Understanding Cultures Through Ethnography

Deena Stewart-Hitzk
Room six, provided insight into ethnography and its role in qualitative research. Deena Stewart–
Hitzke tackled this room for our group and provided an excellent summary of ethnography, its
characteristics, and a summation of how it was used to examine a cycle of poverty in Harlem as
presented by Newman (2011). The reading provided a sound description of the types of
ethnographies including realist ethnography, and critical ethnography (Creswell, 2013), and a model
for conducting ethnographic case studies (Newman, 2011). On the surface, this method of research
appears to be straightforward approach to examining to taking on an anthropological study, however
there are many challenges as well. It became apparent through the reading and our team ... Show
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This room was assigned to Deon Logan, who provided an excellent summation of the assignment
through the use of a PowerPoint presentation. Deon's PowerPoint, provided a succinct summary of
the research conducted by Wolcott (1983) as described in, Schools and Inadequate Education: The
life History of a Sneaky Kid, and the role that case studies and interviewing can play in research.
McMillan (2012), describes a case study as an "in depth analysis of a single experience or entity"
(McMillan, 2012, p.279). Case studies represent a different form and approach than enthnographic,
phenomenological, grounded theory, or critical studies and yet each have a distinct role to play in
conducting quantitative research, based upon their intended purpose (McMillan, 2012). As I reflect
on Blythe's (1999) approach, it becomes clear that he uses many of the techniques outline in our
reading including field work, observations, interviewing, and document analysis(McMillan, 2012).
"When the point of one's work is to contribute to their field, further the discussion of an idea, or
influence other's in a positive way" (Hand, 2015, para.1) the researcher, their methodology, and the
presentation fo results must reliable and credible (McMillan,
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Socio Cultural Aspects Of Therapeutic Relations
RESEARCH METHOD
As mentioned in the literature review, no studies have focused on socio cultural aspects of
Therapeutic relation ship in Indian outpatient physiotherapy department. Therefore, the intention of
this study is to seek an in–depth understanding of socio cultural factors that associates with
therapeutic relationship in outpatient physiotherapy settings in India by using a focused
ethnographic design. This study will be conduct through two phases. The first phase of this study
will be focused on participant observation and on the basis of the findings from the first phase of the
study, the second stage will be conducted by using semi structured interviews.
Phase 1: Ethnographic: Study will be performed as an observation, which involves systematically
watching the physiotherapist or student therapist and patients to find out their interactions and
behaviours in outpatient physiotherapy in India.
Aims:
To under stand the therapeutic relationship in an Indian outpatient physiotherapy settings.
To identify intangible underpinning socio cultural elements that associate with therapeutic
relationship in an Indian outpatient physiotherapy settings
Phase 2: Ethnographic semi–structured interview
On the basis of the findings obtained from the first phase of this study will be used to conduct an in–
depth semi–structured interview after 6 months of the observation qualitative interviews of
physiotherapist (currently practicing in the musculoskeletal settings

Ethnographic Research Essay
Ethnographic research is the scientific description of specific human cultures, foreign to the
ethnographer. Each ethnographer has his or her own way of conducting research and all of these
different ideas can be transmitted and understood in a number of different ways. Because there is no
one set idea of how an ethnographer should go about his or her research, conflicts arise. In
Reflections on Fieldwork in Morocco, Paul Rabinow uses a story like process to discuss his
experiences during his research in Morocco. This makes it easier for the reader to understand his
ideas then just having a technical book about the many different aspects of Moroccan life that he
may have discovered. In Writing Culture: the Poetics and Politics of ... Show more content on
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Once I had become comfortable with myself and the language I would pick a part of the society that
I would like to focus on. Similar to what Paul Willis's study, which Marcus described in his paper, of
a group of twelve boys in a working class school, I would first go straight to the primary source. In
Rabinow's book he takes the opposite approach and goes from place to place not focusing on one
certain aspect of culture but a broad range of different ideas of society. I think that this approach
may be more difficult because there os so much more that has to be looked at and understood. For
instance, Rabinow must learn two different languages, French and Arabic just to understand the
people around him. Then travel all around Morocco and obtain information on a numerous amount
of different cultures. Though this practice of fieldwork has its benefits, describing one aspect of a
society goes more in depth. Focusing on one aspect of a culture, I would want to obtain an exact
understanding of what these people were doing and how they felt they fit into society. After
obtaining as much information as I could from my informants, I would go back to my notes and try
to make some sense of them without trying to distort their views of themselves in any way. I would
then go to another source of information, in Willis's example this would be the teachers. By getting
more then one perspective of a certain

Ethnographers Relevance in Aiding the Understanding of...
Introduction Ethnography is the study that facilitates the understanding of social interactions,
behaviors and perceptions of individuals that are social, economic, and cultural in nature.
Ethnographers study various aspects that present social connotations within diverse groups of
people, teams, institutions, and societies. Its aim is to foster effective provision of credible
information and insights pertaining to people's views actions including nature (Kuper, 2006, p. 1).
This paper gives credible information about ethnographer's relevance in aiding the understanding of
diverse social issues that confront most people in the societies presently. The social issue captured is
based on a selected community in the US where social issues ... Show more content on
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However, some people oppose the policy citing that it is the right of the citizens to ensure adequate
protection. They hold that the policy should not apply as it is bound to infringe of the citizens basic
rights (Totten & Pedersen, 2012, p. 468). In my perspective and attitude, I think the introduction of
gun control policy is a good idea whose time has come. This is evident since it will facilitate the
prevalence of sanity in the nation that operates under strong democratic ideals. Gun control should
be encouraged at all cost as it holds the capacity of eliminating social insanity. The existing
similarities with the group to be put under study is that we are all US citizens who believe in respect
to humanity, life, and rights, however, we differ on the moral aspect and the extent to which the use
of guns should be allowed. I do not support the imposition of strict gun control policy although the
group thinks that the policy should not be applied. I am not a native anthropologist, however, I like
interacting with people of diverse background to understand the major issues that affects them
including social matters. My aim of understanding the underlying issues is to contribute by
influencing individuals viewpoints especially on issues that require critical thinking (Kuper, 2006, p.
1). For instance, I would use the information and knowledge gun control matters I have in offering
credible insights to the critics of

The Importance Of Visual Ethnography
The Importance of Visual Ethnography Reading an ethnographic research paper can allow us to
imagine and perceive cultures in a certain perspective that is the author's point of view. Ethnography
is a process of representing knowledge of human lives by collecting data to experience, interpret and
represent human cultures according to the researcher's view. However, this representation of data is
predetermined by the author and is therefore subjective in a way, as people's emotions are analyzed
according to the author's perspective. Moreover, there are certain aspects of their living style that
cannot be expressed in words such as their cultural ceremonies, describing sounds and arousing
certain feelings. There are ways to overcome this limitation of expression that is to include the use
of photography, audio recordings, filmography and performing a play. This visual representation of
data allows us to feel emotionally connected to the culture as we interpret it from our own
perspective, but this depends on the way the data is recorded. Humans consume the world visually,
and photography is a visual representation of the world. Photographs allow the informant to observe
and analyze the photo in their own perception. Visual images are not just the means of data
collection or illustration of text but "as a medium through which new knowledge and critiques may
be created" (Chaplin qtd. in Pink, 13). Sometimes it is difficult to describe certain objects or the
surrounding in

