questions
• Paradigms
18. ©2016 Kevin Matheny
Why interviews?
• We want to understand someone’s perspective
• People know themselves best
• In-person, direct interviews generate the highest
information flow
19. ©2016 Kevin Matheny
#protip: Talk to actual
SMEs
• If you want to understand a bartender’s
life, talk to bartenders
• Salespeople, customer service, product
managers – these are NOT substitutes
for actual customers
• You are not a substitute for an actual
customer
Image © 20th Century Fox
20. ©2016 Kevin Matheny
#protip: Interviews are not
conversations
• More formal
• Repetition
• Question/answer
• Build rapport
apprehension -> explanation -> cooperation -> participation
21. ©2016 Kevin Matheny
Getting started
• Ask Grand Tour questions to start – “Please tell me about
a typical night at Moe’s Tavern, from start to finish”
• Focus with the Mini-Tour – “Tell me about taking a big
order.”
• Ask about variations – “Tell me about a slow night” or
“Tell me about a really busy night”
22. ©2016 Kevin Matheny
#protip: Ask for use, not meaning
• Informants will use translation competence to explain –
you do NOT want this!
• Don’t ask “why”
• Ask for natural language – “How would you describe this
to another bartender?”
24. ©2016 Kevin Matheny
Folk Terms
• These are the words people use with specific meaning in
their culture
• Many of them are nouns
• Some are verbs
• A few are adjectives and adverbs
• “Homer is a regular” and “Marge usually orders some
kind of umbrella drink, like a Mai Tai”
25. ©2016 Kevin Matheny
Domains
• These are sets of things in the informant’s world
• Customers
• Drinks
• Parts of the bar
• They probably don’t categorize the same way you do!
26. ©2016 Kevin Matheny
Write it all down
• Take notes during interviews
• Write down key words and phrases
• Record sessions if you can (ask permission!)
• Don’t worry about structure or if you understand things,
focus on capturing the information
28. ©2016 Kevin Matheny
Adding structure to information
• Structural questions…
Reveal relationships between things
Find gaps in information
Validate what you’ve discovered
29. ©2016 Kevin Matheny
Sample structural questions
• “You said customers will order a Bloody Mary with a beer
chaser….”
“Are there other kinds of chasers?”
“Could someone order a chaser without a Bloody Mary?”
“Is a Bloody Mary a kind of thing? What’s the name for that?”
• “You said Homer was a regular customer. Are there other
kinds of customers?”
• Ask about types or kinds, or pose hypotheticals
31. ©2016 Kevin Matheny
Visualizing relationships
• Taxonomies are all around us
Web Navigation
Dewey Decimal System
Grocery store aisles
• Taxonomies are categorization systems
How we categorize and organize tells us what we think is
important
Inuit have 53 words for snow
Sami have 1000 words for reindeer
Things which are closer together are similar (for us)
32. ©2016 Kevin Matheny
Build a taxonomy for key domains
• Simple taxonomy
Types/kinds of things
Parts of things
• Complex taxonomy
Cause/effect
33. ©2016 Kevin Matheny
A simple
taxonomy
of my
home bar
Blanton's
Booker's
Bulleit
Woodford Reserve
Four Roses
Elijah Craig
Koval
Evan Williams
Blended Whiskey Campfire
Joke beer
Cheap beer
Hoppy beer
Stuff I like
White
Dessert
Ruby
Red
Cabernet Sauvignon
FEW
Tawny
Shiraz/Syrah
Caymus
Other
Liqueur
Other
Gin
Beer
Brown Bourbon
Port
Clear
Liquor
Whisk(e)y
Vodka
Scotch Whisky
Irish Whiskey
Wine
Monkey 47
Cleaning
Drinking
Rum
Other
35. ©2016 Kevin Matheny
Understanding decisions
• What differentiates the stuff within a category?
• How do people make decisions and judgments?
• We want insights about how people understand their
world
Coke and Pepsi are both soft drinks, but I like Coke (because?)
Chef and Puppet are both configuration management systems –
what differentiates them for this audience?
36. ©2016 Kevin Matheny
Finding dimensions of contrast
• Pile sort
Write out the terms in a domain
Ask the informant to make two or more piles
For each pile, ask why
Note that as a dimension of contrast
Repeat
• Triadic sort
Choose 3 terms at random
Ask “Which two are the same, and how are they different from the
third?”
Note and repeat
37. ©2016 Kevin Matheny
Discovering contrast values
• Use Directed Contrast questions to discover the values of
dimensions for each member of a domain
• “You said a Mint Julep is a seasonal drink. What other drinks are
seasonal drinks?”
• “Is a Mint Julep an umbrella drink?”
39. ©2016 Kevin Matheny
Hierarchy is not enough
• Many decisions involve complex attributes
Especially choices between types
Chef vs. Puppet
Coke vs. Pepsi
Blanton’s vs. Booker’s
• Visualizing this helps us understand decision-making and
priorities
40. ©2016 Kevin Matheny
How to build one
• Simple grid showing dimensions of contrast
• Set of things on the left
• Dimensions across the top
• Values in each box
• #protip: use a reference key if the values get long to keep
the table easy to read
41. ©2016 Kevin Matheny
A simple paradigm of my bourbons
Intended
use
G
ift?
Special occasion
Location
Strength
Blanton's Sipping No Yes Office Regular
Booker's Mixing Yes No Cabinet Cask
Bulleit Sipping No No Cabinet Regular
Woodford Reserve Sipping No No Cabinet Regular
Four Roses Mixing No No Cabinet Regular
Elijah Craig Mixing No No Cabinet Regular
Koval TBD Yes No Cabinet Regular
Evan Williams Mixing No No Cabinet Regular
43. ©2016 Kevin Matheny
It’s a process
Interviewing
Folk Terms &
Domains
Structural
Questions
Taxonomy
Contrast
Questions
Paradigm
• Interviews generate Folk Terms and Domains
• Taxonomies organize information
• Paradigms illuminate decision-making
44. ©2016 Kevin Matheny
Get your head in the right place
• It’s all about increasing understanding
• Understand someone’s language and perspective
• Increase your chance of building the right thing
45. ©2016 Kevin Matheny
To learn more…
• James Spradley,
The Ethnographic
Interview
• Stefan Gabányi,
Whisk(e)y
• Groening and
Richmond, The
Simpsons, A Complete
Guide to Our Favorite
Family