PARTICIPANT OBSERVATION

Question 1

What are the different types of observation?

Answer 1

1. Non-participant observation
2. Participant observation
3. Overt observation
4. Covert observation

Question 2

What are the 2 main issues when conducting an observation?

Answer 2

1. Getting in, staying in and getting out of the group being study
2. Whether to use overt or covert observation

Question 3

Steps to get into a group:

Answer 3

1. Making contact
   - Depends on personal skills, the right connections, or even pure chance
   - Fairhurst (1977); was hospitalised so conducted a study on being a patient
2. Acceptance
   - Helps to make friends with a key individual
   - The researcher’s age, gender, class or ethnicity may be a barrier

Question 4

Staying in a group:

Answer 4

1. ‘Going native’

- Punch (1979); found himself acting as a police-officer himself

Question 5

Overt observation advantages:

Answer 5

• Avoids ethical problems of obtaining data by deception
• Allows the researcher to ask questions
• Observer can take notes openly

Question 6

Overt observation disadvantages:

Answer 6

• The group may refuse entry

- It risks creating the Hawthorne Effect

Question 7

Covert observation advantages:

Answer 7

• Reduces the risk of the Hawthorne Effect

Question 8

Covert observation disadvantages:

Answer 8

• Keeping up an act can be very challenging
• Must rely on memory
• Can’t ask open questions

Question 9

Covert observation Ethical Issues:

Answer 9

• Deception
• Can’t get informed consent
• May have to get involved in immoral or illegal activities

Question 10

What are the advantages of participant observation?

Answer 10

1. Validity
   - Shows how they really live
   - Rich qualitative data
2. Insight
   - ‘Verstehen’ is obtained
3. Flexibility
   - New explanations can be formulated
4. Practical Advantages
   - Can build a rapport

Question 11

What are the practical disadvantages of participant observation?

Answer 11

1. Time consuming
   - Whyte’s study took 4 years
2. Stressful and demanding
3. Personal Characteristics matter

Question 12

Ethical problems with PO?

Answer 12

• Deceives people in order to obtain information

Question 13

Problems with representativeness in PO?

Answer 13

• Group is usually small and selected haphazardly

Question 14

Problems with reliability in PO?

Answer 14

• Depends so much on the personal skills and characteristics of a lone researcher
• Qualitative data makes it difficult to make comparisons

Question 15

Problems with bias and lack of objectivity in PO?

Answer 15

• Risk of ‘going native’

- Sociologist may have to conceal some of the events that happened so the data isn’t an objective account

Question 16

Problems with validity in PO?

Answer 16

• The observer selects what facts they believe are worth recording

Question 17

Problems with a lack of a concept of structure in PO?

Answer 17

• Marxist and Functionalist view; because it focuses on the ‘micro’ level of actors’ meanings, PO ignores wider structural forces such as class inequality or norms and values
• Structuralist view; will never give us the entire picture