Kung Life: An Ethnography by Majorie Shostak
The many ethnographies produced from the fieldwork of anthropologist, account for much of our
knowledge of cultures we may consider foreign of our own. Ethnographies are often written to
provide an understanding of the practices of the studied culture, thus bridging the gap between
separate ways of life. Majorie Shostak is one of the well known anthropologist who attempts to do
just this in her writings. During her stay in the Dobe regions of Botswana, she studied the life of
!Kung women to find out if they share similar ideas to women of her own culture. She begun her
research by emerging herself in anyway possible. She learns the language, lived among them in
grass huts, and ate the foods they ate. She still remained unsatisfied and ... Show more content on
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Most of her knowledge comes from her mother's account. An example of this is illustrated in her
reflection about the process of being weaned, from her mother, in preparation for the nursing of her
brother. She tries to explain how she felt at that moment but her young age would have prevented
her from remembering those exact details. It is possible she uses what she observes on a daily basis
with other young children to fill in the blanks of her own memories. Shostack herself says
repeatedly that Nisa is a great storyteller and like many !Kung she often exaggerates. At last Nisa's,
experiences with previous anthropologist like Richard and Nancy may have provided her with an
advantage. She might have told a few exaggerated stories because she felt that's what Majorie
wanted to hear, so she could receive her payment. If this is the case, some of her stories might not
have happen the way they she claimed but it is not so far–fetched it couldn't have happened.
Shostack interpreted her finding in an humanistic way but she could have adapted a materialistic
view. For instance, the topics of male dominance and polgamy could have been further explored.
From a materialistic viewpoint they could have been explained as males are better able to promote
the growth of the hunter gather family rather than woman who experience menopause. The need to
keep populating can also be used to explain why

John Marshall's An Argument About A Marriage
1) To what does the term 'event sequence film' refer, and where and why was this developed? In
your response provide at least two examples of this filmmaking practice. The term event sequence
film refers to a work of cinema which is centered around a single discrete event from beginning to
end, as opposed to focusing on abstract concepts or impressions (MacDougall 126). This style of
film was developed initially at the Harvard Film School by Timothy Asch and John Marshall to
represent the daily lives of its subjects, which in turn, attempts to exhibit the ethnography of a place
or culture. A pioneering event sequence film is Marshall's an Argument About a Marriage (1969).
Although the film presents a single verbal fight about infidelity between a ... Show more content on
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Although it is a common practice, it is not the only way to construct an ethnographic film. In Night
Cries:a Rural Tragedy, creator Tracey Moffatt departs from traditional ethnographic realism by
adding elements of fantasy and exaggerated representation to her production. The film itself is not a
live–shot documentary, but attempts to represent a different form of truth through piece of fiction
with a script and set. Despite its lack of placement in legitimate history, Night Cries still represents
an ethnography. Similarly, Leviathan (2012) does not attempt to showcase a cultural story. Using
unconventional camera shots and sci–fi like effects, it exhibits an ethnography in a nonlinear way
which exaggerates its violent and haunting qualities. The producers of these films may have
diverged from ethnographic realism because traditional tendencies tend to depict ethnography as
though it were stagnant and exotic. By using contemporary and non–objective forms of filmmaking,
they aimed to represent a genuine ethnographic experience, even if the "genuine experience" never
actually occurred within the culture's

Essay on The Pros and Cons of Ethnographic Reflexivity
The Advantages and Limits of Ethnographic Reflexivity
Awareness of writing choices generates an appreciation of the reflexivity of ethnographic research.
Reflexivity involves the recognition that an account of reality does not simply mirror reality but
rather creates or constitutes as real in the first place whatever it describes. Thus 'the notion of
reflexivity recognizes that texts do not simply and transparently report an independent order of
reality. Rather, the texts themselves are implicated in the work of reality–construction (Emerson et.
al., 1995:213).
According to Robert M. Emerson and colleagues, reflexivity is a method in which the ethnographer
is aware that his/her writing choices are shaped to acknowledge the ... Show more content on
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In her ethnography she writes how she had to reconstruct her "self" in order to fit in to Japanese
society. She looked Japanese but she did not act the way a native Japanese would act. Her
informants than taught her how to act like a native and in this process she began to understand
aspects of the Japanese culture. She mentions:
These factors perhaps gave me a certain kind of participatory understanding of certain aspects of
Japanese society. It also meant that, once I became an active participant in various groups (family,
factory, etc.) my knowledge was circumscribed. For example, therefore did not have free access to
certain people, and I could not ask certain questions that a foreigner less aware of indelicacy could
have posed with impunity (84).
In forming a self in Japanese society she notes that one is more accessible to gaining further
understanding about the culture being studied. Thus, she critiques the traditional ethnographic
methods because she finds that older text make objective assumptions that are not necessary the
reality of a culture. The assumptions than are seen as the true reality and full understanding of a
culture. On the contrary, reflexivity "implies that ethnographic knowledge is intrinsically incomplete
and relative" (84). Thus she suggest, that the best path to studying cultures is to acknowledge our
bias, assumptions and that of our informants to trace the "parameters, the

Ethnography And Its Difference From Other Research Methods
Ethnography is a complex process it 's not just simply viewing children in their
environment.Ethnography allow research to examine children in ways other research cannot because
ethnography allows the researcher to see and be a part of a children 's peer culture.Ethnography
involves prolonged fieldwork where researchers study a group to understand their mundane
practices of life. the observation allows them to see "their physical and institutional settings, their
daily routines,their beliefs and values,their linguistic and other semiotic system that mediates all
these contexts and activities."(Corsaro 2014 p) In this paper I will provide understanding on
ethnography and its difference from other research methods. I will describe the ... Show more
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This is a holistic approach or as corsaro explains it as "thick description"(Geertz) which is a view
that research actively participate so they can get a view of children that is ingrained and is closely
linked to children 's views rather than a bird 's eye view which is a adults perspective of what they
see. A good example of this is in corsaro's work where he through observation found that children
are protective of their play routine and they don 't allow peers to enter the play routine this is a thin
description because this is the adults view , however Corsaro argued through holistic ethnography
that children don 't reject peers into play spaces but they are aware that their play spaces can be
disrupted and so they are protective of sustaining play routine the children did however, allow
children who observed and understood the rules of play routine to engage in it. The two views
described shows the views children have and what children are doing in this situation compared to
the view adults hold
Flexible and self correction this allows research to change their views due to inquiry.
Through the three features of ethnography it 's evident that other research methods don 't allow the
same approach as ethnography. Ethnography is different from other research methods for the
reasons explained above thus it is desirable for studying children however it does have some
challenges that make research think twice before engaging with ethnography.
Challenges of

