Ethnographic Research Design

Ethnographic research design is a method of qualitative research that involves immersion in a group of people to learn their customs and traditions from the inside. Ethnography is also a name for a written report about the conducted research and its results.

This method is flexible and allows you to get a more accurate understanding of the processes within a community or organization under research. Nevertheless, it also evokes specific difficulties and challenges.

Why Do Researchers Use Ethnography?

The origins of this research design go back to anthropology. It was used to investigate the peculiarities of living within a community of an isolated tribe while sharing their habitat to understand the traditions and cultures better. The research of this type can be extended for years.

Nowadays, ethnography is used in other fields of social studies, apart from anthropology. Researchers practice it to study the ways of life within specific demographic layers in their own surroundings.

This research design is also called participant observation and common for studying the members of gangs, fun clubs, groups of company workers, or representatives of specific occupations.

As with other research methods, ethnographic design has its benefits and possible drawbacks.

Ethnographic Design Advantages

The most essential advantage of the method is the immediate access of researchers to the genuine culture and lifestyles of a group. They learn the details first-hand by observing the behavioral characteristics and interactions displayed in various contexts. The information is more authentic and unbiased. Moreover, a specific phenomenon can be seen in dynamics, so such data cannot be gathered only through interviewing.

The method is pretty flexible and open. Its aim is not to test a pre-established hypothesis or verify a theory. It can help achieve the live exploration of different social and cultural aspects of the group and its settings.

Ethnographic Design Disadvantages

If we consider the disadvantages of this design, the first we think about is time consumption. You need to spend at least several weeks or even months in the environment together with the group you are researching to make up an unbiased and representative picture. This way requires accurate planning and a lot of effort.

In addition, this method is rather risky because an observer may be biased. The presentation of an objective interpretation requires more psychological knowledge and communication skills. You will also need to remain at the necessary distance from the individual members of the group not to be influenced by them.

Moreover, there can be specific ethical considerations, especially when you deal with sensitive information or you need to make up a fake story about your appearance within the group.

Consider Various Approaches to Ethnography

There are several approaches to ethnographic research design that also have their advantages and disadvantages.

Open and Closed Settings

The settings of the research design mean the environment the study is conducted in. It shows the community you are observing in its everyday activities. Such settings can be open and closed.

The open setting is public, and it does not impose any formal barriers. For example, you may need to research the community of rock band fans. It is not difficult to enter this community if you say that you love the band too. However, you need to know a lot about the group and the ways its supporters behave to show their devotion.

The closed setting is private, and it is more difficult to access it. Such a setting may involve a company or its departments, a school community, or cult followers. The group has already established specific boundaries, so you need complete immersion. Though, you cannot access it all at once. You will need to accept a certain role or just explain your presence to the community members.

The Difference Between Overt and Covert Ethnography

When researchers choose an overt approach, they speak openly about their intentions and admit their role to the members of a community. It is easier to implement for ethical reasons because the participants can choose whether to accept or refuse their involvement in the research. However, there is always a risk that people will not behave naturally when they know that they take part in a study.

The covert ethnography is hidden. Researchers do not explain why exactly they have appeared in the community but invent some other reasons for being there. This kind of approach is pretty helpful when participants do not welcome any strangers in their community. On the other hand, when researchers hide their role, they deceive people, and it is not ethical.

Active and Passive Observations

Different contexts may offer differences in roles to researchers. Some contexts may allow more active participation, while others do not welcome any activity on the part of observers, leaving only passive roles for them.

An active role implies full integration, carrying out community tasks, and taking part in all the activities, similar to other members of the community. People will feel more comfortable about your presence with this type of approach. However, you can become a disruptor of the common routine, so there is a risk of missing some important details of the community's performance.

When researchers are passive, they cannot participate in the activities. They just stay back and behave as distant observers. It provides more space for accurate observation and even taking notes. Though, the community members may do something in an unnatural way if they know they are observed by someone.

As an observer, you need to be flexible to regulate your part of involvement. You may be able to participate in some activities, while participation in other practices may be undesirable.

How to Get Access to a Community

Gaining access to a community may be challenging. This possibility may vary depending on the peculiarities of this community and its activities. You may try different techniques to get access. For instance, you can start going to all the matches of the team whose fans you want to research. You will get acquainted with many people and speak to them. If you want to access the business community, try to get in touch with its management and ask for permission to conduct your research there. Or you may perform covert research if you are already involved in the community’s activities.

Think about alternatives if access to the desired environment is not available. These alternatives should provide you with the same deal and quality of information. Access is always quite sensitive, so you should be ready for alternatives to find the most appropriate approach.

How to Work with Informants

Informants are people who are the researcher’s primary contacts and facilitate the study in some way. Such a person may occupy a high position in a company and can allow you to contact the employees. Or it can be a reputable member of a community who can give you advice on how to enter it.

Never rely too much on a single informant. Their vision of the community can be subjective and biased. It can even be unrepresentative if you consider a whole group. The informant can also try to correspond to your expectations and not act spontaneously. That is why having a variety of contacts within the group is pretty helpful.

How to Observe a Group and Take Notes

Observation of a group from the inside is a focus of ethnography. You can record the observations in the process while being immersed in the environment. You usually take these notes by hand or record voices as an alternative. You can record anything that may be interesting for your final written ethnography - conversations, people’s interactions, specific phenomena, and preliminary conclusions. Pay attention to body language, repeated phrases, similarities and differences between the members of the community, and their emotional reactions.

Do not hesitate to write down the things that do not correspond to your initial views and expectations, everything that can turn out to be relevant. Try to keep extra notes in case you have skipped or missed something important. Make your field notes as detailed and consistent as possible. Regularly go over your notes and add some details to them. Keep them well-organized, including locations, dates, and other supplementary information.

How to Write an Ethnography

Creating an ethnography is the last stage of your research design. Go through the field notes and formulate all the results and conclusions based on what you have observed. Consider the behavioral changes and dynamics of all the processes you have seen.

Ethnography may be written in different forms - theses, articles, or even books. They do not follow the regular structure of scientific papers, but they need accurate introductions and consistent conclusions. Or you may prefer to use a conventional scientific paper structure, especially when you have used other research methods in your study.

The main purpose of an ethnography paper is to give a detailed account of everything you have observed in the setting.

Final Thoughts

Now, you know what the ethnographic research design is and how you can use it for your research. Mind the tips provided here to make your paper convincing and successful. Try to plan all your work beforehand and take into account the time and effort needed for the project. Be careful about details and ethical considerations. If you see that implementing this kind of research design is impossible, try to look for alternatives.

We hope that this article will be helpful for your project and further academic advance.