field research

Question 1

field research wel suited for:

Answer 1

-study of social processes over time
-recognize several nuances of attitude and behaviour that might escape researchers using other methods (looking at numbers)
-appropriate for the study of those attitudes and behaviours best understood within their natural setting

Question 2

elements of social life appropriate for field research

Answer 2

-practices: behaviour, talking, reading
-episodes: events such as divorce, crime, illness
-encounters: two or more people meeting and interacting
-roles and social types: analysis of positions people occupy and behaviour associated with those posititons
-groups and cliques
-settlements and habitats: small-scale ‘societies’ villages ghettos neighbourhoods as opposed to large such as nations
-subcultures and lifestyles

Question 3

reactivity

Answer 3

problem that subjects of social research may react to the fact of being studied, thus altering their behaviour from what it would have been normally
-may expel the researcher
-might modify speech and behaviour to appear more respectable than would otherwise be the case
-the social process itself might be radically changed

Question 4

symbolic realism

Answer 4

to indicate the need for social researchers to treat the beliefs they study as worthy of respect rather than as objects of ridicule

Question 5

emic(mimic) perspective

Answer 5

taking the point of view of those being studied

Question 6

etic perspective

Answer 6

distance from the native point of view in the interest of achieving more objectivity

Question 7

naturalism

Answer 7

an approach to field research based on the assumption that an objective social reality exists and can be observed and reported accurately

Question 8

ethnography

Answer 8

a report on social life that focuses on detailed and accurate description rather than explanation telling stories the way they really are, not how the researcher understands them

Question 9

virtual ethnography

Answer 9

for inquiry into cyberspacea

Question 10

auto-ethnography

Answer 10

intentionally assumes a personal stance, breaking with the general proscription against the researcher getting involved at that level

Question 11

institutional ethnography

Answer 11

links individuals and organization

Question 12

ethnomethodology

Answer 12

study of social life that focuses on the discovery of implicit, usually unspoken assumptions and agreements; often involves the intentional breaking of agreements as a way of revealing their existence: inductive approach to study of social life that attempts to generate a theory from the constant comparison of unfolding observations

Question 13

case study

Answer 13

the in-depth examination of a single instance of some social phenomenon such as a village, family or a juvenile gang

Question 15

extended case method

Answer 15

Michael Burawoy, case study observations are used to discover flaws in and to improve existing social theories

Question 16

institutional ethnography

Answer 16

personal experiences of individuals are used to reveal power relationships and other characteristics of the institutions within which they operate
-inquiry does not focus on the subject but starts with individuals but procedes to uncover the institutional power relations

Question 17

PAR, Participatory action research

Answer 17

the people being studied are given control over the purpose and procedures of the research

Question 18

emancipatory research

Answer 18

research conducted for the purpose of benefiting disadvantaged groups

Question 19

rapport

Answer 19

open and trusting relationship; especially important in qualitative research between researchers and the people they are observing

Question 20

qualitative interview

Answer 20

contrasted with a survey interviewing, qualitative interview is based on a set of topics to be discussed, rather than the use of standardized questions, know which topics but no set questions

Question 21

7 stages interview process

Answer 21

-thematizing; clarifying purpose and concepts
-designing; laying out process
-interviewing; doing interview
-transcribing; creating a written text of the interviews
-analysing; determining meaning of materials
-verifying; checking reliability and validity materials
-reporting; telling others what you have learned

Question 22

focus group

Answer 22

group of subjects interviewed together, prompting a discussion (market researchers, ask a group of consumers to evaluate product)

Question 23

focus group advantages

Answer 23

-capturing real-life data in social environment
-flexibility
-high face validity
-speedy results
-low in cost

Question 24

focus group disadvantages

Answer 24

• researches has less control than individual interviews
  -data is difficult to analyse
  -moderators require special skills
  -difference between groups can be troublesome
  -groups difficult to assemble
  -discussion must be conducted in a conducive environment