How Linguistic Ethnographers Blommaert And. Borba...
In the present essay, we have seen how linguistic ethnographers Blommaert and
Borba conceptualize ethnographic research in their two works, what function language had in the
observed, situated interactions and how it was approached to further investigate larger frameworks.
Besides the more technical aspects, we have seen that in both accounts, language plays a crucial role
in the reproduction of inequality and some sociologic and ethnographic concepts, when applied to
observation of linguistic forms, can help to grasp the larger structures regimenting institutional
practices.
2 Source : http://www.Colorado.EDU/English/ENGL2012Klages/1997foucault.html
Student number: 1568114
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Overall, the two accounts are not incompatible, even if they ... Show more content on
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Student number: 1568114
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REFERENCES
Androutsopoulos, J. (2014) Mediatization and Sociolinguistic Change. Berlin–Boston:
Walter de Gruyter GmbH
Bauman, R. & Briggs, C. (1990) Poetics and performance as critical perspectives on language and
social life. Annual Review of Anthropology (19) 59–88
Blommaert, J. (2015) Pierre Bourdieu and language in society. Tilburg Papers in
Culture Studies #126. At www.tilburguniversity.edu
Blommaert, J. (2005) Bourdieu the Ethnographer – The ethnographic Grounding of
Habitus and Voice. The Translator # 11 (2) 219–236. At www.academia.edu
Borba, R. (2015) How an individual becomes a subject. Discourse, interaction & subjectification at
a Brazilian gender identity clinic. Working Papers in Urban
Language & Literacies #163. At www.kcl.ac.uk/ldc
Bourdieu, P. (1972) Esquisse d'une théorie de la pratique précedé de Trois études d'éthnologie
kabile. Paris: Seuil
Bourdieu, P. (1984) Distinction: A Social Critique of the Judgment of Taste.
Massachussets: Harvard University Press.
Bourdieu, P. (1990a) The Logic of Practice. Cambridge: Polity Press
Bourdieu, P. (2000) Making the Economic Habitus: Algerian Workers Revisited.

Things They Carried Ethnography
"In any war story, but especially a true one, it's difficult to separate what happened from what
seemed to happen."
– Tim O'Brien, The Things They Carried It is not only war stories that create confusion, both for
their writers, and their readers, about the nature of the truth they tell. Is the truth in a "true" story
what the writer experienced, or the truth of what "really" happened? If the story is about other
people, is the truth what the writer sees them do, or what they think they are doing? If the writer
does not know the whole truth, does the story become false?
All these questions become even more pertinent if posed about ethnographies. An ethnography is,
by nature, meant to be a description of a people (the dictionary ... Show more content on
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Ethnography has undergone a process of drastic evolution (or, some might say, oscillation) in the
century or so that it has existed as an anthropological tool. Many aspects of ethnography have
changed between two extremes that I will term "traditional" ethnography and "postmodern"
ethnography. Everything from the declared goal of the anthropologist to the approach to possible
objectivity or subjectivity of the anthropologist's writing, from views on the concept of culture to
the ethnography's intended audience, even to choice of topic to explore, has changed. I will explore
these differences using Coming of Age in Samoa by Margaret Mead as an example of traditional
ethnography, and Poetics of Military Occupation by Smadar Lavie as an example of postmodern
ethnography. Veiled Sentiments by Lila Abu–Lughod will serve as something of a mix, poised
between the two extremes. I must first, however, explain my choice of "postmodern" as a label for
the kind of ethnography that Smadar Lavie produced in 1990 (based on fieldwork done throughout
the 70's). The aspect of postmodernism that I embrace in characterizing Poetics of Military
Occupation as postmodern is postmodernism's abandonment of the concept of an absolute truth. The
definition of postmodernism offered by Josh McDowell and Bob Hostetler as "a worldview
characterized by the belief that truth doesn't exist in any objective sense but is created rather than
discovered" serves well to illustrate the ways

Anthropology, Ethnography, And Ethnology
An Anthropologist follows two unique approaches when studying culture, ethnography, and
ethnology. Ethnography and Ethnology may share a zeal for culture, they possess distinctive
methodology and unique goals. Life on the field does not lack its myriad of challenges which the
anthropologist must work through daily. Through the studies of ethnography and ethnology, we are
able to educate ourselves on the lives and rich variegated cultures with whom we share our world.
We see the fruitful work of ethnology and ethnography all around us. Ethnology provides us with
scientific data, analytical and fact–culling. The work of biologist Vojtech Novotny in Papua New
Guinea shows us how ethnology and quantitative data can be used to collect specimens ... Show
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In Sterk 's case, she worked with sex workers, asking why the women are sex workers, drug usage
etc.(Sterk 2000:)
Ethnography is immersive research honed on a single culture.Ethnographers offer us information
about cultures and what they do. Utilizing a descriptive approach, an ethnographer is inside of a
cultural environment. Their goal pushes the mind to think beyond why a culture may engage in
certain rituals. An ethnographer questions the vast intricacies of the culture as a whole. Detailed
questions fuel the process for the ethnologist, What is the meaning of this ritual to you? What is
your kinship?(Miller 2/6/2017). Remaining immersed in a culture yet still an objective observer is
integral to ethnography, both from an ethical view and to conduct the most non–biased research
possible.
Various methods are used to collect the information and reach the goals of studying a culture.
Interviews are an integral part of garnering cultural data. Simply making conversation with another
human in their language opens up many doors. Interviews can be an opportunity to gain an insider 's
perspective on culture. During Chagnon 's research with the Yanomamo, he was collecting data on
their complex genealogy.Not knowing a taboo exists in Yanomamo

The Perils And Privileges Of Auto Ethnography
Reading Response Week 4: The Perils and Privileges of Auto–Ethnography
Although not mentioned in this week's Marshall/Rossman chapter, feminism and autoethnography
has popped up before in prior readings, so there is some familiarity with both concepts. Now comes
what their synthesis looks like in practice. In this light the readings forced me to re–examine
positionality, especially in the framework of auto–ethnography. At first I thought this was too
obvious but in light of the titular question Stacey asks – "Can There Be a Feminist Ethnography?" –
the feminist researcher's proximity to the data and interpretation positionality becomes the fraught
answer to consider, Her awkwardness (if that's the right word) in balancing the tightrope as an
ethical researcher between product and personal integrity feels unexpected yet palpable. The
dilemma she faces "forced my recognition that conflicts of interest and emotion between the
ethnographer as authentic, related person (i.e. participant), and as exploiting researcher (i.e.
observer)" (23). I feel as if she as a feminist researcher was startled by the dilemma she faced and
wonder if her surprise was compounded by not anticipating it . How much an epiphany is it to learn
that participants come with their own agendas? Therefore participants come with their own inherent
powers which threaten to usurp the researcher and her own objectives. In the wake of this surprise
she asks the provocative introspective question

The Culture Of British Life
Having only studied the culture of British life for the one term that I have been living in London I
have been able to capture a vivid depiction of what it means to be British over a short period of
time. Furthermore, as a junior level ethnographer, I understand that in a universal realm the study of
accounts for general human life can be applied worldwide. Though being able to scope out the
lifestyles, cultural differences, and fundamental basis for living has allowed for me to understand
the multitude of accounts of British life and what it may truly mean to be British. With the blueprint
of what I have learned so far as an ethnographer, and secondly as a temporary British citizen, I
believe that ethnography absolutely produces adequate accounts of British Life.
After exploring the loads of questions that I came across following the prompt. I then had to ask
myself "What does it mean to be an ethnographer?". In order to successfully explain the importance
of the role, one needs to know the duties and the purpose for the position of an ethnographer. An
ethnographer is in many ways an expansion of an Anthropologist, though from a more theoretical
interpretation of studies. The role of an ethnographer has been explained as, "one who uses both a
qualitative research process or method and product, whose aim is cultural interpretation"(Brian A.
Hoey). In understanding the mission of an ethnographer I have been able to focus on the three
mainstages of human life in order to get

Persuasive Essay On Online Bullying
In today's progressive world, I believe it is better to consider online bullying in an immersed online
ethnographic research method, in order to fully understand how bullying is enacted in an online
world. It's also important to take this approach in order to understand what's misunderstood about
online bullying as a whole. Boyd (2010) states that if we are to know if online platforms act as a
tool for teenagers to perpetuate violence in the "real world", we must look at what they are doing
online. Boyd finds that bullying does not dramatically go up or down when social media is
introduced (Boyd 2015, 152). Digital spaces that are important in the lives of youth need to be
understand both locally, and in global contexts. Mallan, Ashford and Singh's (2010) article discusses
"iscapes" as a way for todays youth to hang out or communicate. The authors seek to answer the
question, "how do interactions across iscapes affect the identity work carried out by today's youth."(
Mallan et al. 2010, 265).
Decheneaut et al. (2010) looks at an immersive ethnography in several online digital worlds. Bonilla
and Rosa state boldly that by using social media as their platform, subscribers can demand public
attention, and garner the attention from anthropologists by using "hashtags" (Bonilla et al. 2015, 5).
Technology changes how bullying is acted out, furthermore we consider online ethnographic
fieldwork in relationship to bullying as a real and viable part of anthropological studies.

