Ethnographic field assignment

a. Formulate a research question or purpose (related to your research topic) that is appropriate for an ethnographic study.

b. Select a communication context in which to pursue your question. Your topic should further scholarly understanding of communication and/ or respond to a need in society.

c. Make arrangements to observe communication in the context. Depending on the situation and your purpose, you may be a complete observer or a participant observer, and your observations may be overt or covert.

d. If you will be interacting with participants, or if the names of participants will be known to you, you must provide an informed consent form for them to sign.

e. Go to the context (field) and make observations. Write detailed field notes as well as your personal impressions. These should include a description of the context, and the verbal and nonverbal communication in the context.

f. Type your field notes.

g. Use the information in Chapter 3 of this textbook to analyze and code your field notes.

h. Answer the following questions:

i. How did you approach this exercise? Did you have a list of questions to ask or things to observe? Why or why not?

ii. What was the most difficult part of this assignment for you?

iii. Would you change anything the next time you engage in participant observation?

i. Summarize what you learned from the participant observation (approximately four pages). You will include your analysis here.