As I have been up for long hours and thinking I felt that I was confused about whether "joining" the group was necsesary. As I pondered it I began to think that what, in my mind separates ehtno. form other qual. work is that you try to weave yourself with in the society no matter what your question is. If you are not "invited" or able to get in you do the periphary ethnography. This is what my sleep deprived brain has been pondering. So if I want to understand teacher student interactions around behavior I can just watch but that is a more observational qual. study but to the inner workings with as "thick description" as possible is what makes ehtno. ethno.
Thoughts?
John
3 comments:
To me, the key difference is in the goal of the research. Are you interested in describing interactions between teachers and students as an observer or are you interested in describing their interactions along with the reasoning, interpretation, and meaning associated with those interactions for the teachers and students? It is this second goal that seems like the sort of deeper understanding of "members' meanings" that is the cornerstone of ethnographic research.
In that case, I think that it is important to establish a long-term relationship with the people you are trying to understand. Full membership may not really be possible, but long-term relationships might be able to help you understand how another person understands her world. The ethnographer doesn't have to become a heroin addict in order to develop an understanding of how heroin addicts live.
~~ Melissa
Dam! I was looking for a way to become a heroin addict and justify it!
I agree with you. Understanding that deeper meaning and "culture" is as you say the corner stone of ethnography! I think that is why I like it so much as even if I choose to do quantitative methods my frame of reference will be rooted in the intricate human nature and interactions which make human sciences so amazing to be a part of.
John
I heard some researchers used drugs to understand the way drag addicts think of the world...but it might not be true...though that's what "participant observation" really is, right?
I think "joining group" gives different perspective toward the culture you are looking at or attempt to understand. People give me different reactions when I carry myself as American than when I act as a Japanese national(that's what Japanese Americans call me! A new lingo I learned here). But as Melissa said, obtaining a full membership is impossible, and if you achieved to be part of the community, you sill have a side as an outside. Well, my take for this issue is that we all have a choice to take either "insider" or "outside" positions. We see things through different lenses, so it might be fun to look at some phenomena through a lens of "outsider" which could provide us a new perspective on culture.
Fumi
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