A Research Study On Anthropology And Sociology
Ethnography is a strategy of analysis coming from anthropology and sociology where the researcher
studies the common forms of a person's actions,vocabulary, and movements of a complete social
cluster in an ordinary location over a lengthy period of time. Documents gathering often includes
clarifications and dialogues(Creswell, 2014).A qualitative researcher uses ordinary locations, they
are the main mechanism, collects numerous origin of evidence, uses inductive and deductive
statistics study, put emphasis on contributors' significance, has a developing strategy, reflexivity, and
develop a complete explanation. The researcher's role in qualitative research is to gather information
in the arena at the location where contributors practice the matter or difficult under revision. They
do not bring persons into a laboratory with (an unnatural condition), nor do they characteristically
refer out devices for persons to complete (Creswell, 2014). This up close evidence collected by
actually speaking straight to individuals and seeing them conduct them self and performance inside
their situation is a chief representative of qualitative research. In the normal location, the researchers
have direct communication, frequently over a period.
Qualitative researchers are the main mechanism of the research. They gather information themselves
over investigative brochures, detecting performance, or questioning contributors. They might use a
procedure for gathering

Understanding Image and Visual Media Artifact Essay
Critically analyzing of visual media artifact investigates visual culture. An analysis entails image
interpretation of image equally applicable to genres of photographs as form of advertisement. In this
paper, I will critically examine photographs. According to Barrett (2011) he suggested that critic
starts with description that involves developing a list of facts concerning the subject matter within
the image. Description is a data gathering process of photograph (p. 17). It's also establishing a
typology of the photograph's content matter. Similarly Bathes' (1977) suggest that "all images are
polysemous" (p. 38) because of the subject matter, hence creation of complexity for visual reader in
making decision what aspect to read, pay ... Show more content on Helpwriting.net ...
This represented the children that lived in close proximity to Cape Canaveral and NASA'S launc
Oerations Center (Ryba, 2008, p.27) on Merritt Island, Florida; and among the children.
Wunderkammer artifact speaks only of United States early space program. The 8"x10" black–and–
white glossy photographs have a unique characteristic in that they are the originals taken by NASA
and U.S. air force photographers. These artifacts move specific image from ordinary and become
extraordinary from other American boys and girls who lived far from the rural Atlantic coast of
east–central Florida. Other artifacts in this particular image are not directly related to the space
program, but were objects collected during this timeframe and represent childhood mementos, such
as the display case of pop culture trinkets known as Rat Finks, often traded among boys playing on
the school yard or during our bus ride to and from school. In above description of photographic
content comply to the process of data gathering process which Barrett (2011) suggest for all visual
critiques and analyses.
Interpretation
The interpretation of the photographs communicates to the viewer or the reader on the elements,
brought out in their own set of ideological assumption and experiences in the base of personal
experiences. The images are in the form of visual auto ethnography that dialectic the levels of
signification or connotation, (Ownby, 2011a, p. 138).
It

Analysis Of Tell My Horse By Zora Neale Hurston
In Zora Neale Hurtson's ethnography, Tell My Horse (1938), she uses her research and field notes
from her year in the Caribbean islands to study how the political atmosphere and culture tie into the
religion of Vodoun. Being one of the first in her field to study this religion, Hurston hoped to expand
research upon the subtle nuances within the African diaspora and increase the people of Caribbean's
acceptance of their African identity. In doing so, Hurtson found her research discouraged the idea of
Pancaribbeanism and diminished stereotypes of Vodoun being a religion based upon only evil
possession and pagan sacrifice. As an up and coming African American author in the Harlem
Renaissance, Hurston accomplished major feats against the ... Show more content on
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Her racial disposition as an African American also made many of the participants more comfortable
discussing religious and social topics with her. Throughout her research, Hurston studied two main
aspects of the Vodoun culture, those rituals and rites surrounding death, and those surrounding the
idea of marriage. This stark contrast relates back to her main focus of her research and hopes of
smashing the stereotype of Vodoun being an evil, pagan religion. One intriguing aspect that was
present in a majority of her research was the basis of the culture and religion around orature. In
orally passing traditions and rites through the generations, it ensures that with each family,
generation, and especially island, that there are differences in how certain ceremonies are held. For
example, during her observation of a family's funeral rites, Hurston asked many different family
members how they spotted and trapped any stray duppies, or spirits, that may be around. To
Hurston's surprise, each family member had a slightly different answer to both question, with some
saying the way to spot a duppy was through suspicious, sneaking movements without eye contact, to
as grotesque as foaming at the mouth. (59–61). This was furthered proven when every answer was
different in how to trap a

Ethnographic Methods Utilized By Finkelstein In With No...
With No Direction Home: Homeless Youth on the Road and in the Streets is an ethnography which
describes the lives of youths living on the streets of New York City. The author attempts to conduct
her own research in order to dispute the false impressions that many previous researches have
formed about the youths living on the street. The ethnographic method she uses aids her study of the
"street kids" in acknowledging the facts behind their choice of lifestyle and their experiences while
on the street. Marni Finklestein received her PhD in Anthropology from the New School of Social
Research in New York City. She has also managed to organize many other studies based on drugs
and substance abuse as well as sexual assaults in the streets of ... Show more content on
Helpwriting.net ...
Malinowski and Finklestein used similar concepts in their field study to acknowledge the depth of
their study rather than using the "armchair approach" (12, 2014). Moreover the ethnographic
methods used by Finklestein in approaching the youth of New York are also displayed in Kristina E.
Gibson's' Street Kids: Homeless Youth, Outreach, and Policing New York's Streets. Both being
women researchers, their approaches were similar in wanting to seek the emotional perspective on
the youth's lives and experiences. Despite that both are women, Gibson uses a more feministic
perspective in her ethnographic approach and she spends a longer duration of time in her study than
Finklestein (2011, Gibson). Marni Finklestein uses methods such as interviewing and approaching
the youth as a professional researcher, on the other hand, Kristina E. Gibson uses the methods of
volunteering as a "street outreach"(2011, Gibson) worker. Gibson created her analysis based on the
human geography, whereas Finklestein based her study on the basis of Anthropology. Although they
both conducted their study by approaching the street kids of New York City, the concepts and the
reasons for their research are different. Finklestein wants to provide information, about how the
youths got on the street and what their

