Chapter 2: Ethnography/Participant Observation

Question 1

ethnography

Answer 1

a naturalistic method based on studying people in their own environment in order to understand the meanings they attribute to their activities; also, the written work that results from the study

Question 2

participant observation

Answer 2

a methodology associated with ethnography whereby the researcher both observes and becomes a member in a social setting

Question 3

rapport

Answer 3

a positive relationship often characterized by mutual trust or sympathy

Question 4

field notes

Answer 4

detailed notes taken by an ethnographer describing their activities and interactions, which later become the basis of the analysis

Question 5

autoethnography

Answer 5

a form of participant observation in which the feelings and actions of the researcher become a focal point of the ethnographic study

Question 6

thick description

Answer 6

the presentation of detailed data on interactions and meaning within a cultural context, from the perspective of its members

Question 7

relexivity

Answer 7

how the identity and activities of the researcher influence what is going on in the field setting

Question 8

grounded theory

Answer 8

an inductive method of generating theory from data by creating categories in which to place data and then looking for relationships among categories