Institutional Ethnography
Bibliography
Prodinger B, Shaw L & Laliberte Rudman D. (2013). Institutional ethnography: Studying the
situated nature of occupation. Journal of Occupational Science, 22(1), 71–81.
This article explores the role of institutional ethnographers in their study of people's engagement in
their everyday occupations from the individual level to the social level. It suggests institutional
ethnography as a method that seeks to understand how occupations are coordinated to social
relationships. The article is important, because it portrays how occupations are set within social,
political, and historical contexts.
Holmes JD, Lutz S, Ravenek M, Laliberte–Rudman D & Johnson AM. (2013). Enhancing client–
centredness in Parkinson's disease care: Attending to the ... Show more content on Helpwriting.net
...
This article is important because it shows the importance of how client–centeredness can lead to
better awareness of a client's occupations and QOL's.
Laliberte Rudman D. (2015). Situating occupation in social relations of power: Occupational
possibilities, ageism and the retirement choice. South African Journal of Occupational Therapy,
45(1), 27–33.
This study looks at the relation between age and occupations, and what occupations are supported
sociopolitical conditions. In their findings, they concluded that ageism determines how and when
people retire, what their occupational possibilities were, and how the sociopolitical view supported
their occupational possibilities. This article is useful to our project because it focuses on Rudman's
main area of research, and it is one of the first articles that was written on the relation between
occupations and ageism.
Laliberte Rudman D. (2016). "Activated, but Stuck": Applying a Critical Occupational Lens to
Examine the Negotiation of Long–Term Unemployment in Contemporary Socio–Political Contexts.
Societies, Volume 6, Issue

The Pastoral Clinic: A Comparative Analysis
Julie Livingston and Angela Garcia both provide ethnographies centered around the theme of
illumination. In the case of Julie Livingston, Improvising Medicine works to illuminate the growing
cancer epidemic in Africa as well as the unique way cancer is handled in situations of improvisation.
Angela Garcia also works to illuminate via her ethnographic work, The Pastoral Clinic, by
emphasizing the importance of dispossession in treating heroin addiction in the Española Valley and
also working to counter common beliefs regarding heroin addiction. In defending these respective
arguments, both authors use similar tone and voice; however, the structure of each ethnography is
markedly different. Even with some weaknesses being relatively apparent ... Show more content on
Helpwriting.net ...
Livingston gives her readers mini anecdotes which provide an insight to improvised cancer
treatment in Botswana. As such, many of the images she works to conjure with her language are
shocking such as the description of humanizing a woman who had recently died by cleaning her
body. Even the extensive description of necrotic wounds, the way they look and smell sought to
shock the reader into comprehending the rise of cancer in Africa. In class students expressed
discontent with the passivity of this work which pointed out the horrors of late stage untreated
cancer without providing policy to improve treatment within the region. This demonstrates that
Livingston effectively used a shocking tone to help illuminate the growing problem of cancer
development

The Saints And The Roughnecks
Social scientists look at the world. They look at their surroundings, asking why things happen, how
everything came to be, and what we can understand further about our existence. To do all of these
things, social scientists must follow different methodologies depending on what they are trying to
find out about. One example of a study can be found in William Chambliss' article "The Saints and
the Roughnecks." To gather the data for this study, Chambliss examined the ethnography of Hanibal
High School and two of its prominent gangs. His two years of direct behavioral research allowed
him to thoroughly scrutinize the effects of class on the Saints and the Roughnecks. The conclusions
that he drew, stemming from the unequal treatment of the gangs, were sound because his
ethnographical work was more than just casual observation and subsequently provided him with
ample evidence to analyze.
It is first important to define what ethnography is because it is a prominent method that social
scientists use in their research (Roy, lecture 4). Professor Roy defines ethnography as looking at
culture – a methodological skill of observation in a natural setting. Chambliss was able to do this
with his qualitative research at Hanibal. Qualitative research, compared to quantitative, is often
characterized by a depth of information from a limited number of cases (Ragin & Amoroso 28). This
type of study relies on the human component of interaction in the real world. Chambliss actively
engaged with

Comparing The Writing Styles Of Different Ethnographic...
This paper seeks to compare and contrast the writing styles of four different ethnographic resources
in order to determine the most effective ways of communicating qualitative research findings for my
own research paper. I have determined that a captivating and clear style of writing will be most
effective in presenting my own research findings on how participants give meaning to farmers
markets as a physical space, facilitating social interaction. I will draw on the following four
ethnographies: Skinner's "The 'PB' and the Aestheticization of Violence in Northern Ireland" (2008),
Titchkosky's "'To Pee or Not to Pee?' Ordinary Talk About Extraordinary Exclusions in a University
Environment" (2008), Woodward's "Hanging Out and Hanging About: Insider/Outsider Research in
the Sport of Boxing" (2008) and Zaman's "Native Among the Natives: Physician Anthropologist
Doing Hospital Ethnography at Home" (2008) to reveal effective writing styles. In some of these
writings, what may seem like weaknesses could in actuality be conscious decisions to focus on what
are more important aspects of their paper, which provides me with lessons for my own research
paper.
First, as Glesne mentions "the very choice of the language you use ... tells a story in addition to what
you mean to say" (2011, pp. 243), suggesting that ethnographic writers have the ability to direct
their writing to certain audiences and evoke certain reactions. For example, Skinner's (2008)
ethnography establishes a

The Science Of Desire : Ethnography And Its Proponents Play
Summary The article The Science of Desire presents ethnography and its proponents play an
important role in modern business world. Author Ante began with an example, the satellite–radio
war, to show how ethnography worked in business. In satellite–radio war, Sirius Satellite Ratio
made a team of social scientists, designers, and ethnographers. Through studying customers' habit of
listening to music, watching TV and reading magazines, the team concluded several facts that can
defeat competitors. Then, depending on the research, Sirius launched its new product, the Sirius
S50. Later, as the company's wish, the S50 became one of the hottest sellers in that season. First, as
author Ante (2006) said, "ethnographers' findings often do not lead to a product or service, only a
generalized sense of what people want" (p. 100). Even if ethnographers find something, it also
needs designers and engineers to make products or services to fit it. This process is not easy, even
the findings cannot transmit into products and service. Second, ethnographers' research usually
takes a long time, and the result from using the findings needs long time to come out. Therefore,
how to use ethnography right is very important. The author gave five advises to do ethnography
right. First, "Think Big Thoughts". Companies should used ethnography in big and broad questions,
not in small and detailed ones. Second, "Due Diligence". Companies should use the right
consultants for their projects. Third, "Start

Ethnography
Lyly Ho
3/30/15
Music 3600
Ethnography
How Musical is Man?
The ethnography I chose to read and write about is "How Musical is Man?" by John Blacking. John
Blacking is a famous British anthropologist but he later got trained to be an ethnomusicologist and
was a major influential musical figure in history. He often thought that music was "humanly
organized sound" and that "no musical style has its own terms but more of the terms of its society
and culture. Throughout the book, Blacking made many great points and teaches us in a nonbiased
way. In this book, John Blacking discusses the nature of musicality, the role of music in society,
learning, and the musical discourse. "How Musical is Man?" is an ethnography on the music of the
Venda people of South Africa and how each society views and experiences it. ... Show more content
on Helpwriting.net ...
He states that music's essential processes may be found in the human body and in the patterns of
interactions are among the human bodies in society. Therefore, music is structurally as well as
functionally related between the associated between people. I thought this book was an excellent
read and one quote that I really like from this book is "the value of music is, I believe, to be found in
the terms of the human experiences involved in its creation. There is a difference between music
that enhances human consciousness or music that is occasional and music that is simply for having,
and music that is for being. I submit that the former may be good craftsmanship, but that the latter is
art, no matter how simple or complex it sounds, and no matter under what circumstances it is
produced." (1) This is a very good quote and it sums up what Blacking is trying to convey. People
like to put things into their perspective and what Blacking is trying to say is that no matter where
music came from, it is still very

Summary & Critique About Article the Science of Desire Essays
Summary
The article The Science of Desire presents ethnography and its proponents play an important role in
modern business world. Author Ante began with an example, the satellite–radio war, to show how
ethnography worked in business.
In satellite–radio war, Sirius Satellite Ratio made a team of social scientists, designers, and
ethnographers. Through studying customers' habit of listening to music, watching TV and reading
magazines, the team concluded several facts that can defeat competitors. Then, depending on the
research, Sirius launched its new product, the Sirius S50. Later, as the company's wish, the S50
became one of the hottest sellers in that season. How does ethnography work in business? Many
examples show brainstorms ... Show more content on Helpwriting.net ...
Therefore, GE shares prototypes with customers. Furthermore, instead of currying favor with
executives, it works closely with engineers to solve technical problems.
Third, ethnography transforms a culture. From 1990s, Intel, a big corporation that does not market
directly to consumers, brought in ethnographers at the highest levels of management in order to
focus on consumer products more. In past years, Intel developed its wireless Centrino mobile
technology by studying Alaska's fishers; Intel began to develop medical technology for the wave of
retiring boomers by studying the elderly; Intel developed $500 Community India PC by studying
rural Indian condition. In order to do better in ethnography research, Intel created a network of
"platform–definition centers" in Bangalore, Cairo, São Paulo, and Shanghai. Although some ones in
the company still does not believe ethnography, with anthropologists' help, indeed engineers and
other had better get used to it. Critique Generally, I agree with the principles of this article. At first,
let's look at what is ethnography. According to the definition in the website Wikipedia:
Ethnography (Greek ἔθνος ethnos = people and γράφειν graphein = writing) is a genre of writing
that uses fieldwork to provide a descriptive study of human societies. Ethnography presents the
results of a holistic research method founded on the idea that a

Examples Of Imperialism In The Movie Avatar
The following review will be about a movie named Avatar. Avatar dates back to 2009 and was
directed by James Cameron. The greediness of those in power will always results in the suffering of
those lacks power. This statement refers to the greediness that was depicted in the movie by the
Resources Development Administrators (RDA), which led to a forceful relocation of the Na'Vi
people. The following essay will include the discussion of three anthropological themes that were
displayed. The first theme is the power of knowledge. Here I will discuss how knowledge was used
against the NA'Vi people. The second theme is the notion of imperialism. The colonization of the
Pandora will be discussed under imperialism. The third theme is the notion of ethics. Under ethics I
will discuss the three main ethical principles that should be followed by every ethnographer.
ANTHROPOLOGICAL THEMES ... Show more content on Helpwriting.net ...
Avatar displays a solid anti–imperialism message. Imperialism occurs when a particular country
utilises their political and military powers to gain control over other areas of the world. According to
Alcock and Young, 1974 there are five categories of imperialism which are economic, cultural,
political, military, and communication. However, the movie Avatar exhibits two kinds of
imperialism which is military and economic imperialism. The Na'Vi people are considered to be
poor indigenous people, while the RDA are technologically literate and rich. The RDA forcefully
took over the Pandora because they wanted to build a Unobtanium. A Unobtanium is a room
temperature for energy. The evidence of imperialism from the movie is displayed when the military
force took down the tree of voices. It is also displayed at the end of the movie where the battle
between the people of Omaticaya and other tribes and the military force occurred. This is when the
home tree was also taken down which forced the people of Omaticaya to

The Pros And Cons Of Ethnography
Ethnography is the systematic study of people and their cultures. It refers both to the process that is
used to study people as well as the outcome of this process. The term "ethnography" comes from the
Greek words "ethnos" (which means "people" or "nation) and "grapho" (which means "I write").
Ethnography has been around for several decades, although it became highly popular in the late 19th
century. There have been several approaches to this study; Franz Boas, for example, preferred using
documents and informants to learn more about other cultures. However, many ethnographers
nowadays follow the approach of Bronislaw Malinowski, who believed that researchers should
immerse themselves in the life of the people they were studying. Malinowski embodied this belief
by going to Trobriand Island, living there for several years while he did his fieldwork, and even
learning the language of the local people.
At first glance, ethnography offers a ... Show more content on Helpwriting.net ...
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. Of course, he has to spend months or even
years observing how they live on a daily basis and understanding their culture, norms, and
traditions.
3. It depends on the ethnographer's relationship with his subjects.
Unlike most quantitative studies that can be done even with an impersonal relationship, ethnography
requires researchers to be in close contact with his subjects and have a good one–on–one
relationship with them. Building this relationship can be easy, but there are cases when the
ethnographer would have a difficult time creating rapport with his subjects. This is particularly true
for tribes that have not been in frequent contact with outsiders as well as groups of people don't take
kindly to foreigners living in their lands.
4. It depends on people's openness and

Marni Finkelstein in With No Direction Home
The ethnography With No Direction Home: Homeless Youth on the Road and in the Streets by
Marni Finkelstein, describes the life of street youth in New York City. The ethnography attempts to
debunk myths that prior studies have formed of these street youths. The author, Marni Finkelstein is
an Anthropologist renowned for her work on urban populations at risk. She graduated from the New
School of Social Research in New York City with her PhD in Anthropology. Finkelstein has also
conducted studies on substance abuse, sexual assaults and drug use of youths in New York City.
Finkelstein achieves her goals, by using a scientific approach when observing the street youths. A
few methods she utilizes are similar to that have been previous used but ... Show more content on
Helpwriting.net ...
In order to obtain accurate results, Finkelstein interviews 50 street youths from East Village of New
York City. Furthermore, the number of males and females interviewed were almost proportionally
equal, as there were 26 males and 24 females. She then also records the age these youths left home,
in order to decide if there are any correlations between the age the youth left home and the number
of youths that left home (2005, 15). The author applies cultural and moral relativism throughout her
entire case study. She states that she did not prepare a fixed set of questions; rather she allowed the
youths to generate the questions based on their interaction with her (2005,11). Finkelstein
demonstrates her prowess by interchanging when she conducts interviews and when she solely
observes the behavior of the youths. The ethnographic methods used by Finkelstein are similar to
those employed by Marcelo Diversi, the author of Street Kids in Nikes: In Search of Humanization
through the Culture of Consumption. Diversi's ethnography focuses on street youths in Brazil and
the impact that American pop culture has on them (Diversi, 2006). Even though, both Finkelstein's
and Diversi's ethnographies focus on two separate issues, the means of their research contain glaring
similarities. Both Diversi and Finkelstein utilize participant observation and they interview the street
youths. Moreover they both choose to not live amongst the street youths;

My Personal Social Identity Project
In preparation for doing ethnographic research, it is crucial that one understands not only what
ethnography is and how it relates to its audience, but also how one's own identities influence the
research taking place. For these reasons, this Digital Culture Project will focus on, among other
things, what ethnography is and its relationship to various media as well as self–ethnography and
realizing its importance when conducting ethnographic research. Additionally, my personal social
identity will be examined and reflected upon. First and foremost, an understanding must be had of
what ethnography is. To define 'ethnography,' I will defer to Ellen Isaacs, a corporate ethnographer
for Xerox PARC, who gave a presentation on ethnography at ... Show more content on
Helpwriting.net ...
Ruth Behar, in her book, The Vulnerable Observer, humorously claims that "nothing is stranger than
this business of humans observing other humans in order to write about them," so naturally,
presenting the information gathered through such observations can be seen as something of a
challenge for ethnographers (Behar, 5). While many ethnographers have continued using literal
media to present their research, others have taken to digital media in new and effective ways.
Fortunately, with the growing presence and accessibility of computer technology, ethnography and
the digital media have become increasingly intertwined in their use. Arguably, the most effective
ethnographic research incorporates new media and technologies into how its narratives are
portrayed. According to Underberg and Zorn, "ethnography that uses a diverse set of media such as
videos, photographs, or digital media to communicate multisensory experience[s] and knowledge" is
known as "multisensory ethnography" (Underberg and Zorn, 18–19). In using various media to
present research, not only are ethnographers able to have more control over how their audience
perceives their findings, but they also make those findings more accessible to audiences of all ages.
For example, a two hundred page book documenting a year spent in the villages of sub–Saharan
Africa is largely appealing only to those in academia, but an interactive exhibit

Advantages And Disadvantages Of Ethnography: Anthropology...
Ethnography is one of the sciences that comes from anthropology and sociology. In involves the
research of human societies and culture. Humans are the creatures that are hard to understand. In
ethnographic research project the ethnographer has to go to a community where he/she have to live
in order to do his/her study so that he/she can gets through the understanding of the society culture
and the people. This is what exactly called Ethnography. There are some advantages while doing
ethnographic field work such as using holistic and contrast & comparison methods. But besides
there is some disadvantages that the researcher have to go through such as interviewer effect and
invasion of privacy. Holistic is one of the advantages that is used during ethnographic research
where the researcher tries to develop a person in different levels– physically, emotionally and
mentally. Using holistic approach a researcher can find out that a human being is he/she who creates
their own complexity and who creates their own world were they are responsible for what they do in
that process. They have their own inner and outer resources. Their inner resources re–presents their
emotions, insight, intellection and their imagination and ... Show more content on Helpwriting.net ...
So an ethnographer has to make some sacrifices in order to achieve his/her goal. They will have
some advantages and disadvantages. For example, Mitchell Duneier (2001) has received an award
for his first ethnography, 'Slim's Table', and also numerous critical acclaims for 'Sidewalk'. One can
avoid some disadvantages he/she might face while working on the field and also if he/she is made
aware of the risk of encountering the community. If the researcher is aware of the risk and he/she
get himself/ herself prepared to face it than it might be one of his advantages to avoid losses. And
also if he maintain proper timing may be he might be able to finish his field

Ethnography Essay
Ethnography
Works Cited Missing
Reflexivity is a qualitative method of research that takes an ethnography one step further, displaying
the personal thoughts and reflections of the anthropologist on his informants. Ethnographies
generally take an outside or foreign perspective of a culture, like reading a text, and reflexivity
introduces a new component of inside description. Here, the anthropologist may describe personal
interactions and experiences with natives and use this inside information to make additional
conclusions about the people being studied. The ethnographer may also reflect on his ethnic
connections with his informants, or his acceptance into the society, explaining that it provides
valuable, inside knowledge of the ... Show more content on Helpwriting.net ...
Kondo writes, " As a Japanese–American young woman doing fieldwork in Japan, the Other was
not totally Other for me" (75). This ethnic connection played a primary role in her acceptance by a
Japanese family and eventually by Japanese society. She describes that, "later in the summer, the
wife confided to me that she would never have allowed a 'true American' to live with them." Living
with the Japanese family taught Kondo the proper etiquette of a Japanese female and the longer she
stayed in Japan the more she transformed. She gained an insider perspective because she gained
cultural acceptance, although she was still viewed by many as an other. Kondo began to develop
relationships and soon after natives began to ask her to teach them English, and to attend several
social gatherings. As more people asked her favors she became irritated, but after a conversation
with her landlady she realized that the, "Japanese don't treat themselves as important, they spend
time doing things for the sake of maintaining good social relationships, regardless of their inner
feelings" (81). This realization had a strong impact on Kondo. Her reflections displayed so much
about the Japanese culture in addition to her ethnography. It led her to shift her research from
kinship and economics, " to an even more basic cultural assumption: the nature of the person, and
his/her

Critical Analysis : Critical Ethnography
It takes caution, dedication, and morality, among many other traits, to be a good ethnographer.
Adding to this, one requires a passion for justice and just change in the world to be a good critical
ethnographer. Critical ethnography makes its name as a subfield in its participants' need to alter
what they view as less than acceptable conditions within a community. It extends beyond the mere
study of cultures and ethnic groups and their historic problems, into territory that explores ways in
which people are attempting to solve and can solve those problems. The ethnographer must engage
their subjects in manners that other fields do not; whereas reporters and documentarians might
perform interviews, probably centered on one central topic, and leave once they have enough
information to pen a good summary, ethnographers go further. Their jobs entail looking at the one
central topic, but then connecting it to another element of life for their subjects, and then another,
and so on. Ethnographers experience firsthand what their subjects live out on a daily basis, so that
they may add their own perspectives and realize their own biases as far as certain aspects and issues
go. Whereas people in other fields disperse and find their way back home after one round of
discussions with locals, ethnographers stay even longer, subjecting themselves to the natives' living
conditions, engaging in more discussions and discovering more facts and, more importantly, stories.
It is the duty of the

The Inside Perspective Of An Outsider
The Inside Perspective Of An Outsider
I read everything I could find. I spoke with natives who were visiting the United States. I studied the
language diligently. I scrutinized pictures, noting each detail. Nothing prepared me for that first long
walk along a Beijing street. I smelled for the first time, the smells that were to become a familiar
component of my three–month stay in The People's Republic of China. I made eye contact with
people who had formerly just been captured still–lifes on a reference book's glossy page. I attempted
to speak my broken Chinese with people who did not care that my book at home had taught me the
words for "ambassador" and "diplomat." I took my first tentative step towards cultural
understanding. The ... Show more content on Helpwriting.net ...
The popular modern idea of culture was an abstract system – an evolving thing in and of itself. With
the advent of postmodernity, anthropologists are forced to admit no absolute cultural reality.
Culture, consequently, is composed of constructed narratives and symbolic dialogue (Bodley, 1997,
p.10). The excitement of this postmodern twist lies in the resulting malleability and dynamic fluid
energy of culture.
Both Spradley (1979) and Bodley (1997) note three explicit components of this ever–changing
culture: the words or thoughts of people, the actions of people, and the artifacts used or material
products produced by the people (p.8, p.10).
Doing ethnography, again, means describing a culture. The ethnographer seeks to understand
another way of life from the native point of view. Spradley (1979) rightfully places emphasis on
learning from people rather than studying about people (p.3). A successful ethnographer not only
collects data about a certain people, but seeks first and foremost to be taught by the people. Spradley
and McCurdy (1972) note that "ethnography seeks to describe a culture using those criteria that his
informants employ as they observe, interpret, and describe their own experiences during the course
of life" (p.18).
The core of ethnography then, is to understand the meaning of actions and events the way the
natives understand their meaning. Spradley (1979) eloquently outlines the

Ethnographic Research
topic of assignment: ethnography. submitted by Umair Ijaz.
(roll Number 1 BS English 4th semester) submitted to: Sir Waseem Akhtar. date of submission: 12–
06–2012.
OUTLINE
In this chapter, I shall define ethnography and describe its central characteristics and principles. I
shall also look at the key research concepts of reliability and validity as they relate to ethnography,
and will discuss the importance of context to ethnographic inquiry. In the final part of the chapter, I
shall highlight some of the 'central concerns of this topic by contrasting psychometry and
ethnography, The chapter seeks to address the following questions:
– What do we mean by ethnography?
– What are the key principles guiding ethnographic research?
... Show more content on Helpwriting.net ...
It fellows that if we want to find out about behaviour. we need to investigate it in the natural
contexts in which it occurs, rather than in the experimental laboratory. Arguments in favour of field
research as opposed to laboratory research are supported by studies of particular phenomena which
come up with different findings according to whether the research is conducted in a laboratory or in
the field. For example, Bellack, Hersen, and Turner (1978) found that subjects performed in a role–
play situation very differently from the way they performed in real–life social situations where the
same behaviours were observed. It has also been observed that parents and pupils respond
differently to questions according to whether they are posed in school or at home.
The dilemma, as we saw in Chapter 1, is that In dealing with the problem of generalisability (an
issue of external validity)and placing the research in the field, one increases the possibility of a
threat to the internal validity of the research, because intervening variables may make it imoossible
to ascribe a causal relation between the variables under investigation. However, not all ethnography
is out to ascribe such causal relationship and so the problems which beset the quantitative researcher
in a field setting become unimportant.
2. the qualitative–phenomenological hypothesis: The second hypothesis identified by Wilson is the
,qualitative

The Three Egraphies Of Ethnography
This paper will critically discuss and compare three ethnographies that were published in different
times. Ethnography has became the essential field research strategy in humanities. Ethnography has
turned into a made segment of the collection of examination systems. It was produced in
humanities, however in late decades its utilization has spread broadly in the social sciences and the
humanities. The discriminating assessment of ethnographic information is not yet overall created.
Fitting utilization of this kind of material accordingly obliges an understanding of its unique
qualities and shortcomings. These infer not just from the destinations that underlie ethnographic
work, both cognizant and oblivious, additionally from the social foundation of the specialists, the ...
Show more content on Helpwriting.net ...
The ethnographer assembles information on the regular group life by watching while really taking
part in it. The work generally stretches out over no less than one full year, and is led in the
vernacular dialect. Perception is supplemented by exchange with nearby sources. The centre of
anthropological preparing for ethnographic examination comprises essential in the relative
investigation of ethnographic reports from different parts of the world. This study finishes ordinarily
in a first ethnographic experience, regularly enduring to the extent that two years, which is seriously
individual in both passionate and more general mental terms, and sometimes traumatic. A
considerable lot of the ethnographic monographs in the book index underneath, and the greater part
of the theses, infer from such an experience. For a few this was the main such encounter, and if
fruitful (from the expert perspective) the field notes may be dug for information to backing different
hypothetical contentions all through the resulting proficient

The Importance Of Globalization And Transnational Literatures
Globalization and transnational interconnections between nations' economies, the flow of people,
goods, and ideas have sparked a wake of scholarship and ethnographies that seek to record these
rapid changes. Globalization is transforming previously isolated communities into transnational
communities; these interconnections gain the attention of scholars that concentrate on studying the
materialist impact of globalization or immigration in relation to the binary between developed and
developing nations. However, these scholars tend to lose sight of the people caught up in these rapid
changes and due to the lack of non–hegemonic narratives the experiences of multiple communities
are disregarded (Chavez 2013 ). For example, researchers tend to be greatly interested in the
economic roles that migrants play in these transnational exchanges, when this is important, it is a
misfortune that researchers neglect to raise awareness on the sociocultural aspects of these
communities like their complex and dynamic identity journeys and identity formations (Simich
2009). Addressing this lack of concentration on more social aspects of historically underrepresented
communities, authors from these communities use transnational literature as a tool to communicate
their experiences while seeking to generate political consciousness in their audience (Dirlik
2002:355 & 217).
Furthermore, the historian Arif Dirlik merges into conversation the usage of literature to represent
transnational

Ethnographic Writing and Relationships with Research Subjects
Anthropologists conduct research in order to answer specific questions about a particular group of
people and their culture. Most anthropologists use fieldwork to collect their data, which is then
interpreted within their ethnographic writing. When collecting their data, anthropologists use many
different approaches such as developing relationships with their informants, but do not illustrate
these relationships in their actual writing. Anthropologists Claire E. Sterk and Philippe Bourgois are
two of the anthropologists that emphasize their relationships and the importance of gaining trust of
their informants in their perspective articles studied. In Bourgois' article "Crack in Spanish Harlem"
and Sterk's article "Tricking and Tripping: ... Show more content on Helpwriting.net ...
She found this method though tedious and painful an accurate and non–biased way of understanding
the true essence of prostitution and what the women have to go through. She stresses the importance
of trust in these relationships, because it would ultimately provide the specific information needed
for her ethnography. Keith Bletzer calls Sterk a 'field instrument' and says that the anthropologist,
"strives toward ethnography where self is the field instruments to learn about 'the other'" (Bletzer
2003: 261) She explains one particular way she was able to gain the women's trust, "Being
supportive and providing practical assistance were the most visible and direct ways for me as the
researcher to develop a relationship" (Sterk 2003: 6). She then continues to say, "Gradually, my role
allowed me to become a part of these women's lives and to build rapport with many of them" (Sterk
2003: 6). Being supportive towards the women and interacting in their daily lives opened doors to
closer observation to discover the difficulties they went through, which essentially was the purpose
of her studies (Sterk: 2003: 17). Bletzer writes:
"Sterk's description of the field provides a contrast to cross–cultural fieldwork as an initiatory means
to gain membership in the guild of anthropology; she describes entree and how data were
gathered..." (Bletzer 2001: 261).
This method though good, gave Sterk some difficulty, because of her personal relationship and

Media Consumption : An Ethnographic Account Of Women And...
On Media consumption: An ethnographic account of women and their relationship with television
program.
Abstract:
The field–based research is an attempt to understand how popular televised program impact the
everyday life of woman in India. It is an inquiry into how woman organize their everyday life
around these popular television serials and what meanings can be understood from such kind of
popular viewership. It is significant to mention here about the substantive number of viewership
these serials have and hence there is need for in depth sociological analysis of these programs from
the point of view of its audiences. It can not only help us understand the forms of popular media
consumption but it will also generate insights into the media–economy that underlies behind such
patterns of viewership. The ethnographic account of the women here is an attempt to understand
what is that makes these serials and televised programs popular among women and also what are the
cultural meanings that are imbued within such forms of media consumption.
Key words: Television, Ethnography, Gender identity and Communication, Media consumption.
Title: On Media consumption: An ethnographic account of women and their relationship with
television program.
Introduction:
Television occupies a central place within Indian social space. Whether it is discussion related to
family gossip or serious political debates, television remains an inescapable source of information in
gossips, in opinion

Understanding Cultures Through Ethnography

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